Here Are the 6 Style Personalities to Develop Your Personal Style

There is no such thing as having “no style.” By getting dressed every day, you inherently are making style choices, and, therefore, have a style. Just like we have to eat every day, we have to put on clothes—and your clothing choices say a lot about you before you even speak.

Style Brand Strategists, Virtual Styling

In fact, 93% of messages are conveyed by nonverbal factors:

  • 7% is verbal communication

  • 38% is from body language and tone

  • 55% is visual appearance*

How you choose to dress IS a form of communication, and visual communication is the first message we send.

Meet the BU Style Six

After more than 10 years of study and field research, we developed the BU Style Six™—a style personality assessment and methodology that give you the foundation to begin identifying how and why your style is different from anyone else.

Keeping the food analogy going, you know your different food “tastes”—many remain constant (like a childhood favorite) and many change as you are exposed to new flavors and your taste preferences evolve. Style personalities act in very much the same way. Instead of five taste buds, we have six style personalities: relaxed, classic, polished, soft, magnetic, and creative. The difference here is that while you naturally start developing and identifying your food tastes early in life, you may not have had a path to thoughtfully explore and connect your wardrobe choices uniquely to you.

What Is a Style Personality?

A style personality is how the traits of your personality and character are communicated through clothing. No one style personality is better than another. Each is unique and positive in its own way. Your mix of style personalities are combined to create your style brand.

Each of the six style personalities can be connected to specific clothing characteristics and messaging as they relate to you.

What is a Style Brand?

Personal Stylists, Style Personalities

Style brand is an important piece of your personal brand, which is the make up of your overall core values, beliefs, purpose, and goals. How you incorporate and combine your spread of the style personalities through your wardrobe choices creates your unique style brand. Creating a style brand that aligns with your personal brand ensures your visual message is successfully communicating “who you are.”

Why the BU Style Six?

The BU Style Six is an intentional and accessible approach to style using these timeless style personalities. You can use this methodology to help guide you as your life circumstances and, consequently, your style brand shift. We do not all have the same interests, we all come from varied backgrounds and cultures, and we all have different goals in life.

At BU Style we embrace and love the differences in all people, and we want your style to be an empowering tool in showcasing your uniqueness. Our BU Style Six personalities collectively can be used to create personal style brands for any individual as well as any organization looking to hone in on their visual message and branding. It can also be useful to help you understand how to use your wardrobe choices to align and connect with the settings you occupy and the individuals with whom you interact.

You do not have to have a strong interest in fashion (most of our clients don’t), but you do have to get dressed in the morning. By learning your own style tastes and preferences—not a magazine’s, not an influencer’s, not your best friend’s—you can create a truly “personal” style that reflects who you are and allows you to be you in any stage in life.

Want to discover your current and goal style personalities? Take the BU Style Six assessment online.

*Henry Calero, The Power of Nonverbal Communication: How You Act is More Important Than What You Say (Los Angeles: Silver Lake Publishing, 2005)

INSIGHTSNatalie Tincher