Do we like them?

Do we like Ralph Lauren?

Designs and sells premium clothing, accessories and home goods under the Polo and Ralph Lauren names. Based in New York.

Our score: 5 out of 10. A well-run, long-lived brand with real sustainability reporting. The living-wage gaps in its supply chain and an old bribery case keep us at mixed.

Ralph Lauren is the founder-led New York fashion giant. Ralph Lauren stepped aside as CEO in 2015 but stayed as executive chairman and chief creative officer. In 2017 the board hired Patrice Louvet, an ex-Procter & Gamble executive, to turn around a brand hurt by heavy discounting.

The company has had its share of trouble. In 2013 it agreed to pay about $1.6 million to settle US claims after a manager at its Argentine subsidiary bribed customs officials over five years. It also agreed to cooperate and report on its compliance.

On workers, the company's own reports say its empowerment programmes reached over 136,000 supply-chain workers in 2024 and over 144,000 in the 2025 report. It is aiming for 250,000 by 2030. That is a decent effort, but it is company-reported.

Outside raters are tougher. Good On You rated it "Not Good Enough" in 2023 and found no evidence that workers get living wages in most of its supply chain. It also found none of the supply chain certified by key labour standards. So we score it mid-table.