So, are we still doing suits at the office or …

For those heading back to offices en masse for the first time since early 2020, there may be a feeling of being transported back, in a sense, to the first days of a new school year, pondering a question of seemingly existential proportions: what will everybody else be wearing and what should they wear?

For those who worked in offices where traditional white-collar attire was once the norm, it really boils down to one thing: whether suits are still a thing we're doing.

Depending on whom you ask in the fashion world, you'll either hear suiting is poised for a comeback or the opposite: months of loungewear have finally convinced people that suits are a thing of the past. 

"Seems to be a sign of the times: everyone feels they have to be in one camp or the other," Sharp Magazine co-founder Michael La Fave said in an email. "I know people that say they'll never wear a suit again and I know people who want to turn it up to 11 with a three-piece suit and killer, proper leather-soled shoes this fall." 

Jonathan Cavaliere, a Toronto-based menswear designer, has gotten more nuanced answers from guests on his podcast How I Suit Up. "I ask this very question to each and every one of our guests on the podcast," he wrote, "and have had a plethora of answers falling in different positions on the spectrum of this debate."

Where people seem to agree, though, is that the pandemic was undeniably a turning point for personal style. 

Syed Sohail — a plus-size model and marketing expert who runs the blog The Prep Guy — has long been a fan of suiting. Yet since working from home became the norm, he has taken a more relaxed approach to dress. "I have invested in quality sweatsuits, robes and loungewear, where I would have allocated the budget towards suiting and more business attire," he said by email.

"I think it's fair to say a lot of people ditched their tailored goods … myself included," said Cavaliere of the pandemic period. It was also the case with Lance Chung, editor-in-chief of the magazine Bay Street Bull. "Absolutely," he wrote in an email. "Suiting for me was reserved mostly for industry and business events, so that went out the window once the pandemic started."

Chung, Sohail and Cavaliere certainly weren't alone in that regard. "I know bankers that are wearing flip-flops to the office," La Fave said. 

But what should you expect now that things are purportedly going back to normal?

Suits ahead

"Do I believe the roaring '20s are coming back? Most definitely not," said Cavaliere. "I believe the future workplace will have a much more flexible dress code than we have ever seen, with hybrid working models going into effect across all industries." La Fave echoed that sentiment. "I think the white-collar workforce is probably already at a pretty casual state, and those that aren't will be," he said. 

Chung, whose publication covers the world of Canadian finance, thinks most offices will adopt a flexible dress code. "But in industries that are more institutional, there may not be too much disruption," he said. Sohail also doesn't see suiting getting entirely phased out. "I do think that suiting is still an incredibly powerful way of presenting yourself in the business world," he said. "And I definitely do not think it will be changing for professional settings."

"The responsibility will be passed onto the individual to figure this out," Cavaliere said, adding it will depend on what they want to project to their colleagues. "With that being said, I believe the suit will always be a great place for [people] to lean on when unsure of the route forward."

"There is always a time and place for suiting," said Sohail. "And I definitely do not think that will change anytime soon."

Chung agreed it'll be a matter of personal preference to a certain degree. "For many individuals, a beautiful suit is more than just a garment: it's armour and confidence," he said. "It's an extension of style and offers a unique [point of view] on how an individual wants to be perceived in their role and workplace."

"Hybrid" seems to be the buzzword when it comes to the future of "the office" and the same might be said for its dress code. There's no doubt things are going to be decidedly more casual, said La Fave. But he added, "Suits and blazers will become more statement pieces … for special meetings, pitches or occasions." Chung thinks we should expect "a larger emphasis placed on sportswear and pieces made of technical fabrics moving forward that will make it easier to layer and function within our hybrid work environments."

What's interesting is people are convinced that if the formal suit is on the way out as a five-days-a-week choice for the office, it'll make people want to suit up in other settings. 

And on that front too, the pandemic was a turning point.

Suits on the street

Viranlly Liemena is a social media and content manager based out of Vancouver whose Instagram page is peppered with pictures of food, but also suits. For Liemena, the pandemic period got him into wearing suits on "normal" occasions, rather than simply when working. "I'm more excited to wear [a] suit for any occasion now," he said. Cavaliere sees people coming to the same kind of realization. "Friends that have never worn a suit in their lives have been reaching out, asking [about] modern menswear essentials like a custom navy sports jacket," he said.

Sohail thinks that owes to "a yearning that people had for having the opportunity to dress up again." That longing to wear your finest is a recurring theme for people thinking about what they're going to be wearing in the coming months. "I do miss dressing up for a night out," concurred Chung. "I think people are eager to return back to a sense of normalcy. Even beyond that, they're eager to dress up a little."

So while you can certainly celebrate the fact that you needn't pull on a tie or a full suit every morning, it might be a little early to get rid of them entirely. Instead, perhaps get used to unlined blazers that have a softer, more casual look, and pair them with a polo or a T-shirt, rather than a button-up and tie.

"I've worn a tie maybe twice in the past 18 months and have been wearing T-shirts, polos and knitwear under my suits much more than I've opted for a button-up," said Cavaliere. Sohail too has looked to more casual options for suiting, "from more fashion-forward fabrics like seersucker, or even [paring] down down a suit with sneakers and a polo."

"I'd like more performance tailoring on a day-to-day basis so that I'm comfortable wearing a suit or jacket more frequently rather than less," said La Fave, with one caveat: "That said, I do like to get a tie on sometimes. I mean, you just can't beat the look."

Marc Richardson is a Montreal-based writer and photographer. His work focuses on fashion, culture and the intersection between the two. He's spent the better part of the last decade observing and cataloguing menswear from New York and London to Florence and Paris. You can follow him on Twitter @quicklongread and on Instagram @shooting.people.