So I just got my real estate license and I will be starting with a brokerage soon on my off days from the firehouse. The dress code is the best way I can describe it as smart casual to semi-formal depending on the situation. The average day to day is either slacks and a long sleeve shirt, no tie or a suit with no tie. The broker did recommend having a blazer handy for the days that you're not wearing a suit in case you have to run out quick for a meeting.

It's been a long time since I've worn business casual every day, and I'd like to avoid bring Dilbert and wearing the same shirt and slacks every day. What sort of color combos do you all like? I know khaki pants, white shirt and a navy blazer is always a good go to. Any other ideas? Also what's another good all around blazer color/pattern? I've never had to buy one before.

Lastly, will a suit coat work as a blazer or will it be painfully obvious? My current suit collection includes navy and medium charcoal for colors that would likely work in this situation.

I know there's tons of articles online but they're a little dizzying and most don't fit this type of scenario so it's always good to reach out to the knowledge base here.

Thanks in advance everyone!

.

Since they don't want you wearing your bunker gear to close the deal

Take your wife, girlfriend, a female firefighter ~ any women you trust shopping with you ~ get an honest opinion on whatever color or pattern looks best on your body's build, hair color, and skin tone.

Repeat after me, "Yes Dear...Thank you Dear"

First opportunity, date night wearing the outfit she likes as a thank you!!!


.

I got some great blazers & suits from second hand stores. Saved a lot of do re me! A good clean and press and off we go!

A powder blue long sleeve Oxford will work also, I like button down collars. I find button down collars finish offa good clean look, especially when wearing a tie.

For me, medium or heavy starch. To avoid the cost, I had to learn to iron shirts, no big deal.

Good Luck make the sale!

quote:

Originally posted by ryan81986:
The dress code is the best way I can describe it as smart casual to semi-formal depending on the situation.

This is relatively easy to dress around w/o spending a ton of money. When you find good pieces, you can practically wear them forever w/o worrying about them going out of style. Main keys are:

1. Don't trend to far towards what's fashionable. E.g., the trend right now is very fitted and skinny. Right now, I see trendy guys, often celebs, wearing suits that look like they bought when they were 14.

Don't go too loose or too tight, too blocky or too tapered. Think semi-fitted. Low-ish rise on pants is thing right now. Stick to mid-rise. Cuffs, pleats? Stick to plain. Plain never goes out of style.

2. You don't have to shop at Nordstrom, Savile Row, Armani, etc to look good. Places like Jos. A. Bank, Banana Republic, Zara, Uniqlo, Express, Macy's, Men's Warehouse will do fine. A large city like Boston probably has used men's clothing stores that specialize in business apparel and are easier on the wallet.

3. Think less about looking fashionable and more about looking tidy. That means clothes that fit well. Classic looks that fit well never go out of style. You don't have to spend a lot on garments, but be prepared to spend on alterations. A drawback is if you gain & lose a significant amount of weight, then a lot of your clothes will no longer fit properly.

quote:

What sort of color combos do you all like? I know khaki pants, white shirt and a navy blazer is always a good go to. Any other ideas? Also what's another good all around blazer color/pattern? I've never had to buy one before.

For a blazer, any darker blue or gray will work. True khaki is kind of dark, so for pants, stick w/ blue, gray, light tan, taupe, stone.

quote:

Lastly, will a suit coat work as a blazer or will it be painfully obvious?

If the suit looks good, and the jacket & slacks pair together properly, then yes, it will usually be obvious than you're wearing a suit jacket and not a blazer. It's not a big deal though as long as you look tidy, but a good blazer, you can wear almost everyday.

Don't forget your shoes. Your shoes & belt are supposed to match. Women especially pay a lot of attention to your shoes. Plain black cap-toe, lace-up oxfords never go out of style and go w/ everything. Keep them clean & polished.

I like button down collars too but laundries often break the collar buttons. I eventually went with regular collars. A navy blue blazer can be worn with tan, grey or other light colored pants.

A blue suit might be in order for formal occasions. Socks should usually match pants.

Business attire is more relaxed these days. The old rules are no longer hard and fast.

I’m a Program Manager for one of the Big Three in aerospace and wear slack n long sleeve dress shirts every day when in office except for casual Fridays (then it’s a polo shirt.

Cost wise, the trick is it buying three weeks of slacks and four weeks of shirts up front then a couple pair of slacks and three or four shirts each year after. This allows you to rotate colors, discard worn clothes, and keep up with your adjusting weight.

On the color combo side - wear the combo you are confident in. It’ll make your presence stronger. Also be cognizant of your skin tone.

I have a few peers who are black and can pull off a bright (in my opinion) orange shirt but with my Swedish skin tone (ie, sunburn when the weather guesser call fir bright sun the next day), not so much.

My personal favorite combo; khaki pants with black shirt and, darker blue shirt with charcoal slacks. I just feel very confident walking into a meeting wearing those colors.

Also, be aware of any "traditions" in the office. Previous [weaponized] UAV company had Mormon Mondays. First Monday of the month PMs wear black slacks with a white shirt in memory of one of the first PMs who the company started.

Finally, a jacket can work in place of a suit type coat. If you go this route, consider a bomber jacket type cut. Unless you are prior aircrew, stay away from flight jackets. As a firefighter, you might be able to get away with a firefighter’s traditional style/materials (if the exist). L.L. Bean used to sell these with a microfiber and leather collar.

If all else fails, ask your wife or gay friend what color combos look good and look good on you.

Real Estate is an image business, like trial law, if you look like your winning that’s half the battle. Go higher end, skip Macy’s or Nordstrom, buy some higher end stuff at Saks, French cuff shirts, quality designer suits, Italian or Swiss, Zegna, Canali, Brioni, the price may seem a lot, but it’s like buying a Sig or Hk versus a Bersa or Jennings. If you go to Saks or Neimans find the older 45+, gay guy in the mens department, 95% of the time or better they’ll dress you better than you could on your best day, you’ll see it in the compliments you get on attire. Good luck.

Don’t forget the shoes.

When I was still working, it always amazed me how many guys spent $$ on nice attire, but ruined the look with the wrong type of or shoddy-looking shoes.

Tropical weight worsted wool grey slacks, Navy blue blazer with brass buttons (2-button style, not 3). Use a shirt to bring accent color(s): Prince of Wales check (Glen Plaid) in blue or pink. Striped shirts.

I don’t have anything to add to the advice except there is a fashion magazine for guys like us and it’s called Vague.

EBAY. I put on a ton of weight when I became a Type 1 diabetic. I have lost half the weight but still have 20 to go. So, I had to buy a lot of clothes as I wear suits every day for work. I bought a ton of Zanella dress slacks for 10-15% of new and they look new. I bought new with tags suits like Hickey Freeman for 200-350 and they retail for 1500+. Dress shoes, Allen Edmonds, Mezlan (Spanish made) but stay away from Cole Haan, Johston and Murphy, Stacy Adams as they are a waste of money. You can find new or worn once shoes for way less than new. I bought 3 Nordstrom dress shirts that were 80.00 retail for 10.00 bucks apiece brand spanking new. You can buy really high end clothes for not a lot of money compared to retail. Take a look and see what you can find.

I will include Nordstrom as your go to source for quality until you're in the million dollar table routinely and can afford more.

You'll need a navy blazer and at least 2 sports coats. You're not going to see the same clients for months on end. Be sure the colors in the sports coats can match or pick up the colors of your shirts and pants.

You'll end up buying too many shirts and it's not necessary. I got to the point where I could wear a different shirt for at least four weeks straight before needing to go to the dry cleaners and that was just too many. I'd say at least two white shirts; I think a white shirt without a tie makes you look only half-dressed. You'll definitely need a couple of blue colored shirts, pale or bold. You have to figure out what colors look good on you professionally. For the office, I wore pale yellow, pale gray, pale pink, pale green, and bold red for valentine and Christmas. I like solid colors because they can easily match with ties when you do need a tie. I think 10 shirts is more than enough to begin with as long as you make sure you always have 4 shirts ready to wear in case the dry cleaners are late.

Pant colors stick with gray, khaki, or black. I would stick with the majority being gray. If you look good in blue, then you can add that color too. Then you'll only need three sock colors too.

Get nice leather belts with colors that match your shoes. I would recommend Edmond Allen shoes as they look nice and they can be resoled by the company and reconditioned. I think you can save in the beginning by sticking with black shoes. Then as you progress, you can add brown and cordovan.

Good luck to you.

I spend 30 some years in the business environment (not real-estate) I always felt more comfortable over dressed than under dressed. I remember a time my boss invited staff (maybe 15+ tag-a-longs) to his swanky high rise apartment in downtown Chicago. I wore comfortable "wash pants" (what would be considered dockers these days) a dark colored shirt and a sport coat. Everyone else were just in slacks and pull overs. Some looking bad with guts handing over. My boss was impressed.. I joked that I mow the lawn dressed like this. Got close to a few "chicks" that night and became my bosses' favorite.

I can’t offer advice. I opened the thread as I’m interested in dressing better. But I have no idea how you will juggle real estate while being a firefighter. That will be tough. Good luck! Real estate can be good business.

Full disclosure - I work, and have worked, in extremely formal business environments. I know the difference between white tie, black tie etc.

Half of the stuff in this thread is wrong.

First off, you have to understand your client base, and your location. As the new person on the team, I’m assuming you won’t get assigned the best clients; likely, you will get the ones that others don’t want. In RE, that means renters, so bear that in mind. You want to dress for your client, not dress in such a way that they don’t mesh with you.

Second, clothes DO NOT make the person. The person who recommended Brioni, Canali, Zegna etc… it’s not time. You need to get used to wearing a suit or more formal clothing, else you will look and feel like a penguin in a tutu. Get something decent, Nordstrom is a good mid-range place.

For a look, I’d emulate the Euro executive style, which tends to be a bit more informal. This should work well with your background, they function more with sport coats and slightly sharper cuts which should help with an athletic body.

No matter what you buy, GET IT TAILORED. Always. Even if the shirt or pants or jacket fits near perfectly, even adjusting the button .5” on a jacket can make it fall perfectly.

Lastly… if you do start cracking into those multi-million sales, you will likely find that being LESS formal will be an advantage. Try to avoid what you wear looking like a “uniform” and more an extension of who you are.

I work in Wealth Management. I wear a suit everyday...or I used to before Covid. Now I wear a suit when I am in person vs. Zoom.

I have had a great deal of luck with Indochino and Jos A Bank. My last 4 suits were from Indochino. Go into one of their locations and let them measure you. Your suits will be perfect and you will look and feel good.

Wear a suit every time. I know you can get away with blazer and slacks, but people treat you differently when you are in a suit. If you need to be loss formal, take off the tie. But Always have one handy. In this world or yoga pants and running shorts, the suit will differentiate you and people will listen to you where less formal attire may garner less authority.

good luck. Read Tom Hopkins "How to Master the Art of Selling"

You can't go wrong with a Navy blazer and khaki or grey slacks and a white or pale blue dress shirt.

So my Carhart pocket T won't do then?

Don't wear a suit jacket as a separate piece. It looks off. Don't try to combine a sport coat with like colored pants to create a suit as it also looks off.

Find a good tailor. Word of mouth, yelp reviews, ask the local shops where they send their tailoring work. As another said a few small adjustments can make a less expensive suit look better than a high priced suit that doesn't fit correctly.

Dress to your clientele. It takes some practice and you'll learn as you go. Sometimes business casual is all you need, but if your client expects a suit you better be in a suit.

A navy sport coat or blazer can go with grey, beige, or olive pants. A white or light blue shirt is all you need. You can play with stripes or checks within reason. Other color shirts too if you want. Ideally you want to figure out what colors work with your skin tone.

Button down collars are more casual. French cuffs more formal.

Pay for good shoes and take care of them and you'll have them forever if you want to re-sole. Allen Edmonds is a good start and they have frequent sales.

Avoid buying jackets on ebay unless you can return for free. Really stay away at this point. If you go this route you'll need to know your measurements beyond chest and sleeve. Shoulders can be resized to a point but it will eat up any savings. Best to buy off the rack.

Suit Supply is a reasonable place to start. Modern enough to not look like your grandfather but not so extreme that you'll have to toss everything every season. Indochino is hit or miss. If it works for you you're in business. Nordstrom is good for your purposes. Nordstrom Rack and Saks Off Fifth can be bargains if you find something that fits (shoulder, shoulder, shoulder).

quote:

Originally posted by CoolRich59:
Don’t forget the shoes.

When I was still working, it always amazed me how many guys spent $$ on nice attire, but ruined the look with the wrong type of or shoddy-looking shoes.

THIS!!!

Alan Edmonds may not be cheap dollar wise but they are well worth the price you pay and, look great.

I actually have two pair. One pair black, one pair dark chili. Also, get "fun" socks. Not just black. People will see you as a conformer who is willing to think outside the box.