founded by
Ralph Lauren
belongs to
Ralph Lauren
about
Polo Ralph Lauren specializes in high-end casual/semi-formal wear for men and women, as well as accessories, fragrance, and housewares.
The brand was launched in 1967 when Ralph Lauren, born Ralph Lifschitz, got a $50,000 loan. Prior to starting Ralph Lauren, he worked for Brooks Brothers. In 1968 he started a line of men's ties. By 1969 he had a boutique store within the Manhattan department store Bloomingdale's. In 1971, Polo Ralph Lauren launched its first women's collection and his first standalone store in Beverly Hills, California. Ten years later, in 1981, the brand went global with its first international store on London's New Bond Street. The Polo Sport line was introduced in 1993.
The brand now produces clothing, accessories, fragrances, furniture, operates the restaurant RL in Chicago, and sponsors a Harlem cancer center in association with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The flagship store is located in the former Rhinelander Mansion on Madison Avenue in New York City.
Other flagship stores are located in Chicago, East Hampton, London, Miami, Milan, Palm Beach, and Tokyo.
Ralph Lauren is one of the largest fashion designer/retailers in the United States, with sales almost reaching four billion dollars per year.
Ralph Lauren gives preppy style an air of sophisticated cool with distressed fabrics, breezy elegance and vibrant hues.
One of the most famous pieces in the Polo line is the classic polo short-sleeved knit shirt featuring the now-iconic Polo player on the left breast of the shirt. This shirt in particular became a fashion must-have in the 1980s with the preppy set. Other Polo classics include the cashmere cableknit sweater, chinos and the oxford cloth button-down shirt.
Polo Ralph Lauren romances the preppy heritage of American menswear, creating what will be a major touchstone for the company in the years to come. The Polo mesh shirts—along with the oxford button-down shirts, chinos, tweed jackets, denim and chambray shirts—develop iconic status as the embodiment of the Polo lifestyle.
Angelina Jolie, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jennifer Lopez,