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It's solid, though perhaps not universal, advice. (Immediate excep-
tions come to mind: pilot, horror movie victim, Pope.) But even
in more typical office jobs, the workplace "uniform" looks a lot
different from even half a decade ago. The ties, heels and suits
that once worked as hard as we did have all but retired in favour
of decidedly more casual attire.
We can thank the pandemic, in part, for that. "I think we were
all 'Zoom chic' during
COVID—business on the top, party on the
bottom," says Ashley Freeborn, co-founder of Vancouver's Smash
+ Tess. Freeborn launched her company in 2016, long before
shelter-in-place became a thing, but her romper-focused brand
happened to be exactly the sort of clothing that many new
WFH-
ers sought out in 2020. Pyjamas and pyjama-adjacent pants were
commonplace, if not expected. And beyond the simple joy of
breezing through the workday in athleisure with your cat curled
up in your lap, this era of work clothing—or lack thereof—taught us
something big. "It really showed us that we can be relaxed in our
dress and still get the job done," says Freeborn.
We found the power suit's kryptonite: a work ethic that tran-
scends style (thanks, capitalism!). But now, in our post(-ish)
pandemic landscape, we've somehow managed not to devolve our
office wardrobes into complete sweatpant slop. "Because of the
hybrid work model, people like to 'bring it' when they come into
the office," Freeborn explains. Shadi Ahmadisagheb, co-founder
and designer at Vancouver-based apparel brand Poplin & Co.,
agrees. "Coming out of the pandemic, there was a burst of people
being like, 'Okay, I want to look good again,'" she says. "When
people are only going into work two or three days, they're excited
to dress up—they put in more effort."
Poplin & Co.'s bright, patterned button-ups walk a careful line:
somewhere between stuffy tailored shirt and goofy tourist garb.
Ahmadisagheb and partner Antonio Krezic launched the biz in
2018. "We started the company because we didn't see a lot of
fun prints for men," says Ahmadisagheb. Now, the pair say that
people of all genders are embracing bolder styles at work. "When
you're wearing bright, colourful things, you attract other people,"
Ahmadisagheb notes.
Dress for
the job
you want,
right?
All in One
Ashley Freeborn is co-founder of
Vancouver's Smash + Tess, a clothing
company that puts comfort first.
