How to dress to impress at the office

Professional service industries such as law and management consultancy consistently wear formal business attire. This formality lends a certain sense of gravitas to the individuals wearing it, inspiring confidence in their clients.

But what’s acceptable? Top end matching suits in conservative colors with ties and minimal, high quality accessories of a correspondingly conservative nature are ideal for business formal. The legal TV drama program, Suits, illustrates the beautiful, high-end outfits that epitomize this mode of attire.

Do not, however, mistake high-end luxurious outfits for clothing that is overly tight-fitting or revealing. High standards of decency and decorum should always come first and foremost. Sites like Banana Republic, Holt Renfrew and Nordstrom have a selection of suits and business attire for both men and women.

The debatable point here is that of high heels. Though widely regarded as the smartest form of footwear for women, a recent outcry against this has challenged sexist expectations that women must wear heels in order to conform to the formal business attire dress code. A recent government report actually concluded that such stipulations are against the law, with employers being either ignorant to or uncaring of the pain that heels cause women. This pain is felt within an average of 1 hour 7 minutes of putting on high heels.