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What to wear for an interview

It only takes a few seconds for an interviewer to decide how they feel

about you…Translation? No matter how strong your experience or how
polished your interview technique is, you should never underestimate

the importance of a sharp interview outfit. Reed.co.uk asked Shaunie
Brett, who leads the styling team at Thread to share her five-step plan

for success, plus two outfits that will help you nail (almost) every
interview.

Step 1. Find out what your interviewers will to buy a brand new suit and wear it for the first
be wearing time to your interview because you won’t feel

No matter what your personal style is, you like yourself.
don’t want to look out of place.
You also won’t yet know how the suit behaves
If you wear a suit and everyone interviewing on you: Does it crease? Is there an itchy
you wears jeans, for example, you’ll probably label? Are your arms restricted? Is it hot?
feel uncomfortable—and it might even seem Instead, why not try wearing chinos, a shirt
that you don’t understand the company’s and a jacket instead of a full suit (which is
culture.
totally acceptable unless you’ve been explicitly
Find out what’s appropriate by looking at told to wear a suit). Or, buy a suit at least
what employees are wearing in their LinkedIn a day in advance (or earlier if it might need
profile photos (usually a good indication of tailoring) and wear it around the house for a
what they consider professional) and checking day to get used to it.
out what people are wearing on the company’s If you find that people at the company wear
‘About us’ page.
a variety of things—or that the dress code
Step 2. Don’t wear a brand-new outfit is casual—my advice is really simple: wear

Above all, interview clothes should make you something you’ve always felt confident and
comfortable in (or one of the failsafe outfits
feel confident and comfortable. Which means described below).
you shouldn’t wear anything you’ve never
worn before. Step 3. Keep it cohesive

Say you haven’t worn a suit since school, but Interviewers are looking for a candidate who
you do your research and find that everyone has it together – which means you should
at a company wears one. It’s not a good idea think about how all the elements of your outfit

26 September 2024