Ralph Lauren struggling?

Bought a heather grey RL Polo from Macy's for $60 this weekend...went upstairs in the mall to H&M, saw the exact same thing without the Polo logo for $12.99.

Therein lies the issue.
 
The Polo thread should be locked or merged with the ppl who think they're doing it thread
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H&M, Zara, urban outfitters etc took over. Those Black Friday videos at H&M were all the proof I needed. Nobody rushing polo stores like that.
 
I wear express, H&M, Banana republic and other generic no name brands. Material things have become an afterthought for me. I just want to travel now.
 
RL been around since before most o y'all been born.

out of all the clothing I've had, the RL joints I've got have lasted the longest. you could literally play rugby in them joints.


ralph was there wen i was in church rockin the long sleeve tucked in

he was there in high school when i rocked da polo

during many harsh winters i could always count on ralph wit the style and warmth

I've seen ralph on the rich, the poor, the middle class, all over the world

ralph been there longer than any of these come and go streetwear brands and he's going to be there



put some respek on its got damb name
 
I mean yeah the brand will always be a classic but they can't afford to keep losing money in the process.

I don't think anyone/many are disrespecting the brand, the numbers simply speaks for itself.

Sure they could survive another 100 years but for now the company is bleeding and they need to figure out how to make improvements, they simply can't afford to wait for the preppy fad to come back around again.
 
IMO taking a step back on quality and trying to compete in everyone else lane would be dumb for them. At this point they are a standard for what other brands want to be and i think chasing the H&M, Zara formula would do much more damage in the long run. If i'm them on really focusing on the quality on the RRL, Purple/black Label in order to maintain a hold on that market... Now the lower level brands like D&S and Polo can afford to lose a bit in quality but if that's the case the originality of the pieces has to change. As of right now Polo's in general aren't big with the 15-25 yr old range.... But i think Polo has always had a large palette of distinct designs that they could use to attract the youth but still not be lost in the shuffle of other lines.

Hell ALOT of streetwear brands are still actively biting Polo's old style... they need to capitalize on that.
 
Yes, Ralph Lauren is struggling on the corporate level, and has been for a while.

The hiring of new chief executive, Stefan Larsson, has nothing to do with it since the average customer has no idea what's going on at the office level.

Two things 1. Significant price increases 2. Decrease in product quality.

The sudden price increases are the main reason why the brand is struggling. Prices on logo tees jumped from $34.99 to $59.99, basic polos jumped from $59.99 to $84.99, Oxford shirts from $64.99 to $89.99, Chinos from $49.99 to $89.99, wool sweaters from $99.99 to $199.99, and higher tier leather outwear from $2,000 to $10,000. These types of price increase will deter any smart shopper, no matter how much money they have to spend. And with RL having a huge follwing of longterm loyalists, these customers are going to wait for end of season discounts instead of payinhg the inflated prices.

Then there's the decline in product quality. You see this more in the Fall/Winter products. Tees are thin to the touch with no elasticity in the neck band, sweaters are made of lighter unrefined wool, embroidered desighns have been replaced with vinyl stamps, goods are made from lower quality skins and aren't dyed all the way through, shearling and coyote fur trim has been replaced by synthetic material, down jackets are only filled half full, etc. No one in going to pay more money for new products that dont meet or exceed the quality of less expensive old products.

These 2 factors are RL trying to make up for losses too quickly. Instead they have everything to do with the huge dive in RL's profit margin.

Ralph refreshed the Polo logo, and released the denim supply line in order to gain younger, new customers. It will be years before the brand knows if this marketing strategy will work sonce they will need to see if these buyers become denim supply loyal, and whether the move into their professional lives with Polo.

I usually buy one or two new items that I like every year during the clearance sales.
 
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Yes, Ralph Lauren is struggling on the corporate level, and has been for a while.

The new chief executive, Stefan Larsson, has nothing to do with it since the average customer has no idea what's going on at the office level.

Two things 1. Significant price increases 2. Decrease in product quality.

The sudden price increases are the main reason why the brand is struggling. Prices on logo tees jumped from $34.99 to $59.99, basic polos jumped from $59.99 to $84.99, Oxford shirts from $64.99 to $89.99, Chinos from $49.99 to $89.99, wool sweaters from $99.99 to $199.99, and higher tier leather outwear from $2,000 to $10,000. These types of price increase will deter any smart shopper, no matter how much money they have to spend. And with RL having a huge follwing of longterm loyalists, these customers are going to wait for end of season discounts instead of payinhg the inflated prices.

Then there's the decline in product quality. You see this more in the Fall/Winter products. Tees are thin to the touch with no elasticity in the neck band, sweaters are made of lighter unrefined wool, embroidered desighns have been replaced with vinyl stamps, goods are made from lower quality skins and aren't dyed all the way through, shearling and coyote fur trim has been replaced by synthetic material, down jackets are only filled half full, etc. No one in going to pay more money for new products that dont meet or exceed the quality of less expensive old products.

These 2 factors are RL trying to make up for losses too quickly. Instead they have everything to do with the huge dive in RL's profit margin.

Ralph refreshed the Polo logo, and released the denim supply line in order to gain younger, new customers. It will be years before the brand knows if this marketing strategy will work sonce they will need to see if these buyers become denim supply loyal, and whether the move into their professional lives with Polo.

I usually buy one or two new items that I like every year during the clearance sales.

Pretty much hit the nail on the head with this one

Those t-shirt prices jumped overnight :lol:
 
They increase prices and lower quality. We ain't stupid. We're not going to buy that stuff. Even with sales some of the stuff is way overpriced.
 
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