We are finally getting back to our normal lives, one step at a time. Businesses have resumed operations and lights went on in the offices after months of social distancing. The profound changes in our ways of living over the last few months have also transformed how we are dressing, as well as our shopping habits. In fashion, for example, one of the emerging trends is the preference for clothes that value comfort and utility over everything else.
The trend emerged just as Vietnam’s garment maker TheBlueTshirt was working on its ‘Workwear’ collection designed to celebrate Vietnam’s working women. Offering a wide range of everyday workwear solutions, the collection is a way for the TheBlueTshirt team to say thank you to the many female customers who have been supporting the company from the very beginning. A special gift to help them regain optimism and feel inspired to get back to work in style and with confidence.
We asked the team behind TheBlueTshirt’s “Workwear" collection about their inspiration, brand’s philosophy and the affinity they feel for Vietnam’s working women.
How does Workwear embody the philosophy at TheBlueTshirt?
Modern, functional and well-thought-out, our collections are designed to make women feel confident, while encouraging them to be themselves. This philosophy has been a part of our DNA from day one.
Modern: Modernity is our central theme and a constant spring of inspiration. We try to achieve a balance between modern, innovative designs and timeless styles. Offering edgy essentials for modern girls and women, TheBlueTshirt is a go-to fashion brand for the Vietnamese women looking for quality clothes to fit their active lifestyle.
Functional: Aiming for the harmony of form and function in every design, we create clothing products that are essentials for your wardrobe and daily life - the clothes that you not only want to wear but also to live in.
Well-thought-out: Focusing on quality, every piece is made with great attention to detail, taking great care in creating timeless designs and always staying true to our business ethics.
The design process starts with putting ourselves in the customers’ shoes and trying to understand their needs. Following the brainstorm session, we move on to the rough sketch phase, followed by fabric sourcing. This stage is followed by multiple rounds of fitting, sample-making and quality controls. We put our hearts and minds into everything we do at TheBlueTshirt, delivering products that we are proud to make and our customers are equally proud to wear.
Making women feel confident, while encouraging them to be themselves: always putting customer experience to the forefront, TheBlueTshirt has been working tirelessly to create products that all women, regardless of their body shape and clothing choice, can feel comfortable and confident in.
These values, inherent to everything we do at TheBlueTshirt, are reflected in our new Workwear collection.
What is the spirit behind the Workwear collection? And what is the audience that Workwear is catering to?
With “Made for 9-to-5 and Beyond”, we wanted to reinterpret the traditional office wear. Make it more exciting and relatable.
More often than not, the 9-to-5 grind is thought of as routine and boring. Our idea was to put a fresh twist on a tired concept; with Workwear by TheBlueTshirt, 9 to 5 is when you work in style and achieve your career goals.
The clothes we wear greatly influence our moods and performance at work. When it comes to inner confidence, the right outfit can help women feel empowered and more inspired to do their job, hence boosting effectiveness and productivity. More importantly, being able to express your personal style helps you make a positive, lasting impression on colleagues, customers, business partners, and other stakeholders.
Our belief in the importance of personal image and fashion in achieving professional success is what drove us to create the Workwear collection.
The after-office fun. After working hours, most of us just want to unplug and look for some downtime outside the office. This is also when women let their personality shine through in their choice of shapes, colors and styles to wear. With Workwear by TheBlueTshirt, which is designed for both on- and off-duty hours, they get the best of both worlds.
While embracing the fundamentals of office wear, we don’t stick to any strict rules, but rather invite our customers to step out of their comfort zone with unexpected, modern twists that elevate our designs. The collection does not feel stuffy or restrictive, and it certainly does not aim to dress everyone in an office ‘uniform’. Instead we want to bring out personal styles and encourage the expression of individuality. We aspire to make monotonous dress code a thing of the past, by bringing personality and verve to the meeting room.
When designing the collection, the customer we had in mind was a white collar professional who often finds herself in an environment that requires interpersonal communication. But what we’ve since found is that the collection appeals to all women, office workers or not, who want to be more confident, to dress more stylishly and purposefully in order to build a good personal image and succeed.
Can you share with us the key details, and the reasons behind the fabric and color choices of the collection?
Featured throughout the collection are gathering details: at the waistline, around the neck and shoulders. It’s a feminne spin on menswear-inspired style popular today. A traditional sartorial technique reinterpreted for modern times, gathering brings fresh energy and vitality.
Aside from its aesthetic function, gathering has a practical application too. For the wearer, it means more comfort and flexibility, as gathering requires twice the amount of fabric. This allows women in sedentary jobs to move around freely, without restricting their movements.
This is tested during the fitting process, when the product is worn by a real office woman. As the model goes about her day performing various actions such as walking, standing up, sitting down and driving, we monitor and evaluate how well the garment fits and how it feels. This process is repeated until we find the perfect style, cut and fabric.
Traditionally, in an office setting, cotton is preferable because of its durability, functionality and ease-of-care. For warmer climes, like ours, linen is another quintessential fabric and you will find it in our collection.
The palette ranges from white to beige to navy. Classic and refreshing, with ribbed texture, these colors are essential for any modern wardrobe because of how easy they are to mix and match. Nobody enjoys the early morning dilemma of trying to color-coordinate an outfit!
How many items are featured in the collection and why were these items chosen?
The collection is made up of nine basic items that are essential to creating a capsule wardrobe. With these, you can easily branch out and build complementary daily outfits. They are versatile enough to work for a variety of occasions, from morning meetings to happy hour get-togethers.
For example, with a blazer from the collection you can look put-together and professional for an important presentation. When paired with jeans and worn to an after-work event, the same item gives you an instant cool factor. Always effective and on point.
We have more styling tips on TheBlueTshirt's Instagram or Facebook page, where we share information about how to care for the products and offer fashion inspiration.
How long did it take to come up with the idea and complete the collection?
The Workwear collection was a long time coming. But the idea was there from the very beginning, as our mission has always been to become a trusted, go-to fashion brand for young professional women of various backgrounds who look for functionable, comfortable and stylish daywear.
At the start of 2020, the collection started to take shape in our designers’ sketchbooks. We spent the following two months sourcing materials, making samples and rushing in and out of fitting sessions before finally starting production in early April.
Despite all the challenges and uncertainties the year has brought, especially in the first quarter, TheBlueTshirt stayed the course and pulled through, bringing the production to the final stage. As a result of these efforts, today we are proud to present to you our very first Workwear Collection.
Adapted by Tram Anh.