Polo Shirts for the Rich

Polo shirts are great for business or casual outings. Made with style and correct material, they can be worn just about in any environment- at the office or at the club or wherever. The classic polo shirt was born in the the 1920's and worn primarily when playing tennis for the well to do class. It was soon adopted by polo sport enthusiasts and then by the collegiate crowd. It was Renee Lacoste, a seven time grand slam winner in tennis, that created the unique shirt in 1926. He was unhappy with what he had to wear during his matches, which were stiff and uncomfortable. However, it was not until 1933 that Lacoste was able to put the polo shirt in the mass market in the USA and Europe. By the late 1940's, the shirt's name was entrenched in men's fashion. Nearly all men's clothing lines had a polo shirt.

The shirt is usually made from all cotton fabric using a basket weave and nearly all have a straight hem. All have collars, which makes them a classier than just a T-shirt to work out in. You can wear them just anywhere and look good. Some are made from 100% rayon or polyester and are favored by golfers for their coolness, but the making them from this material also has the added benefit that no-iron is required. This material tends to not stretch and drapes nicely over the torso. They are also usually dressier and allows men to wear them for business without anyone blinking twice.

The cost to make a polo shirt varies, but it would be fair to say, those of all cotton made in Third World shops, seldom cost more than $5 in labor and material to make in mass production. The cost may be as low as $3 (which would account why many mainstream stores sell them retail for $12). Regardless of the cost, all polo shirts use the same pattern and except for material used and color, they look similar. This brings me to how manufacturers gouge the rich and how the rich are willing to buy the shirt at insane prices. Odds are, they are just buy a name and perhaps a few nuanced differences than one bought for $12 or 25. Even if one is so rich not to think twice about spending $90 on a polo shirt, how can it not even bother their psyche, their common sense? But the ridiculous prices get worse. How about paying $120, $210, $160 for a polo shirt that cost only $5 to make? Oh, it still gets worse, what rich person would ever, ever, pay $490 for a polo shirt? How could this price not rattle their senses as in "paying $490 for this shirt is the mother of all ripoffs?"

Yet, polo shirt manufacturers for the rich do sell them at these prices. These men toss out the money like it was mere pennies. The Lacoste polo shirt sells for $90. The only differences than one costing $12 are the ribbed cuff sleeves and the crocodile logo! The Italian designer polo costing $490, has the same features plus a pocket with a touch of leather trim.

These costs are just nonsense. Insane. Only a fool would ever buy a polo shirt at these prices, but I guess many rich men are just that.