Different Types Of Business Attire (Menswear)

By Keyvan Nosrati
•
19 Nov, 2019
•

Back in the day, there was really only one type of business attire: men wore suits, women wore dresses, and varying from that was pretty much unacceptable. Nowadays, some offices are perfectly fine with you showing up in a t-shirt and jeans and there are plenty of hoodie-wearing CEOs. On the flip side, you probably won’t have an appointment with your lawyer or banker where they’re hanging out in jeans and a Hawaiian shirt.

People know that they’ll be judged based on their appearance and whether or not that’s a good thing is a philosophical discussion for another time. What matters is that the pressure is real. This pressure can cause people to spend thousands of dollars on plastic surgery, Botox, and other cosmetic procedures, when in most cases, all that’s needed is some fashion advice and new clothes.

Part of knowing how to dress well is knowing how to dress for a particular occasion or setting. A great example of this is dentists. You’ll never really get a good look at what your dentist is wearing because they’ve probably got a lab coat on when you see them. Underneath that lab coat, they might be wearing fairly formal business wear or business casual. They’ll rarely be wearing casual clothing, even if you don’t see their clothes. That’s because the other people in the office do see what they’re wearing, and dressier clothing can suggest confidence - and instill it.

We’re going to go over five different types of business attire starting with the most casual and working our way up to the most formal. You’ll need to read and understand your work environment in order to know which style best suits the business that you’re in. This article is tailored towards menswear, but there’s nothing stopping anyone of any gender from wearing these looks.

Casual

This is the style preferred by the Silicon Valley, hoodie-loving CEOs we brought up earlier. Casual work environments might allow t-shirts, jeans, running shoes, even ripped clothing (as long as it’s not revealing). There are very few rules to a casual environment but use your head - don’t wear anything with offensive slogans and consider wearing an outfit that at least kind of matches. A lot of the companies that allow casual wear do so because they value non-conformity, so feel free to get creative in these environments. You can get some casual clothing inspiration here, though some of those looks might fit better into our next category.

Smart Casual

A quick note before we get started on smart casual - there’s some debate as to whether or not this style is more formal or less formal than business casual. We’re taking it as the more casual of the two, but you might end up in debates about that - both styles are similar because they play with both formal and casual elements.

Smart casual is the casual style dressed up. You won’t find too many hoodies and jeans here, and if you do, they’ll be paired with more formal attire. Primer has an excellent article on smart casual - it’s more a vibe than a hard and fast set of rules. Want to look great at a business meeting, on a date, or just walking around town? Smart casual is your friend. You might wear a t-shirt with a blazer and pair it with dark, slim fit jeans. You might wear a bomber jacket with a fitted, patterned shirt and chinos. When smart casual is done right, you’ll look better-dressed than casual and bolder than formal. It might be the hardest style on the list to nail, but you’ll know it when you see it.

Business Casual

Smart casual might be thought of as casual wear you can sport at a meeting - business casual is business attire that you can wear out. You won’t see t-shirts in business casual, and denim isn’t as common in the style as chinos, corduroy and the like are where it’s at. Knitted sweaters, fitted shirts, and blazers are all commonplace here. Unlike the smart casual style, running shoes aren’t the way to go with business casual, no matter how immaculate or well-matched they are. For footwear, desert boots, derby shoes, and loafers are all good bets.

Business Professional (Traditional Business)

This is the formalwear that the bankers and lawyers we talked about earlier will wear. It’s also great for meetings with high-profile clients or any time you want to maintain an air of professionalism. Business professional is appropriate for most interviews, too. You’ll want a fitted suit and a tie. Make sure the tie isn’t too bold (though that can be appropriate on some occasions). You’ll also want to wear a belt, and for footwear, opt for conservative options like oxfords or loafers. Watches are a particularly nice addition to this type of look, as are cufflinks. Fit is essential in all fashion but in business professional especially.

Business Formal

This style is basically Business Professional+. Wear your nicest suit, your best shoes, and consider a bow tie, though a nice tie will do just fine. Accessorise, but minimally, only using your finest cuff links or watch. This style is reserved for very important meetings, galas, and the like.

Almost any workplace will fall into one of these categories, but most of the time, they won’t fall very neatly and what is acceptable in fashion is in a constant state of flux. As a rule, if you’re not sure about the dress code of a place, it’s better to overdress than underdress. You might feel a bit silly, but you can always dress down by, say, taking off your blazer. Even if you can’t dress down easily, it’s better for people to have the impression that you’re overeager than for them to think you don’t care, in most cases.