volume 1, issue 9
Does the Power lie in the Suit?
It sure does. Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, has broken the glass ceiling more than once, the French political elite called her “too elegant,” despite the belittlement, Lagarde has been able to create an aura and stand her ground with style and competence. Known for her clever use of scarves, she can fine tune her suits, creating a political statement, beyond style. In another example, who can forget the power play of The Godfather? The famous lines, a “power suit isn’t a power suit, unless you own it,” and “Oh, and if you make it a three-piece suit, you can bet you’ll command extra respect.” The suit is a form of intimidation, to woo, seduce and ultimately wage war with the enemy. A sartorial relevance with Al Pacino’s coat more luxurious than his father Marlon Brando’s, a transfer of power, a succession. We see the suit’s influence yet again, Mark Zuckerberg did not go to Capitol Hill wearing a T. Shirt and a hoodie, despite his reputation as a Silicon Valley savant, he changed the conversation, by wearing a suit and a tie too. All three situations demonstrate the power that lies in the suit as an instrument to build, change or even intimidate with conversations in the public gaze.
Anne Hollander, in Sex and Suits, distinguishes between sexuality and seductiveness. The basic sexuality of the suit cannot be dismissed, even if it actually disengages from seductiveness. She draws an analogy with panthers and gazelles, in their easy fitting suits. The suit provides our body with a sanctuary, she states, when we consider its efficiency and elegance in nature. Hollander elucidates that unlike anything else in the material world, clothing must deal with each person’s body, this understanding makes fashion, relentlessly personal. Fashion scholars Hazel Clark and Cheryl Buckley add that there is no one answer, as the suit continues to become embedded in the grammar of everyday life, creating a new ensemble, inventing the future and retelling the past. With intimacy and ease, like a gazelle.
As a founder, CEO and leader in a fast paced growth business, there can be a tussle, one between the contemporary and the conventional when embracing a suit. An event provides a valuable forum to converse and create a presence in a suit without disturbing the daily dress code. The trope mingles with the keynote, the handshake and exudes respect for others.
Fashion is a realm of both peace and war, attraction and rejection, with beautiful as well as beast-like qualities..there is a beast in fashion, red in tooth and claw—Fashion Beast, Alan Moore and Malcolm McLaren, Book Review, Otto von Busch
They wore it best!
Other worthy mentions include the very dapper Tom Ford who has maintained the same size forever, wearing his own creations with or without the white carnation and across the pond the tattooed and altogether bespoke, bend it, bend it, bend it like Beckam!
The social activist Otto von Busch has made many notable contributions towards social justice through fashion. The famous beast of fashion gets beautifully sublimated in a suit. The suit has the capacity to engage with a studied calmness while maintaining an animal like magnetism.
Whitecube Business Events are tailored to build stakeholder relationships. There is no stakeholder more invested than a CEO/leader/founder/entrepreneur. Whitecube events are carefully designed to include personality, dress, keynotes and dialogue between the leader and the guests.
Whitecube Business Events can help produce your corporate newsletter. We also offer support with various tools such as presentations, websites, writing, video and keynotes.
Our event designs, Whitecube Crossings, Whitecube on a Terrace, Executive Design Studio, Whitecube Briefings, Moonshot Moments, Whitecube Kintsugi, pay careful attention to each of the seven major stakeholders –Community, Customer, Founder/ Executive, Partner, Employee, Investor and Trade Associations.
Whitecube Business Events helps businesses build a good reputation through stakeholder relationships by offering a cohesive communications platform for meetings, events and related communications.
Romasha Nath is the Founder & CEO of Whitecube Business Events. Her relationship with events began at the age of 16 when she made her social debut at family gatherings and was the architect of setting the table and arranging flowers.
Her passion for hosting events and building relationships on behalf of clients, covers over two decades of an award winning Communications and Consulting career. As a trusted advisor to Boards and the C-Suite, her work includes interviews, personal branding, storytelling, publishing, video, to name just a few. Her approach is anchored in creativity, bringing a soft touch to hard facts and data. She has worked through complex cultural issues, crises management and negotiation scenarios, using events and conversations as effective tools for dialogue and relationship building.
Her events have been consistently praised for a jewel box quality that preserve intimacy in large conferences and add sparkle to small curated meetings. She began her career in the luxury travel and hospitality industry. Romasha is a graduate of Parsons School of Design, New York and a certified coach from UC Berkeley, California. A naturalized American citizen, her diverse experience covers Asia Pacific, Europe and the United States.
Please contact her at 949 3314869 or romashanath@gmail.com for your next meeting, event or communications related needs.
References
https://www.vogue.com/article/christine-lagarde-changing-of-the-guard
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/290370/the-godfather-by-mario-puzo/
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/10/fashion/mark-zuckerberg-suit-congress.html
https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/sex-and-suits-9781474250610/
https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/designer-tom-ford
https://www.vogue.com/article/david-beckham-royal-wedding-dior-homme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQb8ShgVjJA
https://www.pinterest.com/jonesflo53/christine-lagarde-outfits/
https://bamfstyle.com/2018/02/05/godfather2-michael-black3pc/
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