The history of the t-shirt can be traced back to the early 20th century, and was a method of unifying those serving in the US Navy. By having the same undershirts whilst at sea; in addition to their uniforms, not only was there a community and union ship formed, but the similarity in garments introduced a layer of implicit equality between peers, boosting a higher happiness level.
Shared community brought about increased morale as a result, and to no surprise, further brought a rise in productivity. This minor yet radical change has influenced the new generation of workplace attire and encouraged now employers to have set workplace uniforms or elements of personalised merchandise as part of their code of conduct, and has positively left these businesses experiencing a 12% higher productivity level of their happier workers. How? Here’s the science behind it.
The psychology:
According to Fashion Designer Sikhounmuong, the experience of personalisation; monogramming in particular, “is one tradition that’s both personal and universal at the same time,” and is a key example that is used in customising personalised t-shirts/uniforms. This is because, when studying the impact of community on workplace morale, it was found that in environments where employees share a uniform or a similar look, they are likely to experience an increase in morale as employees feel connected to a common goal, and belong as part of a team.
In addition, more than 75% of woman-identifying employees in the work force highlighted that they suffer from feeling uncomfortable, and largely anxious, in the workplace; as stated by Forbes-Bell, industry specialist in fashion and human psychology, and how a unified company clothing policy can make all the difference in reducing this problem.
Similarly, traditional formal “office wear” such as blazer pant-suits have been found to load cognitive thinking and encourage a hierarchical, authoritarian environment – both of which are elements disrupting positive workplace morale. Whereas, in their studies in the relationships between clothing and examination performance; Bell, Cardello & Schutz (2005) found that comfortable garments, those which are more informal in nature and made of more natural fabrics; such as our trustworthy Organic Cotton Unisex T-shirts, are likely to boost cognitive performance, productivity and happiness levels.
Our client’s at N1 Garden Centre would agree, and came to ICON with the request to create custom-made, nature inspired, workplace attire. When asked about the importance of their personalised workplace t-shirts, Caroline Humphreys, the Office Manager said: “Our uniforms from Icon Printing fit our branding perfectly. They are stylish but most importantly practical. We have gone for lots of different types of items so that staff working outside can layer up and keep warm.” With respects to recognising the change to cooler weather, the N1 Garden centre took this initiative, resulting in happier – and warmer, employees.
Why you should execute this now:
Whether you’re a large corporation engaging thousands of employees, a more boutique home-based business or a freelance content creator with a team, personalised apparel may be the magic in further levelling-up your collective team morale. Through association, fostering community and leveraging a more creativity-first approach to work, the next generation of workplace attire is formulated of comfortable, casual and [insert] pieces to make the most integral part of any business; your employees feel happier. At ICON, we believe there is no better way to foster a positive community, and work tirelessly in the business of happy clients in creating their bespoke personalised t-shirts and outerwear.
Jump on the trend to personalised workwear from ICON by contacting our sales team or click here to get an instant quote.