It's time we made business suits a joke Australia.
Suits, as we know them, were created in Britain in the Victorian era.
The average yearly temperature in this country is about 10°C - 15°C. Here, a necktie, a tucked-in shirt, thick black trousers and jacket will help you keep warm throughout the year.
I moved from Sydney to London six months ago. Wearing suits here makes sense. They layer well in the very cold months and keep you at a comfortable temperature in the just plain cold ones. This knowledge drove home a point - wearing a suit in the Australian climate is completely illogical. It's a piece of attire designed to keep you even warmer when the mercury hits the 30°C - 40°C.
Australians don’t just live in a furnace, they wear one around too. We wear suits because we’ve always worn them. Refusing to change for the sake of tradition is one of the biggest mistakes a business can make in the information age.
Take California, for example: Renowned for warm temperatures, a lack of rain and forward-thinking people. Home to the Silicon Vally, where the likes of Google, Facebook and Apple hold offices. A place with the famous saying, 'the only people wearing suits, sell suits'. These are the people that question the status quo. The people who stop to think. They are the influences we should be looking to.
Not just because relaxing dress codes is proven to make employees happier, but because, unlike the British they know what it is to live in a truly hot climate. I'm not saying every company should go to the extreme lengths of some. Thongs (flip flops, jandals), singlets and shorts probably don't belong in most workplaces, but smart casual allows people to retain a professional image while also being comfortable.
Not adapting can sometimes have dire consequences. Not adapting company attire to local climate isn't going to 'Blockbuster Video' a business. However, just because the benefits of a change may be relativity small, doesn't mean it's not worth making. Our past is full of mistakes we can correct.
So let's fix this one too. It's time we made business suits a joke Australia.
Curtis Campion is an Australian professional living and working in London.
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