So I was reading through my weekly Houston Business Journal and came across this very interesting blog post by Greg Barr. I don't recall ever seeing any real analysis completed with regards to dressing well. So I was pleasantly surprised to see that Greg had taken the time and effort to publish the results below. Enjoy and be amazed!
Can that power suit really seal the deal?
Houston Business Journal - by Greg Barr
Date: Tuesday, January 18, 2011, 9:00am CST
- Greg Barr
- Managing Editor
- Email: gbarr@bizjournals.com
A new study says that not only do sharp-dressed men excel in business — you know, the dress-for-success adage — but they apparently can also add luster to their love life if they make a habit of hanging out in a haute haberdashery.
According to the national survey by Kelton Research, which sampled more than 1,000 men and women over age 25, 91 percent of Americans say a man’s physical appearance can be enhanced by a nicely tailored piece of clothing, and 75 percent believe well-dressed men are more successful in business than casually dressed colleagues.
The survey was commissioned by Houston-based Men’s Wearhouse Inc.
Here are some other findings:
• 64 percent of women say they are more likely to marry a well-dressed man than one who is disheveled. (Once the honeymoon is over, out come the baggy sweats);
• Eight of 10 women say they would give up something — such as going out to dinner, using a cell phone or even having sex for a whole year — in exchange for a better-dressed partner; and
• 32 percent of women say they have actually tossed out some of their partners’ clothing in disgust (in some advanced countries, this is grounds for divorce).
Journalists have been stereotyped for years as bad dressers. And because I started my career in print as a sports writer, I felt an obligation to appear particularly disheveled.
But a gig as an investigative reporter in Toronto with the Financial Times of Canada took my wardrobe (and wallet) in a new direction. It was a bankers’ suit every day (except for casual Fridays).
And it worked. With my three-piece blue power suit surrounding me like a superhero’s cape, I could wade into the midst of a group of CEOs and talk their language, even if I did need a translator at first.
Still, dress codes can go a bit far, as Swiss bank UBS AG found out this week after its 44-page employee style guide was plastered across the Internet. Employees are all told to wear wristwatches to “signal trustworthiness and a serious concern for punctuality.”
I think dressing well definitely has merit. But nobody touches my faded 1989 Rolling Stones Steel Wheels tour T-shirt with the holes in it. Nobody.
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