Sneakers, elastic pants: People are changing office clothes amid COVID | Health and fitness

Welcome to the office dress code after the pandemic.

After working remotely in sweats and yoga pants for two years, many Americans are rethinking their wardrobes to balance comfort and professionalism as offices reopen. They’re giving the structured suits, front pants, and pencil skirts they wore before the COVID-19 pandemic, a new look. This has led to retailers and brands scrambling to cater to the fashion needs of workers for the future of work.

“Feeling comfortable is more important than being very organized,” said Kay Martin Pence, 58, who returned to her Indianapolis office last month in sleek jeans and baggy T-shirts after working remotely in leggings and slippers for two years. “Why do my buttons feel stiff when I don’t have to?”

Before COVID-19, Martin Pence used to wear formal pants with jackets for her drug company. She’s back in heels, but lower, and says she’ll never wear dress pants again to the office.

Even before the pandemic, Americans dressed casually at work. Time spent sweating accelerated the shift from “casual work” to “work rest”.

Dressing back to the office is still a social experience, said Adam Galinsky, a social psychologist at Columbia Business School who coined the term “closed cognition,” or how what people wear affects the way they think.

“I think it’s going to be casual,” Galinsky said, “but it probably isn’t. People will consciously think, ‘Am I dressed appropriately for being in the office?'” “They will think about what they are doing, the context in which they are in, and the social comparisons to what others will do.”

Steve Smith, CEO of outdoor sportswear company LL Bean, said people are getting out of “traditional attire” — whatever form it might take.

“They expect more flexible working hours, to be able to work in a hybrid model, and to be comfortable – as they were at home,” he said. “Some office costumes, and wardrobes, change and change. There is no reason why they cannot be permanent.”

Data from market research firm NPD Group and retailers reflect changing trends.

Wire-free bras now account for more than 50% of the total non-sports bra market in the United States, reflecting a long-term trend, according to the NPD. The NPD said sales of stylish shoes have rebounded since 2021, but they are still 34% below 2019 levels and likely driven by the return of social events, not the office. Instead, casual sneakers are now the most common footwear for work.

Rentals of jackets nearly doubled in February from last year, clothing rental company Rent the Runway said, reflecting a return to offices. But its customers choose colorful versions such as pastels and fabrics such as lightweight tweed, linens and twill. Anushka Salinas, president and chief operating officer, said “business formal” rents – traditional workwear such as basic sheaths, skirts and jackets – are about half what they were in 2019.

Stitch Fix, a personalized shopping and styling service, men are increasingly choosing options like hiking and golf pants for the office. In the first three months of the year, revenue for this type of apparel nearly tripled a year earlier.

The company said polo shirts have replaced button-down collars for men, and there is strong demand for pull-on pants. The ratio of stretchy work pants to those with buttons or zippers on the Stitch Fix was one to one in 2019; Now three to one.

However, other workers are excited to get dressed again.

Emily Kirchner, 42, of Stephensville, Michigan, who works in communications for a major hardware maker, said she invests more in her wardrobe when she returns to the office. She used to wear Stitch Fix tops and leggings in her pre-pandemic days. Now, it has switched to a service of high-end jeans, blouses and jackets.

“It’s fun to dress up,” said Kirshner, who had a baby early in the pandemic and wants to wear clothes that don’t make her look like what she calls a “false mother.” “It kind of feels like going back to school.”

Retailers have had to focus on the changing demands of Americans throughout the pandemic and now again with many returning to offices. For example, high-end department store Nordstrom opened women’s denim stores to highlight its expanded selection as it sees more women wearing jeans at work.

Even the Department of Supply, a company looking to make work clothes as comfortable as workout clothes, has had to make major changes. When the pandemic hit, he was stuck with piles of tailored pants and jackets from performance fabrics deemed irrelevant to the remote workforce.

The Boston-based company was started by alumni of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and they quickly re-engineered the elements, sticking elastic waistbands and removing the zippers. She also trimmed the edges on her trouser suits to give them “sneaker” cuts.

With workers back in the office, the Department of Supply maintains the relaxed look and sneaker cuts and has permanently ditched the zippers — all of its pants have belts or elastic bands. She’s also reinventing her custom suit.

“The new challenge is: How do I look stylish when I’m in person without sacrificing comfort?” said Jihan Amarasiriwardena, Co-Founder and President.

The 200-year-old Brooks Brothers haberdashery faced an even bigger challenge—it never followed the casual office wear trend several years ago like its competitors. Under new owner and CEO Ken Ohashi, the company has successfully introduced convenient methods for reinventing post-bankruptcy.

Now, 45% of its offering is sports casual wear like sweaters and polo shirts. Ohashi said that number was 25% before the pandemic.

He said the T-shirts are back in action as workers return to their desks. But Brooks Brothers adds a twist: a stretchy version of their cotton-knit shirts with the comfort of a polo. They also offer colored jackets.

“Man is now attracted to modernity, new color, new typography, and style of renewal,” Ohashi said. And historically, this guy came in, and he was buying a black, charcoal, and black suit. He definitely wants to mix it up and I think that’s here to stay.”

Associated Press contributing writer David Sharp of Freeport, Maine.

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