Ralph Lauren’s son was once quoted as saying, “It’s not about fabric, it’s about dreams,” — and nowhere is this fairly wistful sentence more apparent than in the classic Polo ads of the 70s, 80s and 90s.
Whilst most adverts around this time followed the fairly classic text heavy style, Ralph ignored long sales pitches and reams of technical information in favour of lavish, romantic imagery of outdoorsy Americana.
Horses… huskies… lazy afternoons fishing by the river… rustic looking shoe racks… it’s hardly the most attainable lifestyle in the world, but that’s probably the appeal.
Scroll down to see some classics (mostly hoiked from a pretty extensive site aptly titled ‘Old Ralph Lauren Adverts)…
