Ralph Lauren Enters The Polo Market

Years passed, and the polo shirt continued to rise in popularity and maintained its status as a staple in men’s attire. Quietly in New York, a man who called himself Ralph Lauren sat at his desk trying to figure out a name for his new line of casual wear while still maintaining an air of sophistication. Since polo was the sport of Royals, he decided to call it ‘Polo.’ The polo emblem first appeared on women’s suits in 1971. To highlight the line, he designed a polo shirt, launched it in 1972 and used it as the marketing tool for his new line of casual clothing for men

A heated war between Lauren and Lacoste ensued and lasted much of the 1980s and 90s. However, with the Ralph Lauren name and budget as well as its reputation in the ivy league schools, Ralph Lauren managed to beat out Lacoste and became the iconic shirt coveted by men worldwide. As the teenagers from the 1950s grew up, they continued to wear their polo shirts as a fashionable choice in clothing. With the start of the tech industry and more offices adopting less formal work environments, they began to wear the polo shirts as standard work apparel. Soon industry took notice, and the polo shirt was taken as a uniform for many trades and retail environments. Companies began to realize that they could easily brand the shirts and began to use them as a regulated uniform for their staff with logos branded on the sleeves, breast, collar and back of the shirts.