Hotel uniforms go from stodgy to right in style

Maids in some upscale hotels wear Diane von Furstenberg.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
Move over, Tyra Banks.
Bellmen, bartenders and concierges are the latest inspiration for fashionistas, who are outfitting hotel workers in name-brand designer duds.
Gone are the red jackets with gold buttons and starchy white maid uniforms. In their place: wrap dresses by Diane von Furstenberg, trendy bubble skirts and Michael Kors slacks and shirts so stylish that workers don't need to change their clothes before hitting the bar after they punch out.
"When you put someone in a 100 percent polyester, binding thing that is uncomfortable and shiny and does not allow the person to be themselves, it's hard to expect them to do their best work," said Ross Klein, president of W Hotels, where employees wear seasonal lines by Michael Kors.
There are still plenty of fashion crimes on display in the lodging industry, such as the beefeater get-ups at the Sir Francis Drake in San Francisco or derby hats on employees at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego.
Keeping workers happy
Adopting the belief that a stylish worker is a happy worker, hoteliers increasingly are turning to designers for fashion makeovers.
Daniel Vosovic, a former finalist on Bravo channel's fashion competition show "Project Runway," is designing a line for NYLO Hotels, the first of which will open this year in Plano, Texas.
Cynthia Rowley created concierge and housekeeping uniforms for the Kimpton Hotels' Hotel Monaco in Denver. And Jason Pomeranc has tapped a slate of designers to dress the staff at several of his Thompson hotels, including the Hollywood Roosevelt, 60 Thompson in New York, and the Thompson Beverly Hills, which opens in June.
Cintas Corp., one of the world's largest manufacturers of mass-produced uniforms, is even trying its hand at trendier threads. The company started "Define Your Design" contests a few years ago, offering a designer makeover to winning hotels. This year, Cintas is rolling out a new wardrobe for the third contest winner, Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & amp; Spa in Dana Point, Calif.
"We have designers and merchandisers that are constantly looking at fashion trends," said Cintas spokesman Ahmed Said. Hotel employees "don't want something that looks and fits and feels like a uniform. They want to look like they just went to a department store and picked it off the shelf. People tend to feel better about wearing a designer label."
They love them
That's exactly what the staff likes about the new uniforms at the W in Westwood, where the women behind the front desk wear black pants and peasant blouses or crocheted baby-doll tops and the guys don "smart casual" button-down shirts and leather belts with a W on a brushed silver buckle. Maids wear all black.
Before the Michael Kors outfits were adopted this year, welcome desk agent Joey Jalalian, 25, said she always had to "politely decline" post-work invitations because she was wearing her uniform.
Now, she said, "I don't feel the need to strip down after work."
Jessica James, 22, agreed: "As soon as I leave here, I go out partying in my work clothes. My friends say, 'Oh my god. That's fabulous.' I say, 'Thanks, it's my uniform.'"
Her favorite piece, she said, is a mandarin-collared jacket that she personalizes by folding down one side of the collar and accessorizing with a string of beads. Her non-uniform-wearing friends liked it so much they have asked to borrow it.
The guys appreciate their designer garb, too.
"I feel great when I throw this on," said Jose Alvarez, 32, who works the late-night shift behind the front desk. "I feel like I'm wearing a 150 to 200 uniform. It's not cheap." Uniforms are paid for by the hotel.
Pulling it all together
At the Laguna Cliffs Marriott, general manager Jim Samuels said that before the clothing switch, the resort had become a hodgepodge of uniforms, with no property-wide theme.
The hotel needed a uniform makeover to stay competitive with the nearby Montage, Ritz Carlton and St. Regis Monarch Beach. The new look -- what Samuels described as "upscale resort" -- has injected a sense of enthusiasm among the staff.