David Lauren on Having His Father as His Boss and Letting People Live in a Ralph Lauren Ad

You’re the chief innovation officer and chief branding officer at Ralph Lauren. What does that actually mean you do? Every time we design products, there are stories that inspire those products. My job is to help bring those stories to life, to inspire our customers to want to be engaged in our world. Sometimes it’s creating events, sometimes immersive experiences online, sometimes it’s a fashion show in China. A lot of people don’t want to work for their parents. What’s it like… …to work for my dad? My dad is my best friend. He’s my mentor and inspiration. I am so lucky to have somebody who cares about what I do and wants to educate me. The good thing, when he loves what I do, is that your dad, your mentor, and your boss loves something. But there’s nothing more painful than when your dad, your mentor, and your boss doesn’t like your idea, and I live with that a lot as well. How does he communicate that? It’s never easy. You know, we have to be direct with each other and want that honesty. At the same time, we know that it comes with a certain level of sensitivity. Sometimes I feel the criticism or the comment in a harder way than I should. And sometimes I’ll say that I like something he’s doing, or I’ll say I don’t like something, and I have to be careful about that, because he’s my father, but at the same time, that’s my boss. Did you never want to do something else? Go off and start your own candy store or produce a film, like your siblings? You can build another company, but this is the greatest platform to effect change, and I think we’re doing it. I worked on an advertising campaign about volunteerism. There’s no other way to have done that and to reach millions of people around the world, except at Ralph Lauren. We had the opportunity to create products to take plastic out of the oceans and create an environmentally friendly shirt. I feel very fulfilled, and I feel like I’m adding something to our planet. What is the purpose of your new AI tool, Ask Ralph? We want to give people the confidence to live their better lives. This is a tool to create a personal connection with a customer, because you’re taking clothes that mean nothing and finding a way to make them personal. It’s like having Ralph Lauren in your back pocket, 24/7, as if you could pick up the phone and ask Ralph Lauren what to wear. Fashion is a fickle business. How has Ralph Lauren lasted so long? He has a philosophy that things that are timeless get better with age. If you really look at the things that we cherish in America, from the Star-Spangled Banner to an old baseball glove to, you know, the great old pair of jeans that you see on a rancher, these are things that are part of our culture. He’s built an entire company around identifying, perpetuating, and loving the things that last and he designs with a sensibility of “I’m not creating this so it will look trendy this year. I want it to feel relevant, but I want you to still want to wear it in 30 years, and I want your kids to want it.” Do you have a favorite Ralph Lauren era? I’d been with my dad as we drove across the West. I watched him discover all these great Navajo blankets and the great Western saddles and Western art, so to see it come onto the runway and still impact designers today is amazing. A designer in Paris just put a horse on the runway. That’s very Ralph Lauren. A lot of the label’s growth this quarter came from Asia and Europe. Are you worried about tariffs? We are constantly monitoring the ecosystem and the business dynamics in the world. Our job is to navigate as best we can, and so far I think we’re doing very well. Do you think you have imbibed enough of your father’s vision and instincts that if he can’t be the leader of it anymore or the visionary behind it, you could play that role? I’m very proud to have worked closely with my dad and to have internalized his vision and to work closely with our CEO Patrice Louvet and 25,000 employees for the last 25 years. And I think that there is a lot of opportunity ahead, and that’s exciting, but scary as well. But is there a discussion about legacy planning? Will there be a Ralph Lauren post-Ralph? There will be a very strong Ralph Lauren after Ralph Lauren, but he’s still here. You have a family with a big legacy. You have married into a family with a big legacy. How do you make sure that your three children do not feel too much privilege and also do not disappear under the weight of being a Bush and a Lauren? We both believe that we came from lives that were privileged but full of values. It’s wonderful to have access, and it’s wonderful to feel like you have a great name, but that comes with responsibility, and a legacy of families that believe in work. My father still comes into the office; Lauren’s grandfather [President George H.W. Bush] and her uncle [President George W. Bush] really believe in making the world better. Ralph Lauren as a company has been progressive, and the Bush family is known for being conservative. Is there tension in the in-law political leanings? Not at all. We believe in what we believe in. And I think everybody has done a great job making the world better. Your father loves movies. Is there a movie character that reminds you of him? One of the movies that inspired Polo was the original Thomas Crown Affair with Steve McQueen. And I sometimes think that that’s Ralph Lauren. He’s a thief? No. You know, there’s something about the cool, stylish guy falling in love. It’s romantic, it’s stylish, it’s adventurous. I might also think about Batman. Rocky is one more that I always love–a great story about a somebody really having the conviction and the fight to stand up for what they believe in. The world of fashion is not so different than any other world. You have to have a vision. You have to believe in yourself and believe you can do anything. Ralph Lauren has a wide range of businesses. Is there any new area you’d like to move into? We’ve just started a hospitality business. Our coffee and our restaurants are probably as popular as our Polo shirts and our sunglasses. I think there’s an opportunity to allow people to live in the Ralph Lauren ads. We’d love to open hotels. Do you do the Canadian tux?  Like a denim top and a denim bottom? Yeah, of course. When I think of Ralph Lauren, I always think of a black tuxedo jacket and the pair of jeans and cowboy boots. It’s very timeless and very rough.  Do the kids wear all Ralph Lauren? There’s never been any pressure from my father. Whatever we love, we love. My father has shopped at Walmart and Kmart and wears it very publicly. It’s more about the fact that we do love what he makes. My kids right now are into soccer jerseys and the New York Yankees, and thank God, we have a partnership with the Yankees, so it’s working for us.