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Uniform Trends of 2025
From neutral browns to the return of the button-up, here are the hottest trends set for service in 2025 - on the floor and at the pass.
Hospitality is back. Coming up for air post-holiday period, operators are busy planning for 2025 while building on the dining experiences guests loved from last year.
Business owners are working hard to retain staff and nurture talent and are looking for ways to energize staff and the customer experience. The increasing take-up of uniforms designed for staff to feel good in, is part of the emerging standard across hospitality with businesses looking beyond the humble t-shirt.
We asked Cargo Crew Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Felicity Rodgers to give us the uniform trends setting the tone for the year ahead.
Chocolate Our Hero
If your first instinct is to reach for black, consider making chocolate brown your new hero color. Like black, grey or white, chocolate brown can be treated as a neutral color and styled like one. Swap out a black uniform piece for chocolate brown, without changing any other piece of the uniform and you’ll see how perfectly the style comes to life. Like black, chocolate brown is a versatile and hardworking color, but has a warm and welcoming undertone setting it apart as an adaptable and timeless choice.
As for which shade you should choose? If you’re in a warmer climate, consider opting for a lighter style to catch the sun, like our Tom Apron in Tobacco, with a Cream Clip Strap. Moodier, dimly lit restaurants and bars on the other hand, can’t go wrong with the richly elegant Deli Bib Apron paired with a crisp Smith Oxford Shirt. Explore our full palette and make brown your new hero neutral!
Anticipating the ongoing popularity of green uniform styles, we added a new shade of Forest Green to our Banjo Chef Apron range and introduced the Banjo Khaki Utility Shirt for 2025. Chefs have long been tastemakers in and out of the kitchen and these styles give an earthy modern twist on the chefwear classics.
Shades of green beautifully complement a front-of-house team in chocolate brown, or we love a full front-to-back look with the Tom Apron in Forest, a rich green tone that can be customized with your choice of straps and embroidery.
Neutral on Neutral
Quiet luxury dominated the fashion world a couple of years ago and it hasn’t left since. Defined by neutral colors, high quality, long-lasting fabrics and smart tailoring, it’s a timeless, enduring style for a reason. The minimalist aesthetic and clean lines of a vest, shirt and tie, promotes elegance while the combination of sands, whites and camels, keeps the style modern and chic.
Our resort uniforms include pieces from our Conscious Collection, a capsule of sustainable uniforms made from hemp and upcycled fabrics. The Hazel Apron in Natural is one of our favorite neutrals and is made from 100% repurposed sustainable textile, giving it a linen-style look that achieves perfect quiet luxury style over a white or oatmeal Smith Oxford Shirt.
Old School Service
The style bar is rising. Casualisation is fading for staff uniforms in 2025, with ageless designs returning to the fold. Comfort remains important and pieces that capture traditional hospitality style also need to service the modern workplace. Our new Freddie Server Jacket epitomises this balance.
Inspired by tailored waiter coats with a classic collar and antique style silver snap buttons, the jacket has a modern unstructured edge for easy all day movement. A unisex fit and easy care, it works for all team members and doesn’t need the relentless pressing of the 1950s server coats it’s inspired by. We love to really dress it up with a crisp button up and black tie. See how you can bring nostalgic service style to your tables.
An ever-lasting style power play is white on white. We think it’s a great option to make a statement in 2025, whether you’ve got a new opening or want to impress your guests with a fresh look.
Easy to roll out with your team, combine a white shirt with our Theodore Apron in either full bib or waist for fine dining prowess. It’s equally impactful in a more casual setting with a simple white tee or short sleeve shirt.
Our Banjo Chef Range also has options for your back of house team to get the look, with functional white pieces designed with breathable fabrics to last back to back service.
To sum up 2025 in a uniform, it’s all about timeless elegance with contemporary flair. Making a lasting impression on your guests is as important as staff comfort, so consider fabric and fit as much as your colors and styles!
For support in deciding on your uniform, talk to a Cargo Crew styling expert or browse our collection of lookbooks and catalogs.
Felicity Rodgers is the founder and chief creative officer of Cargo Crew, home of the Modern Uniform. After graduating from Fashion Design at RMIT, Felicity founded Cargo Crew in 2002 after recognizing a gap in the market for stylish, well-designed uniforms. Felicity used a $2000 tax return to fund her corporate workwear business start-up from a one-bedroom flat in Melbourne. Today, Cargo Crew is synonymous with design-led, fit-for-work uniforms for hospitality, retail and corporate businesses. With over 80,000 customers in more than 80 countries, Cargo Crew dresses the best and brightest makers, operators, and enterprises worldwide.
