Ralph Lauren getting ready for the arrival of the Polo brand in Western Europe

By

Olivier Guyot

Published
Jul 28, 2015

The Polo brand must be a growth vector for the Ralph Lauren group. The strategy was announced in recent seasons, and now it is time to execute it.

The first step consisted of opening a flagship store on New York's Fifth Avenue last autumn. Now, the American designer sportswear giant has announced the opening of its first store in Western Europe. Thus, a Polo store is set to open in Rome in November with one to follow on London's Regent Street in May 2016.

The Polo store will be located on the corner of Via del Corso and Via Frattina. It will extend over nearly 500 m² on two levels inside a period building and will feature the brand's menswear collections. The ambience will be inspired by Americana. Wood used in boathouses typical of the Adirondacks mountains will be combined with the signature brick masonry of New York lofts. 

Although it will be the brand's first flagship store in Western Europe, Polo has already begun its international expansion. It is present in Latin America with two stores in Panama, two in Chile, one on the Caribbean island of Aruba and one in Barbados.

Elsewhere in the world, Polo also has locations in Cairo and Alexandria (Egypt), as well as on Singapore's Orchard Street and inside the City Centre Mirdif shopping mall in Dubai. Finally, in Eastern Europe, the brand has stores in Yerevan, Armenia, and Sophia, Bulgaria.

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On its home turf, the label has 11 stores and has openings planned in San Diego, California, Troy, Michigan, and Boca Raton, Florida, in the fall.