It’s an exiting time when a company is ready to move into buying its first corporate clothing – like a first date or a first payslip, it’s a sign of maturity – your start-up business is no longer a baby, the trainer wheels are off and it’s made it to the grown up stage.

But before you go mad with logos and snazzy colours, remember that the era of imposing rules on the workforce is long gone. The days of scratchy work trousers and polyester tabards, or women members of the team having to wear clothing made for men, are over too.  Health and Safety issues mean that workplace clothing has to be fit for purpose and cultural and religious diversity means that the clothing you choose has to be suitable and acceptable to all members of the company, not just you and your designer.

Working with a long-established supplier of uniforms for the workplace can be a real help because they have experience of what works for businesses like yours. As an example, you may feel that pure cotton polo-shirts are just what you need to give a crisp, business-like impression to your customers, but they may know that for staff who have to spend a lot of time moving items around, a poly-cotton blended polo shirt may be a better option because it looks better for longer and creases less than your first choice.

It may also be important to you to have organic, ethically produced clothing for your staff, in line with your company’s values. In which case your supplier should be able to advise you on the best organic clothing to balance performance, appearance and organic certification.

Finally, it’s often the case that some members of your team will need safety clothing such as specialised shoes and boots, or hats and gloves, or high-visibility work-wear and picking your way through all the options on offer can be difficult. Once again, an experienced supplier should be able to help you assess your company’s needs and outfit your team in line with your budget.

It’s fascinating to watch the world of corporate-speak shifting and changing to cope with the recession. As High Street stores close, and businesses lay off staff, the language that we hear from many businesses is changing too. Words like ‘value’ as in value for money and ‘bargain’ as in cheap and ‘quality’ meaning will last for a long time are replacing ‘investment’ as in buying our stuff is investing in your future and ‘style’ as in our style makes a statement about you and fashion, meaning this isn’t cheap and it won’t last long, but it’s totally up to the moment.

Virgin Atlantic have taken this shift in language into the world of uniforms. Their advert, celebrating a quarter century of international travel, has no words except the soundtrack of Frankie Goes To Hollywood singing “Relax”. But what it does do is pick up on all the themes that are covered in both sets of language above. We see the signature “red-hot” Virgin uniforms on leggy hostesses striding through Heathrow airport 25 years ago. Passengers in pale, unfashionable clothing turn and stare at the glowing clothing, and one man is so entranced that he spills ketchup from his Wimpy burger down his boring white shirt. The red uniformed beauties are accompanied by cute, uniform-wearing male captain who makes meaningful eye contact with a stylish older woman … something for everyone is clearly the message.

The key point though, is twofold. The clickerboards rotate to show that Virgins flights are all ‘on time’ while other flights are delayed, and rival air hostesses frown and look miserable in their boring grey outfits as the Virgin team stride past them. The message is clear, Virgin gets you there on time and in style.

So many messages: happiness, speed, efficiency, glamour, all conveyed by one corporate clothing image … what does your uniform say about your business?

A uniform makes certain statements about a company or business. It says that there is a public image that the organisation wishes to convey – think of the difference between the way a barista wears an apron to make you a coffee and the way a waiter dresses to serve you dinner. It displays the values that the company has, and the aims it wants to achieve, which is why airline staff tend to be formally dressed, to convince travellers that this is a luxurious, elegant way to travel, while pizza delivery men tend to dress in a casual uniform style that focuses on swiftness and relaxed eating.

Polo shirts are a common choice because they are comfortable, easy to wear on a casual basis but also smart enough to be look professional in many industries.

The colour also says a great deal about the organisation’s ‘personality’ – bright colours in  polo-shirt imply a young and possibly irreverent company, while classic coloured polo shirts imply stability and old fashioned values. Picking a colour that is part of your logo, or harmonises with it, gives an added sense of coherence and unity. A good designer or supplier will be able to advise you on this aspect of the corporate look.