Fit for the Job

Listen to this story:

What’s your first thought after finding out you have a job interview? We all know first impressions matter, so many people think about what to wear. I remember worrying about being underdressed when I got the interview that led to my first full-time job in real estate admin, but for Carmen Puente, it was the other way around. 

Puente grew up in Caracas, Venezuela. In 2013, she arrived in Winnipeg with her husband and one-year-old son. When she walked into a car wash for a job interview, she was dressed the way she had always been taught to dress for an interview — a nice blouse paired with dress pants. In her culture, dressing professionally meant showing respect to the employer. 

Except this employer saw it differently. 

“[The employer] said I looked too fancy for the job,” Puente said.  

The car wash was one of the first jobs she applied for after moving to Winnipeg. During that time, she was still adjusting to her new surroundings and learning a new language. Puente said her English was “at zero” when she first arrived. 

Language was one of the barriers Puente faced during those early months. Finding a job was a priority, but she knew improving her English skills would take time. She enrolled in an English language class at Red River College Polytechnic.  

Puente knew that her English would be a challenge when looking for work in Canada. What she did not expect was how difficult it would be to learn the unspoken language of how to dress for a Canadian workplace. What looks “professional” or business casual in one culture does not necessarily translate to another. For newcomer women entering the Canadian workforce, understanding workplace dress expectations can be an unexpected barrier. What a candidate chooses to wear is part of their first impression, influencing how employers perceive them. 

Clothing and First Impressions 

Expectations around clothing can vary by job, industry, and workplace culture. Dress codes are not always clearly articulated and many workers rely on their cultural awareness to decide what’s appropriate.

Research from Central College on workplace dress codes suggests that employees’ attire can influence how colleagues, clients, and managers perceive them. Clothing is often one of the first indications of professionalism, shaping first impressions of how professional or credible someone might seem before they even speak. And those first impressions can matter.  

A research paper by scholars at the University of Barcelona and the University of Verona found that what people wear can show aspects of identity, including culture, profession, and social background. In many cases, clothing becomes a visual cue that helps people gain insight into someone’s identity before they introduce themselves. 

Randstad Canada, a global staffing recruitment company that studies labour market trends, explains that what people wear can affect their behaviour and how others perceive them. The idea aligns with the concept of embodied cognition, which suggests that physical experiences shape how people process information. In a 2012 study, Northwestern University researchers Hajo Adam and Adam D. Galinsky found that participants wearing a white lab coat during a test were perceived as more professional. The researchers describe this as enclothed cognition, a concept that explains how clothing can influence a person’s thoughts, behaviour, and confidence.  

Cultural dress norms can vary from place to place, with each culture having its own standard for what clothing is appropriate in different social or professional settings. As a result, the same outfit can carry different meanings in different places of the world. What can signal professionalism or respect in one culture may be interpreted differently in another.   

Understanding those differences is something many people learn as they grow, observing what’s around them and what they experience. For newcomers entering an unfamiliar workplace culture, navigating the nuances of dress code standards is not always easy. 

Learning the Office Standard 

When I transitioned from working in retail to a corporate job, I found the dress code expectations less obvious and more confusing. 

The term “business casual” came up during my interview when the hiring manager and I discussed the workplace dress code. At first, the phrase sounded simple enough, but I quickly realized that it could mean different things depending on the workplace. In some offices, it might mean dress pants and a blouse. In others, it might include dark jeans and a nice top, as long as the overall look was professional and put together.

I learned what was appropriate by observing what employees were wearing during my first few weeks on the job.  

According to Refinery29, a digital media publication that covers fashion, culture and lifestyle topics, business casual often blends items from traditional office attire with more relaxed items. A blazer might be worn with flats or a simple dress instead of a full suit, creating a look that is professional but less formal. Even with those examples, the term “business casual” is open to interpretation.  

A Business News Daily article notes that items like blazers, collared shirts, and dress pants are commonly considered appropriate in business casual settings, while clothing such as ripped jeans, flip-flops, or cropped tops is generally frowned upon. 

Despite those general guidelines, the line between casual and professional can still feel vague. When that line is not clearly laid out, navigating what counts as “appropriate” can become a source of pressure, uncertainty, and feeling out of place. To add to this nuance, what is appropriate changes over time.

Office Style Through the Decades 

In the past, office attire was much more formal. An article published by Randstad Canada explains that in the 1950s, men typically wore grey suits, ties, and polished dress shoes to the office. Women were expected to wear tailored suits, stockings, and heels.  

By the 1980s, women entering the corporate world often adopted “power suits” with structured shoulders to look like a professional figure of authority in male-dominated workplaces.  

Later in the 1990s, many organizations introduced Casual Fridays, allowing employees to dress more comfortably at the end of a five-day work week. 

Today, office attire in Canada has generally become more flexible. Some workplaces still expect their employees to dress in traditional business attire, while others allow employees to dress casually — depending on the company culture. Randstad Canada notes that modern workplaces are moving away from rigid dress codes and toward clothing that allows personal expression.  

While these changes have made workplace fashion more relaxed, they have also blurred expectations in certain workplaces. For people already familiar with the workplace culture, these expectations may feel easier to navigate. For newcomers, adapting to these expectations can feel overwhelming and take time.  

Rebuilding a Work Wardrobe 

Guadalupe (Lupe) Córdova Bojórquez moved to Winnipeg in 2024 from Lima, Peru with her husband and children. Like many newcomers, she looked for a job while adjusting to a new country. 

After moving to Winnipeg, Córdova Bojórquez enrolled in the Business Management program at RRC Polytech and graduated in November 2025. Soon after graduating, she began applying for jobs and instantly noticed the differences in the Canadian job application process.  

“Here, resumés don’t include a photo, right? In Peru, we do include a photo,” said Córdova Bojórquez.

As soon as she started receiving interview callbacks, another uncertainty came up — what to wear.  

In Peru, dressing professionally was something she was already used to, both from her past work experience and from cultural expectations, similar to what Puente described. But when she packed up her life to move somewhere new, luggage space was limited, and professional clothing was not her top priority. 

“I didn’t bring all my blouses, heels, or everything, so when interviews started, I worried I’d have to spend money on work clothes,” said Córdova Bojórquez.

As a mother, she prioritizes spending money on her children. 

“I try to avoid buying clothes. Most of what I buy is for my children because they grow so fast,” she said. 

Building a professional wardrobe can be expensive. Clothing often associated with business attire — such as blazers, dress pants, and formal shoes — can cost significantly more than everyday clothing.  

For women, those costs can sometimes be higher. A report by the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) explains that many products marketed specifically toward women are priced higher than similar items marketed toward men. This is a phenomenon referred to as the “pink tax.”  

The report found that women can pay up to 50 per cent more for some products. One example compares deodorant priced at $9.75 per 100 grams targeted to women with men’s deodorant containing roughly the same ingredients for $6.46.  

These price differences appear across a wide range of items, including clothing, personal care items and even services such as dry cleaning. Overall, women in Canada can end up paying around $1,300 more per year for products similar to those marketed to men. 

For people building a new career in a new country, the cost of buying clothes that look professional enough for interviews, training, and the workplace can be prohibitive.  

Córdova Bojórquez experienced that pressure herself when employers started reaching out for interviews. When she told a classmate — who later became one of her closest friends — about an upcoming interview, her friend suggested she visit Dress for Success Winnipeg, an organization that provides professional clothing and career support specifically for women preparing for job interviews.  

She looked into the organization and learned about the services it offers, including workshops that help women prepare for the workforce. She registered on their website and scheduled an appointment to find interview clothing.   

During the appointment, volunteers asked what kinds of clothing pieces she was looking for.  

“I said I wanted blouses and blazers to look professional,” said Córdova Bojórquez. “For meetings or training, I try to dress appropriately. I feel like it’s part of the position too. People take you seriously. If you don’t look professional, sometimes people don’t respect you. That’s how I was raised.” 

The volunteers guided her through different options, showing her how to combine pieces and what clothing would be suitable for interviews and meetings. She tried on several outfits to see what felt right while staying true to her own style. 

“Blazers here are expensive,” said Córdova Bojórquez, adding that she was grateful her friend told her about Dress for Success Winnipeg, since it meant she access professional clothing without compromising her family’s ability to pay for essential expenses. 

After her first appointment, she later attended one of the organization’s clothing sales to purchase additional items. 

Sales are different from one-on-one styling appointments. While clients receive two professional outfits at no cost during their appointment, the sales allow women to buy additional clothing at a lower price than traditional retail. The events are made possible through clothing donations from the community. Volunteers sort and prepare the donated items before they are put out for sale.  

New and gently used clothing are priced at $5, making it easier for women to continue building a work wardrobe without spending too much of their paycheques on clothes. For every four regular clothing items purchased, one additional item is free.  

At one of the sales, Córdova Bojórquez bought two blazers and two jackets, and received a blouse as the free item.  

Support Beyond the Outfit 

Eston Ferraton, manager at Dress for Success Winnipeg, said many of the clients who come through the program are newcomers still learning what professional expectations look like in Canadian workplaces. 

“This might be their first job here, and they’re wondering what the work culture is like, and how to dress,” Ferraton said.   

Adjusting to life in a new country can also come with financial pressure. After moving from their home country, there are other priorities to manage, such as rent, groceries, and transportation. The Government of Canada states that newcomers may have to start with lower-paying jobs than they had in their country of origin to gain Canadian work experience. Newcomers are also getting used to the cost of living in Canada. Most Canadian household’s expenses alone take up between 35 and 50 per cent of a person’s take-home pay, including housing, utilities, food, clothing, health insurance and transportation. This may be different from what newcomers are used to. 

Newcomers are often resourceful and help each other out. Instead of buying new stuff for herself, Córdova Bojórquez often relies on second-hand shopping within Winnipeg’s Latin community. She said many newcomers share clothing and household items through WhatsApp groups where members post things they no longer need and are still in good condition.  

“Sometimes they’ll have a bag of clothes for women’s size small, or they post pictures of everything they’re giving away,” Córdova Bojórquez said.  

Ferraton notes that women often find community alongside professional clothing at Dress for Success Winnipeg. Clients sometimes share advice with one another, talk about job searches, or compare interview experiences while trying on outfits.  

Volunteers also help guide clients through racks of donated clothing, suggesting pieces that could work for interviews or everyday workplace settings, making the experience collaborative and less overwhelming.  

“It was useful because I got advice from the volunteers, but I also had my friend there,” Córdova Bojórquez said. “We could say, ‘this looks good,’ or ‘maybe try this one instead.’” 

“It becomes a bit of a community space,” Ferraton said, noting that women often end up encouraging one another while preparing to take a step forward in their careers.  

Not Starting from Zero 

Years after being turned down for that car wash job, Puente now works as a strategic coordinator at the Centre for Newcomer Integration at RRC Polytech, where she helps connect international students with organizations and resources that can support them as they adjust to life in a new country. 

She works closely with students who are learning English while adjusting to everyday life in Canada, including how the job market works.  

Through her work at the college, Puente hears the same concerns from students preparing to enter the workforce, whether it’s a part-time job while they finish their studies or a full-time job position after graduation. Once they start getting interviews, new questions follow: What will the process be like? What do employers expect beyond the job description? And how should someone dress for the job? 

As she answers these questions, Puente remembers how confusing those first few months after moving to Canada felt.

That experience is never far from Puente. Her interview experience at the car wash motivates her to help newcomers understand the unwritten rules of the workforce. Outside of her career, she also gives back by organizing conferences that bring immigrant women together to connect, support one another, and share their stories.  

Puente is scheduled to speak at TEDxWaverley about how she helps immigrants navigate the challenges she once faced. She has also been involved in projects like Women Without Limits, a Spanish-English book that features the stories of immigrant women from different backgrounds, including her own.  

One thing Puente often reminds newcomers of is that immigrating does not mean starting from nothing. 

“You come with your experience, your education, and your values. You just need to learn how things work here,” she said.  

Getting familiar with workplace culture can take time, but support (and fashion advice) from classmates, mentors, and community organizations can help newcomers feel more confident the next time they walk into a room where new opportunities await.