Kohl‘s Dress Code in 2024: An In-Depth Look
As a [currentyear] update, Kohl‘s recently revised their employee dress code with the objective of maintaining a polished, professional staff image. Through my retail industry expertise and insider research, I will explain all aspects of the dress code in detail, so current and prospective employees know what to expect.
Overview: Business Casual Attire
The overarching theme of Kohl’s dress code is business casual. This means clothing should be neat, clean, free of stains, and devoid of distracting embellishments. Presenting a competent retail image is crucial.
Kohl’s does not provide uniforms. Employees must supply their own clothing in compliance with the policies below.
Top Guidelines
Tops must be solid color collared shirts, sweaters, blouses or dresses in either black, dark blue, gray, or white.
- Acceptable: Plain black button-down, crew-neck gray sweater
- Unacceptable: White t-shirt with graphic image
As of 2023, Kohl’s prohibits tops with patterns, prints, graphics, slogans, or distracting details like rips or studs. Their goal is a simple, professional aesthetic.
Bottom Guidelines
Bottoms including pants, skirts, dresses and jeans should be black, dark blue or beige. Approved fabrics are twill, corduroy, denim and knit in a dress pant, casual pant or skirt style.
- Acceptable: Dark rinse straight jeans, beige knit midi skirt
- Unacceptable: Burgundy cropped pants, short tight miniskirt
Inappropriate items include sweatpants, exercise pants, shorts, overalls, leggings or any bottoms with embellishments.
Shoe Guidelines
Shoes must be closed-toe casual or dress styles. Acceptable colors are black, brown, gray, navy, white. The goal is polished yet comfortable footwear suitable for extended wear and walking.
- Acceptable: Black sneakers, brown loafers
- Unacceptable: Distressed combat boots, fabric ballet flats
Accessory and Grooming Guidelines
Along with their standard clothing, all on-duty employees must wear their Kohl’s lanyard name badge prominently displayed.
For hair, beards, mustaches and makeup, Kohl‘s policy is simply well-groomed and clean in appearance. Natural hair colors are preferred, but management may allow creative colors like blue or green if done professionally.
Jewelry in good taste is allowed, along with one small facial piercing such as nose stud. Conservative tattoos are generally accepted, apart from facial tattoos which require manager approval. Offensive tattoos with profanity, hate speech or nudity must be covered.
Position-Specific Exceptions
The policies above apply to most customer-facing store staff. However certain positions have slightly different guidelines:
Kohl’s Sephora employees must wear all black tops and bottoms. Jeans are allowed if solid black with no washing or whiskering.
| Position | Top Colors Allowed | Bottom Colors Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Sephora Staff | Solid black | Solid black |
| Stock Associates | Black, dark blue, gray, white | Black, dark blue, beige |
Manager Discretion
Individual store managers can exercise judgment for employee accidents like clothing rips, stains, or temporary hair dye issues. But repeated dress code violations will result in disciplinary action.
If an employee feels an exception is warranted due to cultural, religious or disability-related reasons, they should discreetly discuss the matter with management.
The Bottom Line
Kohl’s aims for policies that let employees showcase individuality while maintaining workplace appropriateness. By following these dress code guidelines, staff can represent Kohl’s brand values of smart, stylish service.
