A bask of crocodiles, including a little green reptile, occupies a locker room as one of the eye-catching displays of Lacoste's 85th Anniversary Exhibition, which has been touring Asia since May and on Oct 25 made a stop in Bangkok, at The Emporium, where it will remain until Saturday.
The crocs relate to French tennis legend René Lacoste, who was nicknamed "The Alligator" by an American journalist, in reference to a bet that he would buy his coach a crocodile suitcase on winning a 1923 Davis Cup match.
Another element of the 180m² exhibition, a row of racquets further symbolise the tennis champion, who from 1925-29 won a series of Grand Slam victories and dominated international rankings, with himself ranked the world's No.1 player in 1927.
The interactive exhibition invites visitors to discover the story of Lacoste, whose inventions in sports included a tennis-ball machine, a steel tennis racket and a golf driver, not to mention the polo.
Constrained by the long-sleeved shirt worn by tennis players in those days, Lacoste cut off the sleeves and used cooler and lightweight petit piqué fabric to create the iconic short-sleeved polo for freedom of movement.
Since its launch in 1933, his eponymous brand has taken the polo shirt from the tennis court to the wardrobe as elegant casual wear. Besides apparel, Lacoste has extended its range of products to include leather goods, fragrances, footwear, eyewear and watches.
The exhibition presents the evolution of the polo over the years while a capsule collection features re-editions from each decade, such as the 1930s polo, 40s sweater-polo, 70s colour-block polo, 80s inset-stripe polo and 90s style-shock polo.
Lacoste also looks to the future of French elegance embodied in the new collection of Paris Polo, a shirt with the freedom and comfort of a polo.
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