Since its beginnings in the 1930s, the look of women’s workwear has gone through a number of fashion makeovers, yet when most people think of corporate attire, they are more likely to be thinking of the 1980s and 1990s business woman heading out to work in a sharp tailored suit.
While these styles were designed to evoke professionalism, more recent years have seen a noticeable shift in corporate workwear trends towards styles that effortlessly merge comfort with functionality, movement and self-expression.
Gen Z’s Influence
As with all things fashion-related, up-and-coming generations have had a significant effect on this trend towards comfort and practicality. While millennials favored more form-fitting clothing, gen Z’s preference for modest and stylish teen clothing had its origins in pandemic lockdowns.
At this time, comfort became a priority for many people. While working from home was synonymous with loungewear, many people wanted workwear that could also look put-together, giving rise to the work leisure trend: a softer, more wearable version of office attire.
Seventies Power Dressing
Changes in women’s workwear were seen during the 1960s and 70s, as pant-suits became highly popular (a reaction to the idea that women should dress in a traditionally feminine “ladylike” manner at all times.
While women today have more freedom to wear skirts or pants in the workplace, the emergence of the power suit was effectively an attempt to level the playing field within male dominated industries through challenging fashion norms and gender stereotypes, and 70s women did it in style.
Business Casual
The rise of business-casual dress in the 1980s and 1990s was in many ways a precursor to the athleisure trends of more recent times. Business attire of the past was often associated with strict dress codes, but as work culture shifted towards a more relaxed approach, so did the styles of dress.
While tailoring was still very much on the agenda, it was not uncommon to see more expressive styles in the form of colorful two-piece suits often worn with shorter skirts. A popular example of this style was the outfits worn by actress Calista Flockheart in the nineties law-firm comedy show Ally McBeal.
Recent Trends
The rise of fourth-wave feminism in the 2010s led to some questioning as to whether power dressing was fulfilling its purpose, most notably in the eventual decline of high heel sales in 2020.
One notable reason for this was simply that at heels were impractical for home working, yet there were other factors at play: while women in the 1920s rejected corsets for being painful and restrictive, many modern women also came to similar conclusions about wearing shoes that made it difficult to walk or run in, let alone climb the corporate ladder.
The Future of Women’s Workwear
While it’s difficult to predict exactly what lies in store for the future of women’s corporate dress, historical trends point to a continuation of more comfortable, yet stylish ways of dressing for both office and for working from home.
Some argue that more formal styles encourage a professional mindset. However, shifts in the way we work and how we dress for the job indicate that a more personalized approach can help bring out our best selves, regardless of what we choose to wear.
