Culture & Education

Dee Poku always dresses to impress

As a child of Ghanaian immigrants, Dee Poku spent her childhood deciphering how people dressed in London. It was a culture influenced by unwritten social codes, and this turned her into a sharp observer of fashion. As she developed her own taste, she blended these insights with an embrace of her own cultural heritage. She felt lucky to be surrounded by the vibrant aesthetic of West Africa, as her mother and aunts wore colorful tailored dresses made from kente fabric.  When Poku entered the corporate world—eventually overseeing international marketing at Paramount Pictures—her keen eye turned into a strategic advantage. She remembers walking into a boardroom in Brussels for a high stakes meeting where no one looked like her. Her outfit—a tailored suit, heels, and a bold red lip —became a form of armor. She also leaned into her Ghanaian roots through a fearless approach to color, often turning to rich mustard yellows and vivid reds.  “I wanted to walk into the room and for them to see an authority figure,” Poku explains. “The quickest and easiest way to do that was in what I wore.”  Now the founder and CEO of the Wie Suite, a global membership network for executive women, Poku has watched corporate dress codes shift toward the casual. Yet over the years, she has realized that relaxed attire simply doesn’t suit her. Instead, she has built a uniform of functional but elevated staples: a floor-length denim skirt paired with heels, knee-length culottes, and a crisp blazer thrown over tailored trousers. For Poku, maintaining this level of formality in an increasingly casual world is a deliberate choice to project power and stand tall in spaces where women of color historically haven’t held it. SugarSatea (Clip)/CC-BY 4.0, Adobe Stock (textures)] Describe your style in a sentence. Classic, with a thread of the feminine. What’s the one piece in your closet you’ll never get rid of? My long, dark denim skirt. It’s so versatile and easy to dress up or down—long skirts are essentially my alternative to pants. How long does it take you to get dressed in the morning? It’s very quick—10 minutes max. My wardrobe is filled with long-standing staples and separates that easily mix and match, so I rarely have to overthink it unless I’m prepping for a major event. What do you wear to a big meeting? I’ll always wear heels. I typically opt for a tailored, below-the-knee dress paired with heels to bring a sense of personal style and presence to the room. What’s the best piece of fashion advice you’ve ever gotten? Not to follow trends. Trying every trend when you’re young helps you figure out what works, but as you grow older, knowing yourself and what suits your body is what really lasts. What’s one thing anyone can do to dress better at work? Invest in a great blazer. Throwing a sharp, well-cut blazer over a basic outfit—whether it’s a denim skirt or tailored trousers—instantly elevates your presentation and makes a statement. [Source images: Courtesy Dee Poku, TWP, Tibi, Adobe Stock (textures)] What’s one brand everyone should know about? I love the “Brooklyn women designers”—I wear a lot of Rachel Comey, Ulla Johnson, Rosie Assoulin, and Mara Hoffman. Among the newer generation, TWP (Trish Wescoat Pound) is fantastic for sharp tailoring, and Tibi is another favorite for effortless, elevated pieces.  What’s your best piece of shopping advice? Master high-low styling. Never feel like you need to wear one brand top-to-bottom; mixing higher-end tailoring with accessible pieces or vintage finds creates a much more authentic, personal look. Who is your style North Star? Amal Clooney. She always exudes effortless, sophisticated, and polished style.