He Jokingly Branded His Shirt, Then Turned It Into A Billion Dollar Brand! 

The first Lacoste shirt I bought 25 years ago is still in good shape and the colour has not faded at all. What a quality brand

I have a 30 year old Lacoste tee shirt. It has neither lost its shape nor pilled. The colour is is still fabulous. Worth every cent

My dad (1935-1991) only wore Lacoste. They’re great quality and I still have a couple of his in pink and yellow! Thanks for the story.

I always liked the Lacoste brand ,but now i like it even better after listening to the history behind it

I love the brand. The crocodile polo shirts were all the rage for preppy ’80’s fashion, and now I am simply in love with the quality. I have Lacoste towels that simply won’t fade or get raggedy.

This is the best commercial for Lacoste…knowing the brand’s history eg his dad’s inspiration and Lacoste’s own ambition makes it hard to forget this brand…now I know what the brand stands for lol…this video is much better than a 30 second advertisement where they throw typical words at you like “drive, imagination, speed…Lacoste!”

HE DIDN'T JOKINGLY BRAND IT.. A FRIEND WHO WAS A ARTIST DREW IT FOR HIM... HE TOOK IT TO HIS TAILOR & HAD HIM TRANSFER IT TO THE POCKET....

Great story. Lacoste clothing is really good quality and the fact it still sells so well world wide tells you that. 🐊 🇫🇷

Sounds like he worked really hard to get where he was. You could say he paid the cost to be Lacoste.

I lived through this era . I went to grammar school in 1972 it was a big deal in my school. I just never knew why. Very interesting story

Clint Eastwood made Lacoste brand even more famous by wearing them in his photo shoots ⭐️

While I was a child, around 1960, I'd had at least one Izod/Lacoste shirt, and I'd thought the crocodile logo was so cool. They were very durable shirts.

Lacoste has truly prove its worth. The items are long lasting I still have 5 Lacoste Polo shirts and theyre already decade old. Still wearing them until today. A really value for money peace of art. Greetings from Philippines

This is a sport wear company, but they also make relaxed and smart clothes you can wear at the office. I salute them.

"I'm sewin' tigers on my shirt, and alligators... You wanna see the inside? Huh...I'll see ya later" Notorious B.I.G ~ Sky's the Limit

I just love how the counterfeits misspelt it as LACTOSE! :)

Now I know why!! it is a bit expensive for a common individual but the quality are really impressive,amazingly beautiful and it last a long while compare to other brands.

Im a employee in lacoste footwear here in the philippines...proud here❤❤❤❤

My generation just called them alligator shirts but everybody had some

Wow. What an awesome Man. I never knew this story. His smile, In all those pictures.... It is Beautiful. Rest in Peace brother. I still buy you stuff. When I can afford to spoil myself.

never knew this story either! I did not know it had tennis roots.

A school friend’s girlfriend got a contract to sew the crocodiles onto the shirts back in the day

I remember wearing a signature green T-shirt by Lacoste as a junior school kid. It was one of my favorite shirts and I thought the name and logo were so catchy. Subsequently wore another collared t-shirt, this time black with multi colored stripes. The same catchy logo. Even as a young kid, I could notice how the logo and brand name were so catchy and stylish. They were of impeccable quality as well and even though I abused them a lot with all the sweat and sports I played, they became a fellow companion encouraging me to keep striving for more in sports. Later on, as a college student buying my own t-shirts and even though several sports brands being popular in my country, I could trust Lacoste (as well) just because I remembered how nice the shirts I wore used to be. I am from India. Glad the company has kept a perennial respect for its founder and their family.

One of my favorites brand of all time it's gives you that Bougoire feeling right next to Polo thanks for the background such an iconic brand 💯☝️

Lacoste is my favorite brand. Never knew the history.

I wore Lacoste striped cotton short sleeved shirts and Levi’s throughout high school. They always looked great and were the perfect everyday uniform! 1980s of course!

As a kid growing up in 80's southern California, the Izod brand was very popular. Even as a pre-teen who had yet to hear/understand the term 'marketing,' I knew what the Izod brand stood for: high quality...classy/timeless look & feel...a brand that many parents were willing to pay a premium for because of the message it sent. Lastly, I don't know about other demographics, but in southern California, we did not formally refer to the brand as 'Izod Lacoste.' Except for a subgroup of young adults (18 - 25), we did not even refer to the brand as 'Izod.' During that time, the vast majority of teens/pre-teens simply referred to the brand as 'Alligator.' Now, tell me how much Mr. Lacoste and Co. would've frowned over my age group referring to the brand as 'Alligator?' For starters, that's not even the right animal...it's a crocodile, for chrissakes! Before posting, I want to include one last thought...it's like I can still hear myself as a 10 year-old...Sunday morning...already running late for church...for like the 26th week in a row..."Hey, mom, do you know where my Alligator shirt is?" Viewing this video...reading many of the comments...it was such a pleasure. It really takes me back to another time.

The flimsy 'made in South East Asia' Lacoste shirts are not worth the money. However, I highly recommend the Beams x Lacoste collab...made in Japan of thick gauge cotton and mother of pearl buttons.

Just stumbled on this and i am wearing Lacoste in Nairobi Kenya, thanks for sharing~!

i got a black Lacoste shirt as a gift when i was 17. it was the first shirt i wore that felt and looked fitted. it still looks great over 15 years later although a tiny bit faded. I've added many more colors over the years. fan for life.

Great information thanks

It’s crazy 😜 yo! World champ in 5 yrs 🎉 this guy is so talented. It is kinda expensive o guess

"in the 1960s, he designed an unprecedented steel racket in the 1960s"

I remember my first Izod-LaCoste polo shirt in the early 1980s. It was very well made and I treasured it.

A clothing company labelled its own polo shirts as Costalot

Awesome video, good story, and insanely good storyteller

Matatan.🔥🐎🔥. Ribirin HS, Excellent documentary well done,

Thanks much for this information.

gotta love that new 'Sporty & Rich' & Lacoste collab collection that just came out

Always love wearing Lacoste which gives that higher class of apparel 😊

Loyal Lacoste user here... shirts, jackets, wallets, shoes, perfume..

Yes my husband love their clothing line. we always buy them through our local store and sometimes on Duty free shops when we travel although it’s expensive here in the Philippines it’s the quality of the cloth we are after.

What i really like from Lacoste is the cologne and the footwear.

Lacoste was the very first brand of anything that I recognized or knew of .. and it was at the time a relatively cheap brand

I wanted an izod shirt since I was a teen. My parents said it was too expensive. I never got an izod shirt, but I got an izod bath mat many years ago on sale at Macy's. I still use this bath mat. It's a thick towel that goes in washing machine.

This story was more interestingthan I had anticipated

Growing up in Louisiana we all had alligator shirts and were always confused was it Izod? Or Lacoste? 😂 I finally know

What a great story, very inspirational, a succeed from other era up to date.

Its my first time seeing Rene "The Crocodile' Lacoste. He looked like Crocodile in One Piece tho

Rene /re-nay/is the the feminine pronunciation of the name. The masculine pronunciation is / Renny/.

My dad had a Lacoste shirt as a gift from one of my uncles when I was about 10/12, my dad loved it so much that he used to wear it frequently.

interesting piece of history and information I had no idea about but have been occasionally buying from and really loving the brand. Also I didnt know that Crocodile was a knockoff, i thought it was another top tier brand that was scarce-ly available or hard to find.

What a story!!!! Tennis player an a crocodile . From a tennis champ to a billionaire. Very intresting now as it ever was. Great Story. Lacoste now I know the meaning, it will make me think about the story when I purchase another Lacoste.

Definitely 💯 if Lacoste had not liked the crocodile 🐊 he would not have used it - independently of who executed his original idea ..

I think this brand kept the authencity true out there history

I love Lacoste ever since

Some of these ppl are just brilliant

Man, if you were in high school during the yuppie era, having top gear like this could make or break you. I was a punk rock kid, so I didn't have a dog in the fight, but I saw real tears in those days.

Great story ☯️💯🌎

''I'm proud...to be the new crocodile...and i'm getting paid, a fu*k load of money''

Pls make a video on Aston Martin story

The Journalist started the brand🔥🔥

Amazing story.

I have a pair of black Lacoste sneakers. Will definitely get another pair when these ones wear out. I've had them for 4 years and they're still going strong.

Loved this video

I love Lacoste!!! I always buy something from their store once in awhile.

Great story. However, the branding was a calculated effort and never the result of a joke.

I love lacoste that is all I where they last for years I’m so pleased I see this video got my wife wearing it now when she can get them to fit here I have been wearing them for the past 25 years you can’t get better in my eyes

I cannot believe your omission of that famous anecdote about LaCoste giving out his shirts to the Kennedys &other famous people at big events.

I love lacoste😂😂😂 buy a couple every year. Their designs are special, materials durable. Can’t go a yr without buying 5-10 items from Lacoste 👌🏿

Lacoste great product long lasting beautiful colors yes I have used them specially the polo shirts used to buy them at Macys NYC.

i use to wear a lot of theses shirts as a kid.. now i know the history.. cool

Wow!! That's amazing!!

That's what I like to see, a guy playing world class tennis in long pants, a leather belt, dress shoes, and a hat. Old school baby.

The anti---upside down dead croc

Izod , A must have brand in the 80's along with a members only jacket !!!!.........Erik

The quality of clothes is worth every cent. I have 20 year old polos that didn't shrink, nor changed color.

On an Indian footpath I saw a cheap T shirt with the crocodile symbol and deceptive Lacoste embroidery.On closer examination it turned out to be ,"lowcoste"! 😁

Expensive 🥺

Imagine trying to chase your passion while making profits by introducing your inventions too

I didn't know Izod and Lacoste were different companies. I never looked into this. I guess I thought izod was the tennis players name when I was younger.

3:22 Where the real story starts.

It was in 1995 when i 1st wear Lacoste brand and until i still do, the fabric is really good😊

the boiler room b roll lol

I would always look for the crocodile 🐊 logo when I was a young boy. Of course at the thrift stores. But Now at the luxury store.

whatta beautiful story

I'm a HUGE fan! Especially it's collaborations such as different alligators/crocodiles on the brink of extinction with National Geographic Or the different colored crocodiles positioned vertically onto it's polo-tee with it's Polaroid collab And the most recent Netflix collection featuring a crocodile with Demogorgon (of Stranger Things) for it's head or the one where the crocodile wears a headgear like in the Bridgerton series

I love the story about president Chirac beeing on TV with a Ralph Lauren polo. Lacoste send him a dozen polos, and wrote that they sincerely hoped that he would stop being so un-french in the future.

My dad is in the first archive footage, the skinny guy hitting a slice backhand against Don Budge. Where did you get these clips?

I have 👕 from la coste 🐊 and still wearing to today❗🙂👌👍🇲🇰

It was good to learn how Izod & Lacoste got connected

Novak still wears Lacoste? I thought it is Uniqlo! Oh the Crocodile clothes. It is also popular in Asia.

Awesome 😎.......

Fun fact:The company tried to sue a small crocodile farm in Asia, that was using a crocodile logo some years ago !I guess they were hard up for cash and reaching.

You can't add custom buttons on surface by your will. Some can do that. Nano suit, car. Warp

7:50 - “In the 1960’s, he designed an unprecedented steel racket in the 1960’s.”🐊

Interesting story!

Always wondered what happened to Izod. I used to wear those shirts all the time.

Not much is mentioned about his Black Jamaican mother

Lacoste L 12:12 blanc the original cologne is fantastic smelling, not the greatest performance but for a spring or summer perfume if you get a good price and don't mind 5-6 hours of longevity from about 5 sprays go for it. Lacoste noir and Lacoste style in play are classics too. Though style in play is kind of out dated.