Page 8A
Bird's EyeView
Friday, November 1, 1996
Story by Dave Breitenstein
Photo by Tyler Wirken
A as many seniors begin interviewing for jobs soon, the issue of conformity in workplace clothing scares some KU students.
Raena Scow, Olathe senior, said she would have to wear professional-looking clothing after she graduated with a degree in business. But she did not like the idea of being forced to conform and wear prescribed clothing.
"I believe if you wear a uniform, it takes away from your individuality," she said. "It's almost like a social norm where you look at someone and can tell what their occupation is. With your career, you're expected to dress in a certain way and portray a certain image. People will stereotype you if you don't conform."
But Chris Crandall, assistant professor of psychology, said confor-
mily helped society function better
"Conformity is a fabulous thing," he said. "Without conformity, there would be no society."
Crandall counted 35 out of 40 students in his class wearing jeans, as an example of student's conformity.
Most professionals agree that putting on a suit or a dress makes them feel more professional, he said.
"A lot of people are excited about what they have to wear, because it shows that you accomplished your goals and achieved what you wanted," he said.
A professional look is especially important in customer service jobs
Jerry Samp, president of Commerce Bank, 955 Iowa St., said employees at the bank had to wear a certain type of clothing.
"We ask our employees to dress
professionally," Sump said. "Normally for a man, that means a shirt and tie. For a woman, it is a dress or dress slacks and a blouse."
Every Commerce employee knows of the formal dress code required of bankers. But the business has followed a recent national trend of having dress-down days, and he said employees and customers liked the idea.
"In order to identify themselves as a banker, they wear a shirt that says 'Commerce Bank' on it," he said. "We don't look at it as a uniform, but if we're going to dress canally, we need to be able to identify ourselves to the customer."
"I think the customers are becoming more tolerant or accepting of a more casual form of dress, but at the same time, we have to remember that we're fighting hundreds of years of tradition," he said. "Our customers expect us to dress professionally, although we have to acknowledge that things are changing."
"With the large selection of ties and shirts, people can really express their individuality if they wish, but they can still appear professional," he said.
Samp said employees could still express themselves through variations in clothing accessories.
Problems can arise when individuality goes too far, and an employee refuses to conform to the dress code, according to some business managers.
Jim Dallen, manager at Mass Street Dell, 941 Massachusetts St., said there was only one way he would handle an employee who refused to conform and wear a uniform.
"They wouldn't work here," he said.
But most KU students accept the
fact that they will have to conform in order to get a job.
Scott Ludwig, Prairie Village freshman, said he expected to wear a uniform in his career.
"I'm going to be a police officer, so that uniform is pretty basic," he said. "It's obvious what you'll have to wear before you get a job."
He said he never complained about having to dress up for work, but he admitted sometimes it was a hassle to dress nicely for a job early in the morning. Although he always wore the attire prescribed by a boss, he said this was not a sign of his submission to authority.
"I think people have an understanding that it is just for work," he said. "People have a life at home where their individuality can come out. Wearing uniforms can help you get through all the hassles of what to wear each day so you can get down to business."
by Bradley Brooks
The majority of people don't like the candy it is the plastic, man."
Steve Glew, dealer of Pez collectibles in Dewitt, Mich.
it is a sugary, rectangular tablet that is nearly impossible to load in its dispenser. It is a cultural icon that is being swallowed by people all around the world. It is thrust at you from a decorative head. It is — Pez.
"Pez is enjoying its 10 minutes of fame," said Steve Glew, a dealer of
Pez collectibles in Dewitt, Mich. "The majority of people don't like the candy — it is the plastic, man." Glew is a Pezhead: a member of
“It's everybody. I see kids from 3 to 70-year-old men collecting Pez,” Glew said. “I see college graduates who are trying to claim, reclaim, or establish a little identity in a brown-shoe world. It is about getting a little sanctuary of individuality. It's phenomenal.”
a cultural group that collects the more than 250 dispensers made.
This phenomenon was invented in 1927 by Austrian food mogul Eduard Haas III and was successfully marketed in Europe as an adult breath mint. The name of the candy
for peppermint, pfefferninz which was the candy's original flavor
Pez was first marketed in the United States in 1953, and was sold in a sterile-looking plastic containing that didn't
have the decorative tops that the Pezhards covet today. After conducting extensive marketing studies, Pez Candy, Inc., based in Orange, Conn., decided in
Ryan McGee, Worland, Wyo., senior, said that the appeal of Pez was obvious.
Today, more than one billion pez tablets are consumed annually, and 98 percent of teenagers polled recognize the candy by sight, according to studies done by the company.
the mid 1950s to change its target consumers. Fruity flavors of the candy were invented, the boring containers received heads and it was marketed as children's candy.
"It is a toy and a candy all at once," McGee said. "There is no other candy that is motorized."
McGee owns five Pez dispensers: a Charlie Brown, a Lucy, a Tasmanian devil, a skull, and the new, battery-operated "power Pez."
The power Pez is a saucer-like device that shoots a Pez candy into the mouth of its owner when a button in the middle of it is pushed.
"I was standing in a line in Wal-Mart, and it just caught my eye," McGee said.
He said having more than one Pez dispenser was necessary.
Becky Holladay, Norman, Okla,
junior, works at The Palace, a card
and gift shop at Eighth and Massachusetts Streets. She said that The Palace sold Pez at a steady rate, and that a wide array of people bought the candy.
"You can't just have one. They can wear out. My Charlie's head isn't so spring-loaded anymore," he said.
If your Pex dispenser becomes dilapidated, or you just want to start a collection, they can be found in several stores in Lawrence. A cartridge and two tablet refills sells for $1.25, and a pack of six refills costs $1.50.
Glew said there were more than 5,000 Pex collectors worldwide, and that he dispensers as far away as Australia and Hong Kong.
"It goes from baby boomers to nine-year-olds," Holliday said. "And there are always the hip kids buying it. It is a real cult thing."
"Right now we are at a high. It is stunning, stupendous activity on the collecting of Pez," he said. "It is such a great little hobby."
A
"It is the Mr. Potato Head of the Pez world. It has little holes where you can stick different things in," Glew said. "Right now it is selling ft $3,000."
Glew said that the "make-a-face" Pez dispenser is drawing the most money among collectors.
The upswing in Pez demand can't attributed to recent exposure in major movies and popular sitcoms, Glew said. A cameo appearance las year by a Tweetie Bird dispenser on Seinfeld has done a lot to expose candy to mainstream America.
Carol Holstead, professor of journalism, agreed with Glew.
"It was that Seinfeld episode that got everyone started on Pez again," she said. "After that aired, I bought Pez container."
Holstead, who owns a Donald Duck dispenser, said she loved pling with the container, but it had caused time-management problem
"I developed a Pez habit and woul sit here and pop Pez all day. I woul do it in my office, by myself, when no one was looking," she said.