Today, it is almost impossible to find someone who has not heard of the Lacoste brand or seen a Lacoste polo shirt before. Founded in 1933 by a French tennis player named René Lacoste, the brand has grown to become arguably one of the most famous and well-known in the world.
The origin of the now famous Lacoste logo is interesting. The story goes that René Lacoste took on the nickname “the alligator” when rumors began to circulate that he had made a bet with the captain of the French Davis Cup team regarding an alligator skin suitcase. The official statement from the website company is that the team captain promised him a crocodile skin suitcase if he won a very important match for the team. He won the match and was given the nickname by the American press after news about the bet leaked. The nickname was shortly changed to “Le Crocodile” due to Rene’s French ethnicity and the name stuck with him due to his stubbornness and aggressive behavior on the tennis court. Later, a friend of his named Robert George designed a small crocodile logo, which René placed on his personal jacket that he wore while playing tennis.
When he retired from tennis in 1933, Lacoste teamed up with André Gillier and started the company La Chemise Lacoste. They began designing a tennis shirt based on a design and product created by him in the mid-1920s. The shirt was short-sleeved with a ribbed collar. Designed to be worn during matches, the jersey was made from a very light knitted material called petit pique jersey for maximum ventilation. Prior to the production of these new shirts, tennis players traditionally wore long-sleeved knit shirts, so the new designs were virtually unknown. Another interesting side note is that contrary to the popular fashion statement at the time, Lacoste decided to place the logo on the outside of the shirt, something that had rarely been seen before. Thus began the legacy of the Lacoste polo shirt, and since then it has been the norm to see garments with the logo embroidered on the outside.
From the 1930s to about the 1950s, the brand grew in popularity, and in the early 1950s, Lacoste clothing began to be imported into the United States, where it was touted as a line of clothing designed for the class. high. Over time, the clothing line began to expand its products to include other styles of shirts and went on to include fashion accessories as well. In the early 2000s, a French designer named Christopher Lemaire took over design for the Lacoste brand in an effort to develop a more elegant and upscale look. As a result, the popularity of the clothes was rejuvenated and Lacoste clothes are now in high demand and available in almost all high-class department stores. The company also owns its own chain of stores and has several hundred stores worldwide. Today, there are all kinds of Lacoste clothes, from hats to sunglasses. The most famous, of course, is and probably always will be the original Lacoste polo shirt.
