Professional Documents
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RENE LACOSTE
Occupation(s)
Creative Director
Fashion Designer
Birth Place
France
Date of Birth
2 July 1904
Date of Death
12 October 1996
Alias Name(s)
Nationality
France
Residence
France
THE BEGINNINGS:
Lacoste was born into an upper class family and did not
take up tennis until age 15. He enjoyed the game so much
that he wanted to pursue playing on a more serious level.
He lacked the natural ability of other stars, but his father
agreed to let him prove himself. Not everyone has such an
understanding father as the young Ren Lacoste, who
agreed to his son giving up preparing for the Polytechnique
(one of the most prestigious engineering schools in France)
to concentrate solely on tennis. In 1922, in the amateur era,
it was a risky gamble, and his sons future did not look very
secure, but Mr Lacoste Senior was the manager of the
Hispano-Suiza factories and did not have too many
financial problems, so gave his son a year to show what he
was capable of! The young Ren would far exceed his
fathers expectations... he was imaginative and a shrewd
businessman who brought us the ball throwing machine
(1927), the shirt that bears his name (1933), the antivibration pad (1960) and the metal racket (1963).
Unlike his colleagues Borotra and Cochet, talented selftaught players who used their natural qualities by inventing
most of their shots, Ren Lacoste secured the services of a
renowned coach, Darsonval, and worked relentlessly at his
game. He did not appear to have any of the natural
qualities that made the players of his era, but he had his
admiration for Suzanne Lenglen, a passion for the game
and an almost obsessive desire to train. He was the first
tennis player to include bodybuilding, running and skipping
The Peak:
Lacoste was then at his peak and stayed there. He beat Tilden
three times in 1927, thus confirming his domination of world
tennis, confirmed by the Davis Cup victory, a second title at
Forest Hills in 1927 and Wimbledon in 1928. In 1929, he won
the Roland Garros thanks to two superb victories over Tilden
and Borotra. He was only twenty-five and everyone predicted a
long reign for him over world tennis..
Early Retirement:-
In 1926 and 1927, Lacoste was ranked the world's top tennis
player. He won seven major singles titles in his career: the
French Open in 1925, 1927, and 1929, Wimbledon in 1925 and
1928, and the U.S. Open in 1926 and 1927. As a member of
the Four Musketeers (along with Henri Cochet, Jean Borotra,
and Jacques Brugnon), the formidable French team won the
Davis Cup in 1927 and 1928.
The real story of the "Crocodile" dates back to 1926. Ren
Lacoste liked to talk about how his nickname became a world
famous symbol.
The American press nicknamed me The Crocodile" after a
bet that I made with the Captain of the French Davis Cup team.
He had promised me a crocodile-skin suitcase if I won a match
that was important for our team. The American public stuck to
this nickname, which highlighted my tenacity on the tennis
courts, never giving up my prey! So my friend Robert George
drew me a crocodile which was embroidered on the blazer that
I wore on the courts.
Legacy
Lacoste died in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France, in 1996. He was 92
years old. The week of his death, the French Advertising
agency Publicis, who had been managing the account for
decades, published a print ad with the Lacoste logo and the
English words "See you later..." reinforcing the idea that the
animal was perhaps an alligator.
In his 1979 autobiography, Jack Kramer, the long-time tennis
promoter and great player himself, included Lacoste in his list
of the 21 greatest players of all time. With his athleticism and
build seemingly less than ideal for tennis, Lacoste fashioned for
himself a legendary career. The winner of seven Grand Slams,
Lacoste captured the U.S. Championships and Wimbledon
twice each, and his native French Championships three times.
For all his singular efforts, perhaps his lasting mark on the sport
was his patriotism, as his name remains tied to his three
comrades. The Four Musketeers were inducted simultaneously
into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, in Newport, Rhode
Island, in 1976.
Brief Description
Lacoste is a French apparel company founded in 1933 that
sells high-end clothing, footwear, perfume, leather goods,
watches, and eyewear, and most famously tennis shirts. The
company is easily recognized by its green crocodile logo.
In the United States in the 1970s and 1980s, Izod and Lacoste
were often used interchangeably because starting in the 1950s,
Izod produced clothing known as Izod lacoste under license for
sale in the U.S. This partnership ended in 1993, when Lacoste
The Collection
Designed By:Christophe Lemaire, Spring 2002 - Present
Gilles Rosier, Spring 1995 Fall 2001
Ruben Torres, Spring 1970 - Fall 1994
Shows In:- New York
Collection Types:-RTW, Menswear
Similar Clientele:-Polo Ralph Lauren
Styles & Tags:-Casual, Commercial Success, French, Sporty
2008.....
2010 collection.....