 |
| Amanda Massi said most of her clients in tech want to look polished but not have their clothes stand out. Malik Daniels |
For Amanda Massi, a luxury personal stylist working between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, the job is part fashion artistry, part strategy and her clientele is anything but typical. Most of her clients are men in tech, finance, and real estate, many of whom run multimillion-dollar companies yet still default to the industry’s unofficial uniform: a T-shirt and jeans.
Massi’s challenge isn’t convincing them to abandon that comfort it’s elevating it.
Breaking Into the Tech Crowd
Massi first entered the styling world while pursuing a master’s in fine arts with a focus on fashion design. A part-time job assisting a stylist turned into a career pivot within six months. Through networking and events in San Francisco, she built a tight-knit roster of tech clients one introduction at a time.
“When one tech guy likes you, they tell their friends, and then they tell their friends,” she says. That momentum helped her establish a foundation with some of the most influential professionals in the Bay Area before moving her business to Southern California and Las Vegas.
Today, 65–70% of her clients are men, primarily executives, founders, and investors. Many of the women she styles are entrepreneurs, philanthropists, or public figures in music and entertainment.
Looking Good Without Drawing Attention
Massi understands the tech culture’s understated approach. “In San Francisco, they’d say, ‘Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t care what he wears.’ My response was always: ‘That’s great, but you called me, so you obviously care.’”
She notes that clothing is part of personal branding especially for leaders representing their companies to employees, investors, or the press. “You need to look a certain way when you walk into an investor meeting asking for hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars,” she says.
Most of her tech clients favor neutral colors and clean tailoring, prioritizing fit and quality over flashy labels. Even those who wear luxury brands, like Brunello Cucinelli or Ermenegildo Zegna, still seek simplicity. One top-tier client refuses pants with belt loops to save time and sticks to loafers to avoid laces.
“They’re extremely time-driven,” Massi explains. “They want to get dressed and get on with their day.”
The Elevated Uniform
Massi doesn’t dismantle the tech uniform she refines it. Instead of a standard cotton T-shirt, she suggests a knit tee that holds its shape, fits better, and absorbs moisture more effectively. For denim, she swaps stretch fabrics for raw denim, which maintains structure during long coding or meeting sessions.
Her clients appreciate the rationale. “They’re analytical, so they want to understand why a fabric or fit works better not just that it looks good,” she says.
For those who prefer a formula, Massi builds capsule wardrobes that function like curated boutiques: rows of tailored T-shirts in shades of gray, navy, and white; raw denim or dress slacks beneath; and shoes organized by occasion.
“It’s the same uniform every day,” she says, “but it’s higher quality, perfectly fitted, and built to last. The result is confidence without flash a look that says you’ve made it, without saying it out loud.”
