Smart Casual in Tech Industry?

[bantone]

I like dressing up and if I could wear a suit once a week I would, but I work in Tech. The dress code in my industry is wear clothes unless you work in sales. Even then jeans and t shirts get you by. Not to mention the work from home days which I take advantage of

I want to elevate my style more again because I feel dressing well provides you with a mental advantage when you face the day. What would you think would constitute a good smart casual wardrobe when working in tech? Some ideas I have.

- Dark wash, well fitting denim.
- Chinos. Lots of them.
- A variety of shoes. For me I err towards more suede shoes for items like loafers or cap toe shoes since they make the piece more casual. I probably spend more on shoes more than any other piece of my wardrobe.
- Dress Sneakers (Common Projects, Koio, etc.)
- Unstructured Blazer
- Polos
- Sweaters

What else would you suggest for someone that wants to elevate their style in this industry and wants to stand out?

 

[johng70]

A lot depends on where you live. And also what you mean by tech - if you're writing code at a desk that's different than running cables or other physical activity where you would would dress differently.
I live in the midwest US and business casual is long sleeve button down shirts and wool or gabardine or chinos. Polos are more of a thing on hot.sticky climates. To me, a sweater is much like a blazer - it's an occasional thing and not a daily staple.
I like some of the dress sneakers - with jeans not chinos - if you're still in your 20s - not a fan of them on people in their 40s (like myself).
Suede is nice - but as a change of pace. Leather would still be the standard.

For blazers, look at some tweeds - they're more of a causal vibe and look great with denim and chinos.

 

[bantone]

A lot depends on where you live. And also what you mean by tech - if you're writing code at a desk that's different than running cables or other physical activity where you would would dress differently.
I live in the midwest US and business casual is long sleeve button down shirts and wool or gabardine or chinos. Polos are more of a thing on hot.sticky climates. To me, a sweater is much like a blazer - it's an occasional thing and not a daily staple.
I like some of the dress sneakers - with jeans not chinos - if you're still in your 20s - not a fan of them on people in their 40s (like myself).
Suede is nice - but as a change of pace. Leather would still be the standard.

For blazers, look at some tweeds - they're more of a causal vibe and look great with denim and chinos.

I'm in my mid 30s. Tech industry as engineer. Think of the environments I work in similar to a Google, Indeed, or Facebook environment where you can literally wear whatever.

Thanks for your advise.

 

[EZB]

I like dressing up and if I could wear a suit once a week I would, but I work in Tech. The dress code in my industry is wear clothes unless you work in sales. Even then jeans and t shirts get you by. Not to mention the work from home days which I take advantage of

I want to elevate my style more again because I feel dressing well provides you with a mental advantage when you face the day. What would you think would constitute a good smart casual wardrobe when working in tech? Some ideas I have.

- Dark wash, well fitting denim.
- Chinos. Lots of them.
- A variety of shoes. For me I err towards more suede shoes for items like loafers or cap toe shoes since they make the piece more casual. I probably spend more on shoes more than any other piece of my wardrobe.
- Dress Sneakers (Common Projects, Koio, etc.)
- Unstructured Blazer
- Polos
- Sweaters

What else would you suggest for someone that wants to elevate their style in this industry and wants to stand out?

I work for a top tech company, so I get it. I wear mostly jeans now in a dark wash. I've ordered some undyed pairs from Luxire that I will dye into custom colors--burgundy, grey, etc. Then I wear a lot of great shoes. I have a lot of pairs (see my signature). Blazers are very out of place where I work, so I don't even wear those anymore, but my shirts are all custom from proper cloth--mostly styled untucked.

 

[bantone]

I work for a top tech company, so I get it. I wear mostly jeans now in a dark wash. I've ordered some undyed pairs from Luxire that I will dye into custom colors--burgundy, grey, etc. Then I wear a lot of great shoes. I have a lot of pairs (see my signature). Blazers are very out of place where I work, so I don't even wear those anymore, but my shirts are all custom from proper cloth--mostly styled untucked.

I'm glad you get it it can be a struggle when you want to stay true to your style but not stick out too much. Some folks think I dress like I'm upper management or in sales lol.

Shoes are pieces I definitely don't mind dropping money on. It would do me well to start phasing out pieces of mine from Suitsupply that are ill fitting (generally too tight for my athletic build) and opt for more MTM shirts. I tried Proper Cloth a few years ago and I think I dialed in my size well so that would be a worthy investment.

I also just got a Navy suit back I got bespoke which looks and feels amazing. It's lighter so designed for more travel and more versatile.

I'd love to wear ties more and invest in a few of them but I hardly get the opportunity to wear them so tech smart casual it is.

 

[bantone]

I've also thought about doing a Bespoke piece of outerwear come to think of it.

 

[asubtleeffort]

I'm in your shoes OP. This is usually how I do it:

Outerwear: some kind of barn coat or waxed jacket
V-neck merino or cashmere sweater, if conditions permit
Blue or university stripe OCBD (tucked)
Bridle leather belt
Dark indigo jeans (I've been looking at tan 5-pocket cords for some variety)
White leather sneakers or brown chukkas, or white canvas sneakers sans socks when it's hot (I also think suede chelsea boots would work well in cold weather but haven't tried them)

I wouldn't wear a blazer except to holiday parties, maybe company meetings and that kind of thing.

 

[bantone]

I'm in your shoes OP. This is usually how I do it:

Outerwear: some kind of barn coat or waxed jacket
V-neck merino or cashmere sweater, if conditions permit
Blue or university stripe OCBD (tucked)
Bridle leather belt
Dark indigo jeans (I've been looking at tan 5-pocket cords for some variety)
White leather sneakers or brown chukkas, or white canvas sneakers sans socks when it's hot (I also think suede chelsea boots would work well in cold weather but haven't tried them)

I wouldn't wear a blazer except to holiday parties, maybe company meetings and that kind of thing.

I got suede Chelsea boots on a Dainite sole and love them. I recently got some turtlenecks that are ubiquitous in the creative casual realm. I have one shawl cardigan that totally kills it when I wear it. I think I'll invest in more outerwear.

 

[EZB]

I'm glad you get it it can be a struggle when you want to stay true to your style but not stick out too much. Some folks think I dress like I'm upper management or in sales lol.

Shoes are pieces I definitely don't mind dropping money on. It would do me well to start phasing out pieces of mine from Suitsupply that are ill fitting (generally too tight for my athletic build) and opt for more MTM shirts. I tried Proper Cloth a few years ago and I think I dialed in my size well so that would be a worthy investment.

I also just got a Navy suit back I got bespoke which looks and feels amazing. It's lighter so designed for more travel and more versatile.

I'd love to wear ties more and invest in a few of them but I hardly get the opportunity to wear them so tech smart casual it is.

Even upper management wears jeans and Nikes—people making $1-2m a year same thing. Directors are often in shorts and flip flops.
Shoes are where you can dress up and stand out without making people feel weird. I have 4 suits that I wear almost never now—only for testifying to local government

 

[brokensuit]

I know that this is probably not the advice you are looking for, but I work in tech, and I wear suits and ties all the time.

For me, wearing whatever you want also includes suits.

If I wanted to dress it a bit down, I'd probably go for a OBDC/Cardigan look:

I'd go for gray flannel trousers since they with about everything, shirts with either simple patterns or neutral colors, and something over, commonly a buttoned cardigan of some sort.

The buttoned cardigan has this weird property of being both stylish and casual, and it exists in so many styles, with lapels, pockets or just regular plain, and in all sorts of colors.

Shoes is where I would dress it up a bit. Mid/light brown, brogues, monks, whatever floats your boat

 

[EZB]

I know that this is probably not the advice you are looking for, but I work in tech, and I wear suits and ties all the time.

For me, wearing whatever you want also includes suits.

If I wanted to dress it a bit down, I'd probably go for a OBDC/Cardigan look:

I'd go for gray flannel trousers since they with about everything, shirts with either simple patterns or neutral colors, and something over, commonly a buttoned cardigan of some sort.

The buttoned cardigan has this weird property of being both stylish and casual, and it exists in so many styles, with lapels, pockets or just regular plain, and in all sorts of colors.

Shoes is where I would dress it up a bit. Mid/light brown, brogues, monks, whatever floats your boat

My guess is that you don’t work for FAANG.... am I correct?

 

[brokensuit]

My guess is that you don’t work for FAANG.... am I correct?

True, I don't, but I still wouldn't change much even if I did.

 

[EZB]

True, I don't, but I still wouldn't change much even if I did.

You’d probably also then not get hired....I am in FAANG. I wore a button-down blue shirt, a check sport coat, tan chinos, and mirror-shined oxford weave shoes to my interview. I was totally out of place, but it was creative enough to be eccentric and still get hired.

 

[bantone]

You’d probably also then not get hired....I am in FAANG. I wore a button-down blue shirt, a check sport coat, tan chinos, and mirror-shined oxford weave shoes to my interview. I was totally out of place, but it was creative enough to be eccentric and still get hired.

I think that was different because you were interviewing for a role. It is showing a certain respect to the process.

My holiday party is tomorrow evening and I'm going to dress up with my new bespoke navy suit with either an off white or black turtleneck. Only time I get to dress up there but I'll show out

 

[EZB]

I think that was different because you were interviewing for a role. It is showing a certain respect to the process.

My holiday party is tomorrow evening and I'm going to dress up with my new bespoke navy suit with either an off white or black turtleneck. Only time I get to dress up there but I'll show out

I didn't get invited to any holiday party--don't know if we had one in my office. (I am remote to the team anyway.) Even wearing the jacket to the interview put me at the top 1% of dressed up of anybody in interviews even.