From Tie Salesman to Household Name:
Ralph Lauren’s Timeless Impact on Fashion
Ralph Lauren is known for his ability to see beyond the fashion trends. In fact, when asked earlier in his career if he was a fashion designer, he said no, he hated fashion.
While it’s easy to look at his company’s 6.6 billion in annual revenue and think he has always enjoyed a luxurious life, Ralph Lauren actually grew up far from glamour.
A Dream of a Better Life
The fourth child of European immigrants, Lauren shared a room with his two older brothers in the family’s small, Bronx apartment. While his life was enjoyable, he was always dreaming and thinking about building something bigger and better for himself.
Lauren’s early years were shaped by Hollywood films, often picturing himself as the star, taking careful consideration of how they dressed. Today, his cinematic mind has been praised by some of the fashion industry’s most iconic figures, like Anna Wintour, Calvin Klein, and Karl Lagerfeld.
For Ralph Lauren it’s never been about fashion, it’s about the stories he wants to tell, and he has done so through his clothing from an early age.
“Ralph has always had an eye for style,” Lauren’s older brother Jerry has said. “He would find a local store that had an old army jacket… and it was like boom, everybody looked around and said ‘That looks great! That’s cool!’”
Lauren never set out to be a fashion designer and he never underwent any technical fashion training, but he always knew what he wanted and how he wanted to look. His clear vision and unique eye have often been attributed for a large portion of his success, and it was what catapulted him into the fashion business in the first place.
Ralph Lauren is known for his ability to see beyond the fashion trends. In fact, when asked earlier in his career if he was a fashion designer, he said no, he hated fashion.
While it’s easy to look at his company’s 6.6 billion in annual revenue and think he has always enjoyed a luxurious life, Ralph Lauren actually grew up far from glamour.
A Dream of a Better Life
The fourth child of European immigrants, Lauren shared a room with his two older brothers in the family’s small, Bronx apartment. While his life was enjoyable, he was always dreaming and thinking about building something bigger and better for himself.
Lauren’s early years were shaped by Hollywood films, often picturing himself as the star, taking careful consideration of how they dressed. Today, his cinematic mind has been praised by some of the fashion industry’s most iconic figures, like Anna Wintour, Calvin Klein, and Karl Lagerfeld.
For Ralph Lauren it’s never been about fashion, it’s about the stories he wants to tell, and he has done so through his clothing from an early age.
“Ralph has always had an eye for style,” Lauren’s older brother Jerry has said. “He would find a local store that had an old army jacket… and it was like boom, everybody looked around and said ‘That looks great! That’s cool!’”
Lauren never set out to be a fashion designer and he never underwent any technical fashion training, but he always knew what he wanted and how he wanted to look. His clear vision and unique eye have often been attributed for a large portion of his success, and it was what catapulted him into the fashion business in the first place.
From Hand-Sewn Labels to Half a Million in Sales
In 1964, Lauren met and married the love of his life, Ricky. The couple settled into a small, studio apartment in the Bronx, and while they didn’t have much regarding material assets - they both had big dreams and vision boards of the life they planned to build together - including glamorous clothing, extravagant cars and destinations to visit with their future family.
Around that same time, Lauren started his career in fashion as a tie salesman. While shopping for his work attire, he struggled to find clothing that represented his personal style. Instead of settling, he went to a tailor, explained exactly how he wanted his workwear to look, and had all of his clothes custom made - including his ties. Over time, his style started to speak for itself and people took interest–including a local trade magazine that interviewed him about his unique style. After his current company rejected his pitch to design more interesting ties, Lauren decided to create his own line- a wider, more flamboyant look than what was offered on the market at the time.
With his first line of ties in a briefcase, each one with a “Polo by Ralph Lauren” label hand-sewn into the back by his wife and mother-in-law, Lauren secured his first meeting with the buyer for Bloomingdale’s in 1967. The buyer was interested but had requested Lauren make the ties more narrow and asked to remove the Polo label so that Bloomingdale’s could add their own. Lauren closed his briefcase of ties and walked out the door.
“I don’t know what gave me the courage to say no to a store that would give me so much exposure, but I did,” Lauren has said in interviews over the years.
The courageous move paid off and the Bloomingdale's buyer later called Lauren and offered to start carrying Polo ties just as they were designed. Over $500,000 worth of ties were sold in the first year alone. Just four years after the launch of Polo’s Ties, Ralph Lauren opened his first standalone store featuring a full line of men’s clothing.
The courage and tenacity that drove Ralph Lauren to become a world-renowned fashion mogul has carried its way throughout the company from the top down.
Ralph Lauren was one of the first large brands at The Helm, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the decision-makers at the brand willing to take a chance on a 25-year-old with a business plan.
Taking a Chance on An Edmonton Vision
“When we were developing the concept for the store, we had a business plan and that’s essentially it,” Chad Helm recalls.
When The Helm was deciding on brands to bring to Edmonton, Ralph Lauren Black Label was a non-negotiable. It represented the fashion-forward, youthful spirit that was central to The Helm’s ethos, but at the time, it felt like a white whale. Ralph Lauren was one of the largest fashion houses in the world, and The Helm was still just a binder full of drawings and a belief in something bigger. Fortunately, as a brand rooted in brave decisions and big visions, Ralph Lauren’s team welcomed the conversation with warmth and openness.
“We sat down at a table in the Ralph Lauren showroom at 650 Madison and met with the team,” Helm said. When the conversation came to an end, we had secured one of our first anchor brands for The Helm - before we ever even had a store location.
When Black Label was discontinued in 2015, The Helm shifted to Purple Label and Polo. Just a few years after that, The Helm became the first Canadian retailer to carry the iconic Double RL brand, as well as the first account in Canada to carry all three Ralph Lauren lines.
As a retail store, we work with a range of brands - typically designers with a specific lane they specialize in. Something we have always admired about Ralph Lauren is the way each line is unique yet still manages to embody the brand’s overall vision. The company is able to reach people from various backgrounds and with different style preferences without sacrificing any part of what makes the Ralph Lauren brand special.
The Evolution of America’s Great Fashion House
Hip hop stars repping oversized Polo denim, Wall Street men donning high-end Purple Label suits, teenagers styling the Polo collared tee and everything in between–Ralph Lauren has the unique ability to capture the interest of millions of people from all walks of life. Each line has its own point of view, but it’s all unified under the brand’s distinctive representation of American style.
“I’m inspired by everything I see,” Ralph Lauren stated in the 2021 Very Ralph documentary. “I love old stuff, I love cowboy boots, I love details, I love cars - they’re all sort of the beginnings of a concept. Somehow, it all ends up in my clothes.”
Lauren has stated throughout his career that he designs what he likes for himself, taking inspiration from films, his muse (and wife) Ricky, his interests, and simply the world around him. Despite a seemingly unfettered approach to style, he has managed to stay true to his brand decade after decade. And while it’s evolved into multiple lines including kids, women's, and homeware, it’s still all tied together.
- 1964: Ralph Lauren marries Ricky Loew-Beer
- 1967: Ralph Lauren starts his business in New York City with a neckwear line called Polo.
- 1968: Ralph Lauren releases his first full men's collection.
- 1972: Ralph Lauren debuts his first full womenswear collection and releases a short-sleeve cotton shirt with the polo player logo, which becomes the brand's signature look.
- 1993: Double RL, which plays on American heritage and workwear styles, debuts.
- 1995: Ralph Lauren Purple Label launches as a premium men's collection inspired by London's Saville Row
- 2011 Chad Helm starts creating concepts for a luxury men’s retail store
- 2012: Chad meets with the Ralph Lauren team in their NYC showroom in January and The Helm brick-and-mortar opens in September
- 2015: Black Label is discontinued and The Helm introduces Polo and Purple Label to the roster
- 2022: The Helm becomes the first Canadian retailer to carry Double RL, and the first to carry all three lines
POLO RALPH LAUREN
Since its debut, Ralph Lauren's vision for Polo was to create a lifestyle brand that encapsulated the American dream. While it started out drawing inspiration from the likes of Ivy League, the Adirondacks, and the Western frontier, over the decades, the Polo line has melded into East Coast prep and military-inspired looks.
DOUBLE RL
Double RL, known as RRL, was launched by Ralph Lauren in 1993 and pays homage to the rugged American West that has deeply influenced his aesthetic. “This is my closet. It’s not fashion, it’s real stuff,” Ralph Lauren has said. Named after Ralph and Ricky Lauren’s Colorado Ranch, RRL is a line that is made to be worn.
PURPLE LABEL
Officially launched in 1995, Ralph Lauren's Purple Label collection was conceived as the pinnacle of luxury. Purple Label was initially inspired by European fashion and high-end glamour and has managed to maintain and embody that look throughout the years.
A Partnership for the Books
Whether it’s his cinematic mind or his great love, or a combination of those things along with his profound and unique vision of what the American Dream is as a child of immigrants, Ralph Lauren has made an indelible mark on the fashion industry. He is truly a designer and a brand that The Helm is so grateful to be partnered with. Large brands are often seen as untouchable, but Ralph Lauren is an extension of Ralph himself. It is a company of people that care about building relationships and providing an excellent customer experience just as we strive for here at The Helm. From humble beginnings to business highs, we look forward to continuing to build on this relationship for years to come.
The World of Ralph
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