Japan's Pajama Suit helps teleworkers look good for Zoom calls

An employee of Japanese retailer Aoki Holdings wearing 'Pajamas Suit' that looks like a business suit for business people working from home simulates a telework at the company's shop, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Tokyo, Japan December 16, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato

Want to look good for a Zoom meeting but don't want to get too dressed up? A Japanese apparel company has created a "Pajamas Suit" that's meant to resemble office attire but feel as snug as sleepwear.

Aoki Holdings is marketing the navy, beige, black and dark grey suits for both men and women to teleworkers as "more than pajamas and less than fashionable clothes."

Sold as suit separates, the jackets are knit cardigans and can be mixed and matched with elastic-waist pants designed for sitting for long periods. All items in the collection cost 4,990 yen ($48) each in Aoki's online store.

Jackets and pants of 'Pajamas Suit' that look like a business suit for business people working from home, created by Japanese retailer Aoki Holdings, are displayed at the company's shop, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Tokyo, Japan December 16, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato

The "pajama suit" highlights the ways clothing makers are trying to adapt as they struggle to sell business suits with the COVID-19 pandemic keeping office workers at home. Aoki has warned it will book billions of yen in losses this year.

A survey by the Pew Research Center shows that most Americans want to continue working from home even after the pandemic, suggesting apparel companies will need to continue to innovate in a new era of "office" work.

($1 = 104 yen)

An employee of Japanese retailer Aoki Holdings wearing 'Pajamas Suit' that looks like a business suit for business people working from home is reflected on a mirror inside a try-on booth at the company's shop, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Tokyo, Japan December 16, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato

(Reporting by Chris Gallagher; Additional reporting by Ritsuko Ando; Editing by Karishma Singh)

General view shows the shop of Japanese retailer Aoki Holdings in Tokyo, Japan December 16, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato

Items of 'Pajamas Suit' that look like a business suit for business people working from home, created by Japanese retailer Aoki Holdings, are displayed at the company's shop, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Tokyo, Japan December 16, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato