Stephen,
I’m a VP for a large open-line manufacturer. Six regional managers report directly to me, and they handle the first round of interviews for most field sales positions. Once candidates become finalists, they come to me. You get the idea.
Maybe I’m becoming old-school, but lately I feel like nobody knows how to dress for an interview.
I’m not expecting suits and ties on Teams calls. But if someone is interviewing for a serious six-figure sales role, shouldn’t they at least look like they’re dressed for an interview? Same as you would in person (and for some jobs, that may mean a suit).
Recently, I’ve interviewed candidates wearing wrinkled quarter-zips, faded polos, untucked shirts, and fashion sneakers that cost more than a decent suit. Some look more ready for happy hour than a meeting with clients or dealers.
On the women’s side, I sometimes see beautiful handbags and shoes, but the overall look can feel more social than executive. Nobody needs designer labels. A polished blazer and a professional look from Kohl’s works just fine.
Maybe remote work changed everything. But I still believe the way you present yourself says something about how seriously you take the opportunity.
Am I overreacting?
Signed,
It’s called Business Casual for a Reason
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Dear Business Casual,
No, you are not overreacting. You are saying what a lot of hiring managers are thinking, and what many of my clients tell me after interviews. People have gotten sloppy. Not everyone, but enough that it has become a real subject.
And I would stop blaming remote work. That excuse is getting old. America is back in the office. Major banks, law firms, private equity firms, manufacturers, dealers, design firms, and showrooms are all pushing people back because they know business is learned in person. You learn by sitting in meetings, watching how senior people handle clients, seeing how people present themselves, how they dress, how they carry themselves, and even how they recover when something goes wrong. You cannot learn all of that sitting at your kitchen table in a sweatshirt.
Somewhere along the way, people confused casual with careless. That is the problem.
I hear the same thing you are describing all the time. Men show up with wrinkled shirts, messy beards, overgrown scruff, hair that looks like they forgot the interview was today, sneakers that may be expensive but still look wrong, and jackets that look like they came out of the trunk of a car. Women can make the same mistake in a different way. Great handbag, nice shoes, but then the jacket is wrinkled, the hair looks rushed, the nails are chipped, or the outfit feels more like dinner with friends than meeting with a client. Nobody needs designer labels. This is not about money. Some of the sharpest executives I know can walk into Kohl’s and come out looking more polished than someone who spent ten times as much. Ask the Kohl’s mom!
And before anyone says, “But Stephen, we are in design,” let me stop you right there. I know plenty of people at firms like Gensler. They design for bankers, law firms, private equity companies, major corporations, and hospitality brands. They are creative people, and their clients want them to be creative, not stiff or corporate. So no, they do not dress like the clients every day, nor should they. But when they pitch those clients, they understand the assignment. They know how to present themselves for the room they are walking into. And the funny thing is, designers are usually stylish even when they are casual. Do you get that?
And by the way, you are interviewing for a sales job, not a job as a designer. Do you get that too?
An interview is the same thing. You are pitching yourself. The manager interviewing you is the client. Dress for the client. This is not brain surgery.
That does not mean you need to wear a suit and tie. In some companies, that might even look wrong. But there is a big difference between looking modern and looking lazy. There is a big difference between creative and sloppy. There is a big difference between relaxed and careless.
The way you dress tells people whether you understand the opportunity. In sales especially, your appearance is part of your brand. Clients notice. Dealers notice. Designers notice. Executives notice. Hiring managers notice. They may not say it out loud, but believe me, they notice. And when you do not get that job, sometimes it really is as simple as the way you dressed and presented yourself in the interview. Hiring managers tell me all the time that the way you dress and look can outweigh qualifications when candidates are otherwise close. Sorry, but they do.
My advice to candidates is simple. Before the interview, look at the company. Look at their website, LinkedIn, leadership photos, showroom events, trade show pictures — anything you can find. See how their people present themselves. Then show up just a little sharper than that. Not fake. Not overdressed. Just polished, neat, and intentional. And if you do not like what you see when you look at how they dress, then maybe do not apply there. Nobody is forcing you into a dress culture that is not you. But every company has a dress culture, whether they admit it or not.
And if all of that sounds exhausting to you — if you really want to work somewhere you can be completely casual, never think about grooming, never iron a shirt, never polish a shoe, and not worry very much about how you present yourself — I have two words for you: Trader Joe’s.
But if you want a six-figure sales role, a leadership position, or a job representing a serious brand in front of clients, then business casual still needs to include the word “business.”
Signed, Stephen