Who still wears suits these days?

[Abraham]

What professions still pretty much require the wearing of a suit these days and where?

Attorneys? Only on court/important client days? How does it differ by city -- NYC, Chicago and LA?

CPAs?

Corporate officers?

Anyone else?

 

[Dirk Wainscotting]

Not sure about the variations in the U.S. but here in Europe most professional types wear a suit: solicitors, barristers (even a special suit for court appearances); accountants; doctors (not the scruffy young ones); civil servants; politicians of course... Lots of sales-people.

Also people who just like to wear suits out and about; especially in the city in bars and restaurants in the evening, and they are fairly numerous.

 

[GHT]

Count me in as a suit wearer. Not all the time of course, but I do like to wear my suits, all of which are of a vintage appearance, including the formal dinner suit, (tux.) Unless I'm wearing one of my floral shirts that's designed to wear open neck, the top of the shirt having a lapel look when open, I always wear a neck tie when I'm wearing a shirt, be that with a suit or blazer and pants. I would like to wear a cravat occasionally but just can't somehow get the 'look' right.

 

[Awesomest Guy]

I find in the higher ranks of the corporate structure, the tendency to wear a business suit increases proportionately to income, along with neckties and the various other accoutrements of business dress.

 

[Dirk Wainscotting]

What is this business of "necktie"? Is there another place on the body this garment could be being worn if the 'neck' isn't specified? It's surely just a 'tie'. I don't remember ever being at school and being asked to straighten my necktie (as opposed to, say, my kneetie, in case I wasn't certain which one was meant).

 

[GHT]

What is this business of "necktie"?

The reason I used the prefix 'Neck' for a tie was not to imply that it's worn around the neck, but to differentiate it from the bow tie, which these days seems reserved for more formal occasions. There was a time when the likes of the late Frank Muir, and others, were role models for the bow tie.

 

[Dirk Wainscotting]

The reason I used the prefix 'Neck' for a tie was not to imply that it's worn around the neck, but to differentiate it from the bow tie, which these days seems reserved for more formal occasions. There was a time when the likes of the late Frank Muir, and others, were role models for the bow tie.

Referring to it as a bow tie surely already differentiates it from 'tie'. Plus a bow tie also goes round the neck!
I don't want to flog this to death, just mentioned it because it has bothered me for so long.

 

[Fading Fast]

In finance in NYC about half the employees at the larger finance firm wear suits. The tech and support areas tend not to, but the "client facing" finance ones (bankers, brokers, money managers, etc.) tend to. And the higher up the corporate ladder you go, it becomes almost all suits. There are exceptions and one-offs - and on a day a broker isn't meeting clients, he might be casual - but still a lot of suit wearing in finance in NYC.

 

[JackieMatra]

What is this business of "necktie"? Is there another place on the body this garment could be being worn if the 'neck' isn't specified? It's surely just a 'tie'. I don't remember ever being at school and being asked to straighten my necktie (as opposed to, say, my kneetie, in case I wasn't certain which one was meant).

"Neckties" have also been occasionally worn around the waist instead of a belt, most notably by Fred Astaire when dressed "casually", but also by Cary Grant on at least one occasion on film, and fairly often by women.

There are also "hairties" which are worn almost exclusively by women.
If you search on the web or ebay or etsy, etc. for "ties" you will find mostly "hairties" along with "neckties".
A search for "neckties" will find both cravats and bowties but no hairties, while a search for "bowties" will find only bowties.

 

[Dirk Wainscotting]

"Neckties" have also been occasionally worn around the waist instead of a belt, most notably by Fred Astaire when dressed "casually", but also by Cary Grant on at least one occasion on film, and fairly often by women.

There are also "hairties" which are worn almost exclusively by women.
If you search on the web or ebay or etsy, etc. for "ties" you will find mostly "hairties" along with "neckties".
A search for "neckties" will find both cravats and bowties but no hairties, while a search for "bowties" will find only bowties.

Great, that demonstrates practically zero. If you go into a menswear shop and ask for a tie, I'm confident that the assistant is never going to come back carrying a 'hairtie' (of which I've never heard and which isn't in the dictionary. Hair-clip, hair-slide, yes, but no 'hairtie'), or a plastic tie or a wire tie or anything other than what you expect him to come back with.

Astaire wearing a tie around his waist didn't magically turn it into a new accessory called a 'waist-tie'. Everyone, including him and the people who used them on their cricket flannels (which is where he nicked it from), knew it was a novel use of something that everyone else wears around their neck. No-one does this any more.

 

[Rabbit]

Tie, necktie, it's just another word to add to the variety. Show some sympathy for the songwriters.
Then there's the other kind of tie (meaning a draw) and the other kind of necktie (the rope)...

 

[Dirk Wainscotting]

Gentlemen don't forget your foot-shoes. Best to call them this in case anyone confuses them with brake shoes or horses shoes.

 

[LuvMyMan]

Referring to it as a bow tie surely already differentiates it from 'tie'. Plus a bow tie also goes round the neck!
I don't want to flog this to death, just mentioned it because it has bothered me for so long.

I think the reference to "tie" and "necktie" both can apply properly, as individuals can and do use both labels. At least we do here in my Home. For many reasons I will not get into withing this post, I do purchase most of what my Husband has to wear. I enjoy buying items for him, and already know what he loves to wear fashion wise. If I purchase a new "tie" for him and make a comment, "I found a great deal on a super nice looker today" and simply say "tie", he would immediately ask if it were a bow or necktie. Not that it would make a difference regarding if I found a bow or necktie, but just to make it clear which of the two I was commenting to him about.

However, I can see that to go past the bow or neck tie for anything would not make much sense, as really, would there be anything considered in what people wear today as to "waist tie" or "arm tie" or "head tie"? I would hope not! But with as much silly and what we call, insanity in the fashion world, with some trend being wearing a pair of pants half falling off one's rear end, never be shocked at what some one would make and promote! Ties are a element that can make or break a sports jacket or suit or tux. And actually a tie pulls together a time period or proper element to the attire you would wear it with as well. Example you could have a skinny tie that is from the 1950's that would not look proper at all with a 1930's wide lapel double breasted suit. A wide tie would work much better with that suit. And a wide tie would not go over with a narrow lapel 1950's sharkskin suit, but the narrow tie is a shoe in for it.

Suits. I view a man wearing a suit as a success. As someone that has taken the time to do something properly. My Husband loves wearing a suit, and I think he looks like a million bucks when wearing any of his suits.

 

[LuvMyMan]

Tie, necktie, it's just another word to add to the variety. Show some sympathy for the songwriters.
Then there's the other kind of tie (meaning a draw) and the other kind of necktie (the rope)...

Well stated!

 

[LuvMyMan]

Great, that demonstrates practically zero. If you go into a menswear shop and ask for a tie, I'm confident that the assistant is never going to come back carrying a 'hairtie' (of which I've never heard and which isn't in the dictionary. Hair-clip, hair-slide, yes, but no 'hairtie'), or a plastic tie or a wire tie or anything other than what you expect him to come back with.

Astaire wearing a tie around his waist didn't magically turn it into a new accessory called a 'waist-tie'. Everyone, including him and the people who used them on their cricket flannels (which is where he nicked it from), knew it was a novel use of something that everyone else wears around their neck. No-one does this any more.

"knew it was a novel use of something that everyone else wears around their neck. No-one does this any more."

Ah..but see...you noted it was for a normal use around their neck! Necktie! Hahaha! I had not recalled that Fred or any other movie star or celebrity had worn any tie around their waist, until reading here and thinking, yep, they have done such silly things in a movie or out in public. But really such a rare event and time. There is what is commonly known as a "sash" that would literally covered the position of the waist in the form of a tie....used for many purposes aside from the need of a "look", the father of the modern belt, and even the cummerbund perhaps, and may have a function to hold a sword scabbard or other weaponry.