In fact, the Nasdaq charts the popularity of “business casual.” When the Brave New World excitement of the Internet infiltrated the rank and file, suits and ties were jettisoned in favor of khakis and sweaters — or jeans and sweatshirts — depending on how much trouble the company was in. Established business people could demonstrate that they “got it,” (words used by twenty-something dot-commers) by dressing like slackers.
But the sloppy-shirt phenomenon didn't materialize out of thin air. The stage had been set a few years before by “casual Friday” dress codes, which had become ubiquitous across corporate America by 1998. In fact, many companies had instituted a business-casual dress code from Monday to Friday.
Not only business got sloppy during those years. The Clintons themselves set an example of playing fast and loose, disastrously, at a time when businesses were being run with a gold-rush fever. “Play now, pay later” was the tacit motto of the 90s, one that was exquisitely epitomized by the president himself during his many lurid affairs.
Today, at the end of Bush's 100 days, a new era of dignity has dawned, both in the Oval Office and in the boardroom. The decline of the Nasdaq has been a cold shower for many investors and managers, but the reinstatement of the suit and tie has served up a renaissance of traditional values. Self-restraint has replaced shenanigans in the White House; Men are wearing suits again in the boardrooms of America.
Bill Mitchell, a prominent business clothier in Connecticut, said recently, “I see a resurgence in suit sales versus a year ago.” Businessmen want to be taken seriously again. So do the talking heads at financial news desks at CNBC and other networks. They wore casual shirts last year; now they're donning suits and dress shirts.
The reasons for wearing suits and ties are always the same: to assert credibility and dignity. So it's back to business as usual, for at least another few years.
(This article reprinted with permission of National Review Online.)
