Summertime makes the office atmosphere worse: Nobody wants to be stuck inside a closed meeting room, editing countless versions of a marketing deck, while everyone else is busy posting vacation photos on Instagram.
But even if you’re stuck in the city, working in the summer can have its benefits. Brighter days mean longer walks at work, longer, lighter lunches and, ideally, an early exit to have a few beers with the team.
Done right, your office wardrobe can be another treat of summer. Hot days are the great equalizer: Forget trying to make the fit work with complicated layering, tricky clothes, or that ill-advised purchase from the sample sale. Instead, embark on a welcome return to simplicity. This season boils down some key materials — cotton, linen, lightweight wool — to their simplest, most comfortable iterations.
With that in mind, we’ve put together a cheat sheet of five undeniable fits to get you up to speed on every workplace situation. Of course, mileage can vary: If you work in a lawyer’s office, you’ll probably be stuck in a suit all summer (in such a case look for a loose fit, avoid poly blends at all costs, and know that our prayers are with you). But for the rest of us, consider the following the building blocks of your winning workday formula. No sweat.
Five Summer Office Staples
in this guide
client lunch
Satisfying customers means two things for you: looking smart enough to impress, while looking laid-back enough to avoid impressing. Them Feel like scholars. So yes, you should wear a jacket. Look for one of the breathable blends: linen or wool blends, with minimal synthetics (though viscose and Tencel are both suitable for warmer climates). But wear it with jeans or light chinos and a t-shirt or shirt depending on the choice of venue. And don’t forget to leave a good tip.
