Let me try to articulate my aversion to the values represented by the Lacoste's & RL's of the world.

I am a maker. Spent 7 years at uni mastering the esoteric arts of mechanical design and another discipline too young to have a body of knowledge worth shit. Lived through countless 3-to-1 design critique sessions where the supervisor (himself a practising designer) would destroy my designs and ego. Everybody gets their egos bombed to pieces. The only thing that matters is an unassailable concept and sweet execution. In other words, quality of thinking and ideas. Inspiration. Good solutions to problems with many constrains.

What do brands like RL and Lacoste represent in the polo arena?

You start with a stock standard white polo worth maybe 50 ringgit retail. You stick an alligator/pony logo on it. Now it is worth 400 ringgit retail.

What inspiration? What intelligence has been injected into the product? What design values? What culture? WHAT? I would have to be missing a very big chunk of my brain to pay a 350 ringgit premium for a brand. I don't care about your brand. I care about my brand. You would have to pay me 350 ringgit to wear your brand on my body.

Now look at FP. They take the trouble to inject some design values to their polos. A pathetic amount compared to the raw intellect and massive amounts of knowledge that go into a simple engineered product, but still. FP takes more pride in their clever designs than Lacoste/RL. And I happen to appreciate the FP aesthetic. I understand what they're trying to do -- to inject visual impact into a product which nonetheless must remain identifiably FP and classic.

I was once in an art gallery that was exhibiting (curated, of course) print advertisements. The FP ads were excellent.

(I'm still not buying any though. They are severely overpriced.)