When you start a business for the first time, you might not spend much time thinking about the clothes that your employees wear. But this consideration is vital for a number of reasons, among the most important of which is the image that it projects of your business, especially for customer-facing roles.
Ideally, workwear should fulfil a number of different criteria. Let’s examine a few of them.
Identification
A name badge helps to add convenience to the customer experience. Firstly, it helps to personalise a conversation before it’s even begun. Secondly, it allows the customer to know who it is that they’re dealing with, should they wish to make a complaint later (or, even better, to single a given employee out for praise). If you want to make your image that much slicker, then you might consider having names sewn directly into the uniform itself, rather than a clip-on name badge. Of course, if your staff turnover is high, then this might not be feasible.
Protection
Personal Protective Equipment (or PPE) is something that’s a good idea for a lot of professionals. Those working for extended periods with power tools should be equipped with eye and ear protection. For those handling hazardous chemicals, protective gloves might be issued. Other protective workwear might be necessary depending on the environment.
Of course, clothes shouldn’t just protect against hazards, but against deterioration. In hospitality and catering, clothes might be designed in such a way that they’re easy to keep in immaculate condition.
Branding
Branded workwear is an opportunity to get the message of your company across. You might think of them as miniature mobile billboards, reminding customers of your logo, slogans and contact details. This will help create a consistent brand across your entire staff. Moreover, it will also serve the more practical purpose of letting customers know who is employed by the business and who isn’t.
Staff Morale
Getting everyone in an organisation to wear the same thing can help to create a feeling of inclusion and shared experience and duty. After all, that’s why every military in the world insists on a uniform. By insisting on the same clothes, you’ll get across the message that everyone in the company is in the same team. It’ll also help you to avoid special cases where members of staff push against the boundaries of what’s acceptable. A uniform policy is also much easier to enforce and communicate than a looser dress code. An employee cannot plead ignorance of their knowledge that they needed to wear their uniform.
Naturally, you can be a little bit flexible, especially when it comes to religious attire – but for the most part keeping the rules consistent will help you to reap the benefits of a uniform while still keeping everyone happy.
