Better for Wear

“The office wardrobe plays an important role in climbing up the career ladder. To make a lasting impression,one has to be presentable. When you are well-dressed,your confidence level is high and your performance improves. A well-groomed,smartly attired person will always be welcomed at a workplace,” says Fashionista School of Fashion Technology’s centre head Honii Sandhu.

Clothes,Sandhu points out,is a frequent topic of gossip in office. “Don’t let that affect you,rather focus on the details and try to build up an image. Clothes,make-up,even the shoes you wear reflects the kind of person you are,” she adds. Sandhu’s advice is to keep it simple — clean and well-ironed clothes,with soft colours a must during summer. For women,low necklines are suitable only for evening wear,she says. “In office,the idea is to look decent but stylish.”

Members of the city’s fashion fraternity feel that while implementing a standard dress code in the workplace can do good,too much of formal dressing have a dull,deadening effect. Women,especially,need to be extra careful so that what they wear is not perceived as too provocative. “Always remember the cardinal rule: you are at work,not play. You can look smart without looking inviting,” says Prabhdeep Brar,assistant professor at Panjab University’s Institute of Fashion Technology. Unless one has a casual professional environment,it is necessary to maintain a ‘working wardrobe’,she adds. “Whether it is colour combination,hair-do or make-up,keep it trendy,clean,crisp and subtle,” she says.

In fact,in a study conducted by TeamLease on ‘Grooming at Workplace’,over 89 per cent of the respondents felt that “style of dressing has a long term impact on the overall image of an individual”. “Well-dressed people are taken more seriously at their workplace,” says Surabhi Mathur-Gandhi,general manager,Permanent Staffing,TeamLease Services. “The youth today wants to be taken seriously. So you have to dress accordingly,” she says.

Interestingly,around 70 per cent of the respondents in the study agree that men spend as much time,if not more,focusing on grooming as do women. INIFD president Aditi Srivastava,however,disagrees. “Indian men still have a long way to go when it comes to power dressing,but women,well they have already come a long way,” she says,citing the recurring image of the working woman,looking chic in her business suit while flaunting her Blackberry.

Srivastava does not feel that wearing long pencil skirts and smart jackets is necessary for achieving that smart poise. “I’ve seen women look floppy and frumpy in skirts and trousers and exquisite in salwar kameez. It all boils down to whether you mean business or not. You have to score in the boardroom,where a smart appearance will ensure that you start out on the right foot,” she says. So,if western corporate dressing is not your thing,then go for sarees,which is a better option than salwar kameez. “Clothes are therapeutic,they boost your morale. If you look good,you’ll do good,” she sums up.