Upgrade your wardrobe: Could a splash of colour or the right outfit get you into a snazzier seat? Photo / 123 RF
Upgrade your wardrobe: Could a splash of colour or the right outfit get you into a snazzier seat? Photo / 123 RF
It is a bold claim. While passengers have long been up-dressing in the hope of an upgrade, can wearing a particular shade or colour get you better treatment when you fly?
According to several travel experts and airline workers, you can get a lot of mileage out of wearing something red.
Psychologists have discussed something called “the red dress effect” for years. The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology reported that models were rated one to 1.5 points higher on a nine-point scale of attractiveness when wearing red.
It seems that it works just as well at 9.1km (30,000ft).
The effect is not restricted to sexy red dresses, the University of Rochester’s Adam Pazda told the journal Science. The study shows a red T-shirt, or even a tiny pop of colour in a lapel or lining, can have the same result.
Although the University of Munich suggested more research was needed to show that it was an evolutionary not just a cultural phenomenon, the fact that it appears to work on international airlines around the world may suggest it is hard-wired.
Men were also more receptive to the colour red than women.
This is not to claim that your scarlet maxi dress or burgundy blazer is going to get you an upgrade. You can’t “red pill” your way into business class, but it can definitely help you stand out from the crowd.
How does wearing red affect your chances of an upgrade?
It’s no surprise that red is the most common colour used in airline uniforms and on airline livery.
Flashes of “Safety Red” are reportedly designed into uniforms to grab passenger’s attention for safety announcements.
The former flight attendant and author of Cruising Attitude, Heather Poole, claimed that bright red lipstick was instructed in the Crew Look Books of Qantas to Emirates “so passengers can read your lips during an emergency,” she told Escape.
Airbus and the German Aerospace Centre have invested in studies of the “influence of coloured light in the aircraft cabin on passenger comfort” - with passengers found to be more alert and cabin air perceived to be fresher under blue light.
But how can wearing red help you get the good seats? There’s a lot less aerospace R&D on this subject. Though, plenty of stylists and fashion experts will advise you that a minimal amount of effort can help travellers go a long way.
Red is an important colour for airlines and cabin crew.
What is the best outfit for aeroplane travel?
Auckland-based stylist, with a degree in psychology, Caitlin Taylor says that colour theory is not the pseudo-science others paint it to be.
Although there is plenty of evidence that the colours we wear affect the way others see us, she says they do a lot more to regulate our own feelings and the way we see ourselves. The phenomenon of “dopamine dressing” has proven the right clothes can be a mood booster for her clients.
“Red is generally known to portray a sense of confidence,” she says.
“So perhaps you could argue that by wearing red, you portray yourself with more confidence and authority internally, and people respond to that confidence by treating you.”
Dressing the part definitely will help cut through any woolly excuses from customer service about where your misplaced luggage is. Especially when they guess how expensive your wardrobe would be to replace.
What about colours to avoid when travelling? That’s a far more practical issue says Taylor.
“As much as I love white, that’s the only colour I’d avoid on travel,” she says. Simply because it’s the one that will show the toll of long-haul and hide stains the worst.
The idea of dressing in all black or wearing business attire to try and bag a business upgrade might be a false economy.
“I think we assume that comfort and style are mutually exclusive, but you’ll find a bright pink jumper just as comfortable as a black one,” says Taylor.
Wearing “fun, bright colours” like you’re going on a tropical holiday is likely to make you appear happier and more approachable.
In an era when airlines have uniformly opted for a “relaxed, no-dress code” approach to travel and it is acceptable to check in wearing pyjamas, some passengers are starting to hack the system. It doesn’t take a lot of effort to be top of mind when crew are allocating seats or any other perks. Perhaps a splash of colour could be all it takes.
