Business Culture: Business Attire

Business dress is the UK is similar to that of Continental Europe: fashion conscious and formal.

High-tech organizations in the UK have adopted the smart-casual or corporate-casual look of Silicon Valley.

Business attire for women in the UK often mirrors that of their male counterparts in that tailored dark suits are worn with blouses.

Businessmen in the UK favor well-tailored dark blue, gray, or pinstripe suits worn with a white, blue, or pink shirt.

Black-tie dress and formal evening wear will only be necessary if you are going to the theater, which London is famous for, or the symphony.

Climate and Region

In the United Kingdom it's hard to tell what the weather will be like from one day to the next, but you will most likely encounter rain at some point. The weather is variable, and its summers are cooler than those on the Continent, while its winters are milder. The weather throughout this temperate maritime climate, though it varies by region, is always influenced by the Atlantic Ocean. Temperatures rarely fall below 0ºC (32°F) in winter and rarely get much higher than 28°C (80°F) in summer. July and August are the warmest months, but can also be the wettest, while January and February are the coldest, and can still experience a high amount of rainfall.

Most business travelers will find themselves in London, the economic, fashion, and political capital of the UK, which has a temperate oceanic climate similar to much of south Britain. Although snowfall is low, rainfall is high, so it is always advisable to bring a fashionable raincoat, as Londoners are quite fashion conscious. If your business takes you to Scotland, don't be surprised to see people wearing kilts, but know that kilts will most likely not be worn for business purposes, and you will not be expected to wear one on any occasion.

Meetings and Presentations

Business dress is the UK is similar to that of Continental Europe: fashion conscious and formal. Businessmen in the UK favor well-tailored dark blue, gray, or pinstripe suits worn with a white, blue, or pink shirt. They wear dress shoes that are laced, rather than loafers. Men should pay special attention to the tie they wear because in the UK, striped ties, depending on their colors, can denote membership in a private club or school. Therefore, business travelers should stick to wearing solid-colored ties so as to not unwittingly falsely advertise. Business attire for women in the UK often mirrors that of their male counterparts in that tailored dark suits are worn with blouses. Women should abstain from wearing short skirts, slacks, or anything with a low neckline. Jewelry for both genders should be understated yet elegant.

The above description of formal British business attire primarily applies to the more traditional corporate atmosphere. High-tech organizations in the UK are more akin to those in the United States, in that employees have adopted the smart-casual or corporate-casual look of Silicon Valley. But even though one might spy some programmers wandering around in T-shirts and cutoffs, it is still recommended that the foreign visitor to a high-tech firm be presentable. For men this can include nice jeans (no holes, and not distressed denim), casual chinos, polo shirts, a vest with a shirt underneath, sweaters, button-down shirts, and jackets. For women, casual slacks, chinos or jeans, sweaters, blouses, skirts, and blazers. It is also acceptable for both sexes in corporate casual settings to wear dressy sandals or respectable athletic footwear (leave your worn-out sneakers at home).

Social and Networking Events

Attire for after-hours events in the UK is much more relaxed than for business meetings, but you should still dress neatly and in contemporary styles, especially if you're in London, as Londoners are trendsetters and quite hip when it comes to fashion. Black-tie dress and formal evening wear will only be necessary if you are going to the theater, which London is famous for, or the symphony. Because the citizens of the UK are football (soccer) fanatics, the business traveler might be invited to a match, where attire will be quite casual. However, team rivalries in the UK are notoriously fierce, and events have the potential to become violent, so to avoid unwanted attention on game day, the foreign visitor should refrain from wearing jerseys or scarves that advertise either team playing, and remain neutral in appearance.