Jimmy Fallon read out her impressive resume on stage when Bozoma Saint-John (nicknamed Boz), wearing a $287 dress by J.Angelique, appeared on “The Tonight Show”. She was the Netflix Chief Marketing Officer and Apple Music Global Marketing director. These titles were stacked like an invisible ceiling. She used a Jessica Rich high heel and a pink dress to tell us that the real power was not in your resume but in how you define yourselves.
Boz’s J.Angelique “Tori” dress is elegant and light, but it costs only $287. Jessica Rich heels are like a weapon, combining soft pink with a sharp resume for the workplace. Does this combination show that fashion is not a slave of price but a stage to express attitude?
The S&P 500 will have more than 30% female executives by 2024. However, their clothing choices are still scrutinized. Boz’s appearance on national television in an “affordable dress” was she breaking stereotypes that “women at work must wear expensive clothes?” Her choice is a declaration that power doesn’t require expensive clothes. It only requires that you dare to define who you are.
Jimmy Fallon said on stage that Boz was the person responsible for the Super Bowl Halftime Show of Beyonce & Bruno Mars. These stages and the music they play have become cultural icons around the world. She took the stage in a pink gown that night and fought against racism in another way. When women move from behind the scenes, to the front, from reality show stars to executives, is their fashion choice becoming a symbol of power?
Harvard Business Review data shows that the public dress of female executives is often interpreted to be “too strong” and “unprofessional”. Boz’s choice shows us that pink can be power. Affordable can be pride. And fashion can be a tool. She used a $287 gown to prove that true power is not in what you wear but how you do it.
When Boz smiled while wearing high heels on the “Tonight Show”, she wasn’t just showing off her outfit. She was also saying that the power of a woman doesn’t lie in their resume but in how they define their own stage.
