Steve Jobs Always Dressed Exactly the Same. Here's Who Else Does

Today marks the one-year anniversary of Steve Jobs’ death. The late Apple co-founder was best known for his visionary leadership and innovation—but he was also known for his unvarying signature look. Unlike most corporate executives, who wear suits and ties, Jobs was committed to his chosen uniform of a black mock turtleneck, blue jeans and New Balance sneakers.

Jobs wasn’t the first to go his own unusual yet unchanging way, and he certainly wasn’t the last. Others include fashion designer Michael Kors, Segway inventor Dean Kamen, and fictional character Pee-wee Herman

William Arruda, a personal branding guru and author of Ditch. Dare. Do!, says this practice can be part of personal branding. “They wear what they wear because that’s what they feel comfortable wearing,” he says. “When you wear something that just feels right, you are confident. And it is also great to have a trademark look. It makes you memorable and distinctive.”

Others do it to be more efficient.

Take Albert Einstein. It has been reported that the famous physicist bought several versions of the same grey suit because he didn’t want to waste brainpower on choosing an outfit each morning. Now—decades later—President Obama does the same.

Michael Lewis wrote in a recent Vanity Fair article:

You also need to remove from your life the day-to-day problems that absorb most people for meaningful parts of their day. “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits,” [Obama] said. “I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.” He mentioned research that shows the simple act of making decisions degrades one’s ability to make further decisions.

“Famous business people and politicians are known to be consistent with their wardrobe because it’s their brand identity,” says Dan Schawbel, founder of Millennial Branding and author of Me 2.0. “It’s who they are, how they want to represent themselves and make a statement. It’s not about what you wear, but what you accomplish. [Mark] Zuckerberg, for instance, wears casual clothing because he represents the entire generation of young people who don’t want to wear suits to work.”

This week, the Facebook CEO told NBC’s TODAY host Matt Lauer that he owns “maybe about 20″ identical grey T-shirts. Zuckerberg said, “I mean, I wear the same thing every day, right? I mean, it’s literally, if you could see my closet at home.”

We also found a number of notable people who wear all black, all white—or a combo of the two—all the time.

Author and journalist Tom Wolfe began wearing his trademark white suits in 1962, while Johnny Cash’s all-black dress earned him the nickname “The Man In Black,” around the same time.

“Consistency of all kinds is what builds brands,” Schawbel says. “People who wear the same thing, have a catch phrase or two, and associate with the same people are more memorable than those who don’t. It says this is who I am and this is what I enjoy. I think it’s a rather positive thing that helps people identify with them and allows them to just be themselves.”