Clothes for office ladies

Hi,
I'm thinking for applying for a job in Japan. Just wondering what do Japanese office ladies wear? Do they usually wear power suits? Is there a certain dress code? Is a casual top & skirt fine? What about shoes? Are open-toed heels or sandals appropriate? Or are covered shoes a must? I also notice that Japanese clothes aren't very colourful. They're usually black, brown or grey... Are colourful clothes a no-no?
Thanx :)

Like all companies not just japan you have business casual style, ie. dark colors mainly, grey/white, so In that sense I don't recall seeing any high business areas where people wore bright yellow lime suits.

Also depending on company, some companies have "uniforms" office workers wear, sometimes its a blue type dress, others grey I have noticed.

So in the end, I would say business casual, nothing over the top, however companies vary.

In the business world colorful clothes are usually not a good idea, unless you have a free style thinking company president, but thats another story.

Out of work, you can wear whatever color you wish.

It depends on what you do.

If you are in a "career" type job, managerial position or account manager (with a lot of interaction with customers) then suit is strongly
recommended.

If you are going to be in a assistant position/back office job, then relatively casual top with skirt would be fine... maybe a cardigan or a light jacket in the company locker just in case you need to go out to see people, etc.

About shoes, since it does get pretty cool/cold in fall/winter, I wonder if you would feel comfortable with sandals, for one thing. Closed toes are
preferred in seasons other than summer. Sandals without backstrap (the type that clanks when you walk down the steps) are somewhat frowned upon by elder people... but young people do wear them by now.

About colors, it really depends on the role/function you have, and on the individual work place. When you start in a new office, people tend to start out "conservative, " then later might wear more colorful clothing, observing what is considered norm in that particular work environment.

For myself (Japanese woman) my suit colors range in: black, dark charcoal gray, pinstripe gray, light gray, khaki green, sky blue, light beige, a bit darker beige, light brown, dark brown, light blue-gray... depending on what you wear inside, they all can look very formal or business casual :) And a range of twin sweater set (half-sleeved sweater and a long-sleeved cardigan) come in handy.

As AK mentioned, it really depends. Even more. In the traveling industry or the media industry that I've been involved to, even managers wear jeans to the office.

I suggest you do what university students do when seeking jobs. Visit that company and take a look.

Take a look at how people dress, how peole react, and the whole air of it.

And there's also "casual Friday" that you might want to consider. Even in the most strict companies, they often let employees come with a "no-tie" code on Fridays, and on these days of the week, a lot of workers are pretty colorful.

For job interviews though, a dark blue or gray suit is recommended to play it safe, unless you're applying for a position to appeal your originality, such as in the fasion industry.

If you have difficulty visiting the office, you can specify the field you with to work, and perhaps someone can give you some better advise.

Thanx so much, your responses really helped. Yeah I guess office clothes can't differ much (especially the colours, since a professional look is needed), so it's up to the individual to mix & match...
Thanx AK for the alternatives like cardis or sweaters, as compared to the usual pants suit. AK, thanx so much about the shoes. Coz in S'pore, where I come from, most of us wear open-toed heels with or (mostly) without a backstrap. So I was wondering if that kind footwear was possible or common in Japan during the warmer months...
Thanx again :)

What do teachers in Japan wear? Do they have to wear what the office ladies wear? Jackets, suits, covered shoes or can they dress more casual? Is there a difference in dress code for teachers in junior high school as compared to teachers in private companies like Nova?

for women teaching at Nova, the dress code is sort of dressy casual. You have to have a collar on your shirt, nothing too low cut or too short, don't show your midriff or tattoos, that kind of thing. no sandals, no open toed shoes. other than that, almost anything goes. oh, and your shirt must have sleeves, though they can be short, and some of mine are transparent. as long as you look neat no one cares too much. guys have to wear ties though. I may start wearing suit jackets, now that it's getting colder and i can't wear a regular jacket into the classroom. I have cool styles of jackets, unusual cuts and colors, that will still be acceptable.

I will starting my work as a legal assistant in Japan soon and I have been wondering about the accepted office attire thus this thread has been very insightful for me. The only problem is that I have trouble wearing skirts and so I hope my slacks would be okay.

they'll let you know if you get the job i thinkss.

Very informative thread. I will be going to Tokyo & Yokohama for a business trip.

For/Being a 24 yr old lady:

-Should I apply make-up? (I usually don't)

-Are 1 button blazers currently "in"?

-Are white blazers/suits appropriate?

-I am guessing knee length skirts are shortest appropriate length?

If you don't normally wear makeup, then don't worry about it.

I'm not up on what's fashionable for office wear, but the last black suit I bought (in winter) has only one button on the jacket, so possibly yes? Noone is going to be concerned with how many buttons your jacket has anyway, so don't worry about it.

Check what other people at your company wear before bringing out the white suit. I see beige and light grey suits here on women a lot, but not so much white.

I personally probably wouldn't be able to keep a white suit clean for very long with the urban grime and dropping food, which only seems to happen when I wear white clothes!

Talking about "business" clothes ...I saw Her Highness Empress Michiko in Vancouver on 2 different days. She wore beautifully designed suits of a simple yet clever cut in 2 colours. For example white for the upper half of the torso (from neck to under the chest) then grey or dark blue or.. for the lower half of the torso and the skirt. She looked amazingly stylish. She also wore a kimono once (she changed clothes several times each day..) The kimono I saw was deceptively simple, with just a bit of a design. Nothing showy, just pure refined elegance.
AND we were able to see her, and the Emperor, barely 10 ft away.. What a thrill and a honour..it was worth waiting and standing for hours!!

Annie,

-Should I apply make-up? (I usually don't)
If you usually don't, you don't have to go out of your way to apply any :) If any at all, maybe just lip cream or gloss just to "brighten" the tone a bit :)

-Are 1 button blazers currently "in"?
Seeing that I've seen some recently at department store boutiques, at least it's around - I'm not sure if it's THE "in" thing or not though.

-Are white blazers/suits appropriate?
Yes - unless you are in very conservative industries, such as finance, where light gray (or beige) might be better. Still, if you are coming right in the middle of summer, color-wise no problem, but in terms of stain and perspiration, *some* color might be better.

-I am guessing knee length skirts are shortest appropriate length?
I'd say yes - for business attire, not-too-short is always safe :)

Of the few blazers I have, the white one is newest so that's the one I wanna wear most. White isn't generally popular here either but is popular among slimmer ladies under 30 niche. It's a good idea to also bring a light grey one just in case it's out of place. Thanks.

When in doubt, be conservative. As for make-up, less is more (except for models.)

Is it customary for women to wear belts w/trousers or is it only required for men?

karen,
It's a matter of your trouser styling and preference - it's not "required." But some trouser style might recommend wearing a belt - for myself, particularly trousers/pants of the type that hangs on the hipbone, I feel better with a belt :) Some people of course like wearing a belt for marking their waist position clearly for fashion.

There are no expectations for women and belts. If you want/need to wear one, go ahead. If you don't, then don't worry about it.

Generally speaking, if you go for a slightly conservative business look you are not going to go wrong.

I used to work as an office lady (more like office girl) in Japan at 18 and 19. Contradictory to posts above, I usually wore tight fitting collared shirts in colours not considered conservative. In fact, I neither own a black nor a grey shirt. For trousers, I usually wore white, pink, purple, green, brown, black. I rotated wearing the 3 blazers I had- black, white, yellow.

Are there different standards for girls and middle aged women?!