Here’s a secret. No one is “born” a CEO. Every industry leader knows it’s impossible to succeed without experts to help you act and look the part. That includes an executive stylist.
An executive stylist doesn’t just tell you “yes” and “no” to fit whatever’s selling well or to look like a carbon copy of themselves.
(At least the good ones don’t.)
They learn about your lifestyle, listen to your needs, and create a versatile, long-lasting wardrobe to propel your career forward.
These style pros know first impressions matter, regardless of where you work. They make sure you look like a competent, thoughtful leader with an eye for innovation. Not some background actor on Succession.
How do we know this?
Because it’s what we do. Next Level Wardrobe is the go-to workwear styling team for successful professionals. We’ve worked with all ages, and body types virtually and in person with our clients all over the world.
Get a taste of what men’s and women’s styling and consulting services can do for you. We’re sharing case studies from three of our previous executive clients. See how they bolstered their fashion and career paths with NLW’s help.
How an Executive Stylist Lets You Focus on What Matters: Samantha’s Story
Meet Samantha. She’s a successful partner at an NYC law firm who decided to seek an Executive Stylist after a wake-up call.
“I was sitting in a meeting yesterday in Manhattan realizing that I hated what I was wearing,” she shares.
Samantha actually worked with a stylist before and loved the experience. The only problem?
That was 18 years ago.
She needed an updated approach that matched her current body shape and the new place in her career. On top of that, she knew she wasn’t a fashion expert and she didn’t need to be one.
As she puts it, “I am a fantastic lawyer. I am not great at finding things that look good on me.”
After consultation with Samantha, we conducted a closet edit as we do with all our clients. Here’s what her closet looked like before:
As you can see, it’s messy, unfocused, and not exactly easy to use. Here’s what it looked like after the edit:
With an organized and categorized closet, she can find what she’s looking for.
Then, our stylists shopped ahead at stores they knew would match her style, size, and personal brand. (Check out this day in the life blog post to see how we do this.)
We found clothing that flattered her mid-size figure instead of hiding it and head-to-toe outfits for mixing and matching. How? By leaning into our NLW Style System:
- Focusing on Core Colors
- Invest in Essential Pieces
- Getting the Perfect Fit
Finally, Samantha has a wardrobe that projects the confident, entrepreneurial businesswoman she is.
Paul’s Story: Striking a Style Balance in Silicon Valley
Most of our clients need an Executive Stylist because they’re what we call “time-poor.” In other words, it means they don’t have a bunch of extra time. They don’t want to waste a second on something unnecessary.
That was the case for our next client, Paul. As a CEO and founder of a tech company, his schedule was full to the brim. He didn’t have time to spend shopping or perfecting his look.
On top of that, Paul doesn’t work in a traditional business formal work environment. Tech CEO style is notoriously casual, but he still wanted to look respectable and put-together. It was also important to him to not ‘look like he’s trying too hard’ (we hear this often and make sure it doesn’t happen!)
Like Samantha, he’d dipped his toes into personal styling before working with NLW.
“[I] tried Stitch Fix, and the first box was so bad that I never went back.”
We’ve heard that one before. Styling boxes sound great, in theory. However, these services don’t have the time, care, or expertise to give you a truly personalized experience.
For Paul, we knew the process needed to be as efficient and seamless as possible. On shopping day, his stylist made sure he had a private dressing room set up with outfit options.
Since Paul has a thin build, she also had a tailor on hand to pin clothing to get the perfect fit.
Finally, Paul was one of our clients that wanted expert advice on his whole look, not just clothing. So we even set him up with a fantastic barber to refresh his haircut.
From start to finish, we gave Paul a hassle-free experience with results that last.
How an Executive Stylist can Help You Navigate Change: Michelle’s Story
So many of our clients hesitate to hire an executive stylist because of change. Change in size, career, living situation, etc.
That was the case for Michelle. She wanted an upgrade, but because her size kept changing, she told herself to wait.
We get it.
When you picture owning your dream wardrobe, you envision so-called “perfection”. Not only from the clothes you pick but also from yourself. A lot of us have challenging emotions that tie into that.
“I’ll buy new clothes when I weigh X amount.”
“My closet’s a mess now but I don’t want to reorganize it until I move to X location.”
“When I get X promotion, then I’ll step up my style.”
It’s easy to call these thoughts “goals”. But ultimately, you’re delaying being your best self and not aligning your style with your success.
As the CEO of a healthcare company, Michelle needed to present herself in a modern, approachable, and credible manner.
But she wasn’t ready to take the plunge on a wardrobe refresh because of her fluctuating weight.
Until she partnered up with our Next Level Wardrobe style team.
We’ve worked with clients of all shapes, sizes, careers, and genders. We know how to break down your physical and mental hangups to get you to the finish line.
For example, we taught Michelle how wearing a blazer adds figure-defining structure to an outfit- perfect for those formal and power casual looks.
And how to mix and match casual silhouettes in quality styles to show off her personal brand.
Ready to add an executive stylist to your dream team? Apply for our Men’s Executive Image Consulting and Women’s Executive Image Consulting services. Our team of workwear experts knows how to build the best pieces for you and your lifestyle.
