Slackers Can Hide, from the Waist Down

Darren Garnick writes in today's Boston Herald about how slackers can look like big shots...at least from the waist up....if they need to sit in front of a videocamera at a teleconference. Enter the Businessbib.

"Think paper dolls without the pants. The “Bib” is a Velcro-enclosed half-suit meant to be worn while you are video teleconferencing at the computer.

Easy on. Easy off.

Inventor Brad Denboer, who helps produce sexual harassment training programs for blue-chip companies at his day job, developed the idea while videoconferencing from his Tucson, Ariz., home.

“Why should the person on the other end of the video meeting know that I’m not really dressed?” he asks. “Why polish my shoes or even put on pants? Why should I get primped for the prom, if all I’m gonna do is make out in the limo?”

On first impression, the Business Bib looks like an androgynous halter top that Madonna might wear in a music video. I also predict brisk demand from the Chippendale dancers. Indeed, a brochure neatly tucked inside the suit pocket warns wearers to be constantly mindful of posture. Slouching could easily put your beer belly in the Web camera’s field of vision.

I originally planned to type this column wearing the Business Bib, but tightness in the arms and shoulders was cutting off my blood circulation. However, the workmanship is fantastic. The fake suit looks and feels like it is fresh from the tailor’s shop in Milan.