Hartford Business Journal

24 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | DECEMBER 19, 2022 Workplace Jody Morneault stands in her downtown Hartford upscale clothing boutique Morneault's Stackpole Moore Tryon, a Trumbull Street staple for more than 100 years. HBJ PHOTO | SKYLER FRAZER Business Casual Office workers navigate post-pandemic dress policies By Skyler Frazer sfrazer@hartfordbusiness.com H ow casual is business casual? As more workers return to the office on a regular basis, business leaders and employees are grappling with that exact question. "Companies want you to go to work and are okay with you being casual, but casual cannot be what you sit around your house in on a Saturday or Sunday," said Jody Morneault, owner of Morneault's Stackpole Moore Tryon in downtown Hartford. "It has to be casual but presentable so that you look respectable in the workplace." Morneault's upscale clothing boutique, which has been a Trum- bull Street staple for more than 100 years, serves a clientele of lawyers, accountants, business executives and everyone in between. Morneault said she's seen firsthand the shift to a more casual, but still professional, office attire trend. "A lot of people have a hard time figuring out what they should be wearing," Morneault said. Morneault isn't alone in seeing a change in trends. In a recent poll, 46% of Hartford Business Journal readers said their workplaces have instituted more lax dress code poli- cies since the pandemic, while 51% said their dress codes have stayed the same. "I think that when COVID-19 came, people realized, 'why not be comfort- able if we're going to spend time at work and in the office,'" said Andrew Lattimer, managing office principal of accounting and consulting firm CLA West Hartford. "It really comes down to people just wanting to be comfortable, and who can blame them?" The rise of jeans Murtha Cullina Partner Patricia Reilly, also chair of the law firm's labor and employment practice, said many of the companies she works with aren't ditching their formal dress code, but expectations are changing. "Still, the trend towards more casual workplace attire has been going on for quite a few years," Reilly said. "You can still dress casually but have a more appropriate public appearance than you might have in your own home." She said her firm has a business casual dress code that is similar to other professional office work envi- ronments. When drafting dress codes for clients, Murtha Cullina looks to avoid allowing "extreme" casual clothing while also offering flexibility to companies. Jeans are no longer just for casual Friday. Morneault said her No. 1 selling pants for men right now are jeans, which can look and feel a lot different than an average department store pair of blue jeans. "I think jeans are the new khakis," Lattimer said. "I've seen more casual attire — five years ago you probably never saw a pair of jeans except maybe on a Friday." Reilly said that's been a noticeable shift. "A lot of workplaces explicitly forbid jeans in the workplace (prior to the pandemic), but now that there's a move to return to work at least hybrid, I'm noticing people are wearing jeans more," Reilly said. For men, Morneault said sports coats paired with jeans or a soft pair of pants have become increasingly popular. "Whatever is happening in the men's department is kind of parallel to the women's department," Morneault said. Women are also wearing jeans more often, pairing them with soft jackets and cardigans or sweaters, Morneault added. Lattimer said he's also seen a shift from dress shoes to dress sneakers, with some brands like Peter Millar and Cole Haan adding more casual options. Whether in an office setting or formal celebration or party, people are dressing more casual. "I was at a bat mitzvah a couple weekends ago in New Jersey and all of the grown-up men were wearing Jordans," Lattimer said. "Everyone had Jordan sneakers on with jackets and ties, it was something I've never seen before." Andrew Lattimer Patricia Reilly

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