A quarter of women keep back-up outfits at work

Research commissioned by fashion fabric technology clothing specialist HotSquash shows a quarter of working women keep extra clothing at the office in case they need to change after their commute.

The survey, titled “Sweat in the City” investigated the commuting and clothing habits of professional women and how they are affected by overheating and sweating. It revealed that 80% of women experience sweatiness by the time they get to work at some stage during the year, with 23% saying it happens to them year-round.

As a result, 25% of women keep extra clothing at work to change into, with a spare top being the most kept item (37%). A staggering half of those surveyed said they sweat while at the office due to stress and nerves, bringing 55% to keep deodorant handy.

In line with the recent media attention surrounding enforced high heels, 64% of women believe clothing can adversely affect the comfort of their day. As such, 60% spend an hour a week planning their work outfits.

The average commute time cited by survey respondents was 60 minutes, with 32% using public transport and 21% using more than two modes of transport to get to work.

Additional findings include:

• 18% of women think too much cleavage is the most inappropriate work wear faux pas
• 74% say the weather affects their choice of work outfit
• 50% spend more than an hour on washing, drying and ironing work clothing
• 70% stress about what to wear to work.

HotSquash recognises how important the issues of heat and sweat are when it comes to clothes for professional women, which is why the brand has tackled the issue head on with the launch of a brand new technical clothing collection designed specifically to manage the issues of sweat and overheating: HotSquash Professional.