05 What is the most important piece of clothing in office attire?
The default setting here is the jacket – and it’s the wrong one. Too many men assume that by throwing a suit jacket on over a work shirt and jeans, they’ve adopted the template for business casual. Instead, it’s the corporate equivalent of being made to do PE in your pants. A far more sensible and stylish option to is to build up from the bottom.
“Wear a well-cut pair of trousers made from quality wool and you’re halfway to a respectable office outfit,” says Grant. “This can be paired with a softer-collared shirt or a simple crewneck and lightweight coat.”
But if you’re ditching the jacket, the question of proportion changes. “If I’m just wearing trousers with a shirt,” says Charlie Casely-Hayford, “I go for ones with a slightly shorter rise – the distance from crotch to waist – to balance the silhouette.” Looking sharp is, as always, in the details.