Ideas for work clothes for young adult

[CremeFresh]

My DD 19 starts a new job soon . She has just finished an apprenticeship where the dress code was casual (jeans etc). The new job requires more formal work attire. Any suggestions as to what she can wear and what shops to go to? I'm thinking smart trousers , blouses, nice jacket, pencil skirts.
TIA.

H&M and New Look have good, not necessarily quality but certainly affordable work clothes (think button down shirts, smart trousers, blazers etc.) Primark is great too!
For slightly quirkier styles (ever so slightly more expensive), try Topshop/River Island.

TK Maxx can be good. For good quality shoes, try Office.

I’d recommend three pairs of trousers, (black, maybe another colour, and different styles), 7-10 shirts (either button down or blouses), two decent jackets (waterfall or blazer style), and one or two skirts. Ideally one of the jackets will work well as a suit with one pair of trousers and one of the skirts. One pair of plain ballet style pumps, one pair of smart ankle boots. A decent coat, and a smart bag to fit laptop/notepads, whatever she might need :) the Michael Kors tote bags have been very stylish over the last couple of years, so a similar style might be worth looking out for.
I hope this gives you some ideas!

Asos have lots of lovely tea and shift dresses in the sale at the moment.

Pencil skirts, nice tops, pencil dresses, could of shirts. Nice pair of smart trousers. Heels and flats
New look has pencil skirts and some dresses, Dorothy Perkins does dresses for work too. H&M do nice pencil skirts and tops to match.
I don’t wear shirts with pencil skirts, I tend to go with tops that look good tucked in.

Lovely , thanks all, she says she wants to look fashionable but smart , so will try your suggestions . I said to maybe buy a few bits and see what the other women wear to get a feel of how formal it actually is.

Seconding your advice to work a few days there first. We don't have a dress code and people always err on the side of caution but get here on the first day in a suit, realising that we're all in skinny jeans, ankle boots, shirts/cardigans which is one person's smart-casual and another person's casual.

Agree with above posters . Buy 2 or 3 smart outfits that she would wear for other occasions and see what everyone wears. When I was that age I spent a fortune in next on smart clothes I didn't particularly like but thought that were smart and went to work to everyone wearing skinny jeans etc. Waste of money

Keep an eye on the sales in Next, Dorothy Perkins, Debenhams and Marks. Get a couple of basic bits in the sale like black trousers etc. If she is passing any charity shops she could pick up a couple of bits cheaply till she sees what everyone else wears.

I’d have a good look at the tops she has and see if there’s anything that could transfer over to wear with a couple of decent pairs of trousers to begin with, with a view to going shopping once she has a feel for the dress code.

I’m a lecturer and the only people who wear really smart clothes are senior management - middle managers tend not to wear jackets, and definitely not teaching or support staff. Women around her age in my place tend to wear dresses, opaque tights and ankle boots at this time of year, but there’s also a lot of black skinny jeans and nice tops/blouses going on.

Good idea , I think we'll hold fire on buying too much , just in case we get it horribly wrong ! She could do with a couple of pairs of trousers , she's already got some blouses/ shirts that would be OK and I think she's got a pencil skirt .

I'm 23 and have to wear formalwear to work, all the high st shops have great work sections, Matalan are great for smart but flattering trousers (I like the skinny ankle grazers paired with smart flats), h&m, new look, primark etc all do lovely skirts/dresses/blouses for reasonable prices.

These trousers are fab - direct.asda.com/george/women/trousers/pull-on-stretch-trousers-burgundy/GEM593356,default,pd.html?placement_id=GRGTOP&config_id=GRGTOP&strategy=PWBAB&product_id=GEM593356&parent_item_id=GEM593355

They also do a black pair and a grey pair and look more like trousers in real life - they don't look like leggings. They're so comfy and look smart.

They're nice and def the sort of thing DD would like.

Gap do good trousers, Zara do brilliant ones and nice dresses. M&S for shirts and coats.

Oh and H&M and Uniqlo do good slim fit shirts if she’s slight x

Oh yes I always forget about Zara . We were going out tomorrow but DD has caught her foot on the nail edging stuff that holds carpet down (can't think what it's called) and has ripped a big gash in her foot so she can hardly walk .

That’s a shame @CremeFresh ! I still suggest Zara for trousers, she could order online?

She doesn't start the new job until end of January so we've got time for her foot to heal . I've had a look at all the shops suggested o line and there's some really nice stuff. She likes this sort of trousers , would they look ok with ankle boots ? here.

I'm just trying to get ideas for her but she'll ultimately decide for herself

Definitely new look and some bits maybe from next

stuff is smart and good quality. I just bought 2 pairs of Orbital trousers at just over £20 each and they look great.

That link won't open Thomas

Uniqlo all the way

I'm on the management team and my wardrobe is 75% uniqlo

Their easy care non iron blouses are brilliant (I think they're about £24), as are their Merino wool sweaters (£19.50) and cardigans. Their smart style ankle trousers are about £25 I think. Fabrics are lovely and don't feel flammable. I live in their leggings trousers too!

Oops, try again: link