There has been a startling change in the attitude toward business casual attire, said Konopacki, an industrial psychologist who tracks trends at trade shows and exhibitions. Seventy-two percent of attendees said they prefer to see exhibitors in a dress or shirt and a tie, according to Konopacki's survey of key exhibition spaces, including Cobo Center . He conducted the study in the fourth quarter last year. Konopacki said two issues are driving this change. An increasing number of trades show attendees represent foreign companies where business casual has never accepted.
Attire can indicate the level of respect the seller has for the customer.
When that's the situation, the customer wants reassurance that everything is on a very professional level. Konopacki's findings have some supporters among manufacturers in metro Detroit. Farmington Hills-based H.R. Krueger Machine Tool Inc. , has ditched casual attire and returned to a dressier look for employees who have client contact. Executives at Farmington Hills-based Rhodia Engineering Plastics decided last summer it was more appropriate for its employees to wear a suit and a tie to a convention as opposed to taking a more casual approach, said Chad Waldschmidt, Rhodia'sNorth America automotive director. We decided to go with the idea of being safe rather than sorry.