Italy - Italian Language, Culture, Customs and Business EtiquetteThe way you dress can indicate your social status,
your family's background, and your education level. . First impressions are lasting impressions in Italy. ...
www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/italy-country-profile.html - 21k - Cached - Similar pages

Eccellente! Especially if you plan to return to an area over and over... well done, Villa.

Villa, Extremely helpful and interesting. Grazie mille!

"Non c'è di che"

hmmn, interesting.. i guess most of this is true in European high society

hmmn, interesting.. i guess most of this is true in European high society

Maria, I don't know that it is necessarily "high society". My company does marketing for European companies, especially Italian companies. Whenever the guys in my office do anything with the Italians, here or in Italy, the dress code is definitely more formal - suits and ties as opposed to our usual polos and khakis. When the Italians come to our office, you can bet I pay a lot more attention to how I dress!!!
Also, my daughter-in-law is Polish. She says that in Poland the general dress is far more formal. And her family is not high society by any means.

And...make sure the shoes are in perfect shape!

Years ago when I lived in Vicenza you did not go out
in public without a coat and tie. We're talking some
of the poorest of the poor. In the winter you would
wear a full length dreesup type over coat over you suit and tie.