THE PROJECT

During the Ralph Lauren Inspire Internship Program, the prompt for a group project was: 

The project required an in-dept project proposal to be provided to company executive teams.  

THE PROBLEM

Unisex clothing is often oversized, and limited to lounge wear, and very rarely a part of the narrative ‘story’ that the brand sells to its consumers.

THE TEAM 

Yukti Agarwal ︎︎︎Brown & RISD
Camille Franklin ︎︎︎ Spelman College

Yasmina Khartami ︎︎︎The New School

Sonia Piaggi ︎︎︎Parsons, The New School
Kyla Rys  ︎︎︎Savannah College of Art and Design 
Lucio Urrutia  ︎︎︎University of Austin 

THE CLIENT

Ralph Lauren Corporation is a global leader in the design, marketing, and distribution of premium lifestyle products. Reflecting a distinctive American perspective, the company has been an innovator in aspirational lifestyle branding and believe that, under the direction of internationally renowned designer Ralph Lauren. They combine consumer insights with their design, marketing, and imaging skills to offer, along with licensing alliances, broad lifestyle product collections with a unified vision.

THE APPROACH

︎︎︎Projected Trends Overview

︎︎︎Consumer Spending, Behaviour, and Perception

︎︎︎Considering Terminology &

Resizing  

︎︎︎Existing & Target Consumer Profile

︎︎︎SWOT Analysis

︎︎︎Internal 

︎︎︎External  

︎︎︎Survery Results & Evaluation  

︎︎︎Resizing, Sweater Vest Design

︎︎︎Pop-Up Store  

︎︎︎Flat Floor & Interactive SketchUp Plan 

︎︎︎Guiding Principles

︎︎︎Service & Product Implementation 

︎︎︎SAVE Model

︎︎︎Market Segmentation

︎︎︎Seeding

︎︎︎Gifting & Editorial

︎︎︎Visual Campaigns & Press Releases

︎︎︎Budget
︎︎︎High Level P/L
︎︎︎Return on Investment
︎︎︎Sales & Cost of Goods Sold 

CONSUMER PERCEPTION OF UNISEX CLOTHING:

“ I don't feel like I'm being put in a box. I can choose what I like, what fits me and what matches my style.”

• Avoiding labelling any body size as ‘large,’ ‘small’ or ‘normal’ 

• Avoiding labelling certain body type as ‘too feminine’ or ‘too masculine’ 

EXISTING POLO CUSTOMER

TARGET POLO CUSTOMER

STRENGTHS

• Huge customer base
• Positive brand perception
• Diversified market
• Popular among younger generations
• Style versatility options

WEAKNESSES

• Saturated market 
• Market share competition exists
• Minimal representation of women and children
• Long term identity can be affected 

OPPORTUNITIES

• Large and emerging market
• Innovative products from metaverse to interior design
• Developing advertising campaigns
• Partnering with local communities
• Opening accessibility in design to consumers

RISKS

• Increased competitive pressure
• Risk of deviating from brand tradition & identity
• Could have potential backlash
• Loss of profit in initial years 
• Time and cost to develop new service & product

INTERNAL 

• Ralph Lauren POLO in the United Kingdom
• RLX (the sports subsidiary of Ralph Lauren) 
• POLO SPORT (the sports subsidiary of POLO)

EXTERNAL 

"The collection expresses this in-between zonethrough pieces that are as feminine as they aremasculine: dresses are shaped like exaggeratedt-shirts, and classic overcoats are finished likeoversized sweaters.”

"What space is there for a category of clothingbetween feminine and masculine? We'redefining a type of clothing that lives in a non-binary zone.”

Sample distribution for age group︎︎︎

QUANTITATIVE RESULTS 

QUALITATIVE RESULTS

• "I see a lot of loose-fitting stuff; I want structural pieces too."

• "I feel they are limited to casual loungewear or t-shirts."

• “(they) steer away from masculinity or femininity in an attempt to be gender neutral when in reality those things are not exclusive to gender."

DESIGN

Refine Iconic Pieces into Unisex Polo Vests

CREATE

Unisex Pop-Up Shopping Experience

MARKET

Integrated Campaign to Drive Brand Awareness

MOVING FORWARD WITH OUR HISTORY IN MIND: 

The design process started with a dive into the history, legacy and traditional aesthetic of the company. 

This collection aimed to revive old traditions and build a foundation of greater inclusivity, equity and diversity through these deep-grown roots.

The company started as a menswear brand, with mens shirts being styled on women. 

A connection between the brand’s legacy and unisex clothing had been forged a long time ago. 

INCLUSIVE DESIGN

SUSTAINABLE DESIGN

Reducing manpower required for redsigning new styles.

Factory communcations for new developments by retainign origional manufacturers.

Reducing Carbon footprint by mainiting same styles.

Reducing number of unsold SKUs by holding same styles by merging male & female styles.

• Various styling options 

• Provision of inspiration to new consumers to adopt the ‘RL Lifestyle’

• Various price entry points, for all customers from all walks of life 

WHY A POP-UP RETAIL EXPERIENCE? 

Our intention of a Pop-Up store caters to an audience that will experience our new line in a curated environment, meant to engage with the consumer and inspire their style from the design of the ambiance to the items themselves.

STAYING AUTHENTIC TO THE BRAND VISION–

“We are changing accessibility in stores by creating smaller format stores that are more engaging to younger generations without losing sight of our older consumers.”

– Patrice Louvet (CEO, Ralph Lauren Corp.)

OPEN LAYOUT

To invite more customers

To champion a space that is inclusive and welcoming to all

LOCATED IN THE PARK

To allow footfall from the Ralph Lauren Flagship Stores to be redirected to the close by pop-up. 

COLOR PALETTE 

The color palette is inspired by the iconic RL colors (with French Navy, and Bittersweet Orange for example)

Additional references were taken from nature and the area in which the pop-up will be located

FLAT FLOOR PLAN 

INTERACTIVE SketchUp PLAN

RALPH’S COFFEE TRIKE

• Invite customers to have a cool coffee on a warm day
  

• Increase customer foot-fall in the merchandize area 

• Introducing an additional revenue stream to the event

• Increasing brand awareness by promoting all branches of the business

FINAL FLOOR PLAN 

• Clear POLO branding 

• Open layout to allow easy movement of foot-fall 

• Rotating merchandize racks to allow greater mobility 

• UNISEX dressed form, to present the various planned looks, to show how to style curated items 
  

Four-minute walk from Flagship Store on Madison

Eight-minute walk from POLO Store in Soho

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

SERVICE & PRODUCT IMPLEMENTATION

Outline launch strategy and development

Draft product, targeting, positioning, and competitor analysis

Determine pricing, design collection and pop- upshops

Develop new size blocks for unisex items 

Source materials and team to build two pop up shops

Source materials and units from manufacturing for product

Test service and product on sample group

Review and activate marketing strategy

Launch of two interactive pop-up stores

Social and website announcement

Demos and interactive campaign to increase impact and spread awareness

For 50 years Ralph Lauren has served the interest of both internal and external stakeholderswith the purpose to inspire the dream of a better life through authenticity and timeless style.

• Pop-up Shop
  
• Wholesale
  
• Retail
  
• E-Commerce

THE NUDGE APP

PARTNERSHIP BENEFITS

• Attracting new customer base in the city by appealing to a younger audience– the target audience of this product line & service.

• Portraying the Ralph Lauren event as ‘the place to be’ on a spring weekend, thus enhancing brand image. 

• Extend promotional relations with new digital platforms that are the primary source of event planning for the newer generation

SAMPLE MESSAGE for NUDGE MEMBERS: 

Unisex by Polo RL utilizes the creative power of design to refine our signature Polo collection with thoughtful tailoring and updated spaces foran authentic shopping experience for all.

SAVE MODEL

Solution (instead of Product):

• Define offerings by the needs they meet, not by their features, functions or technical superiority.

Access (instead of Place): 

• Develop an integrated cross-channel presence that considers customers' entire puchase journey instead of emphasising individual purchase locations and channels.

Value (instead of Price)

• Articulate the benefit relative to price, rather than stressing how price relates to production costs, profit margins or competitors' prices

Education (instead of Promotion)

• Provide information relevant to customers' specific needs at each point in the purchase cycle, rather than relying on advertising, public relations and personal selling that covers the waterfront.

MARKET SEGMENTATION

︎︎︎Demographic   ︎︎︎Geographic   ︎︎︎Psychographic   ︎︎︎Behavioral

SEEDING 

Send capsule to editors and target influencers/ celebrities to create engagement on social media and online publications around launch date

Seeding Plan: 

• FRIENDS OF THE BRAND: Elliot Page, Janelle Monáe
• FAMILY DUOS: Jennifer Lopez and Emme Maribel Muniz 
• UPCOMING CELEBRITIES: Hari Nef, Hunter Schafer
• MACRO INFLUENCERS: Dylan Mulvaney

GIFTING & EDITORIAL 

• For reinforcement of our campaign with any RL Polo publication feature

• Target editors that feature/ cover our campaign launch

• Billboards (Park Ave. & 23rd St.)

• Wild Posts (SOHO, Lower East Side, Nolita)

• Digital Platforms (Discussed later) 

• THEM Magazine
  
• Mission Magazine
• GQ Magazine
• ID Magazine 

Curate and develop capsule.

Plan and organize pop-up events.

Execute strategic marketing plan.

Seeding to editors and target influencers to create engagement on social media and online publications.

Gifting and Editorial content

PR Press Release announcing capsule and pop-up.

2 parts: Social media marketing and Editorial publication press

2 interactive Pop-up events in Central Park and Washington Square Park

Website launch, as well as on the RL app

Review project impact from social interaction to financial success and failures.

Discuss service expansion ie. more pop-ups, virtual platforms, metaverse, hospitality

Discuss product and service expansion ie. website, retail, flagship, store front

Discuss possibility of AR and Metaverse digital garments for customers to virtually try on in store sand pop-ups

Discuss product expansion into other parts of the brand identity, ie shoes, hats, pants, jackets, and more

Partner with designers and celebrities to continue unisex as a line

Expand to wholesale accounts such as Urban Outfitters and Macy's

Collaborate with partnerships and initiatives to boost community engagement and philanthropy

TIMELINE: BEYOND

FINANCIAL STATISTICS  

COSTS

BENEFITS

REFLECTION

Working with a team of very talented individuals taught me that collaborating, in an interdisciplinary manner allows everyone grow, and makes enriches individual work by constant iteration, feedback, and dialogue. 

Working in a team taught me a great deal about the areas that my teammates were specializing in, such as financial outlining, and operation overviews. I learnt from them, while they learnt from me, about processes in design, merchandizing, and marketing. 

Especially when working in a group, being organized ahead of time, and maintaining clear communication channels are the way to learn and grow with each other! 

REFERENCES