Lacoste ‘returns to its roots’ with new visual identity

Lacoste has redesigned its visual identity and reintroduced more pronounced serif characters for its logo, while also nodding to the original artwork of Robert George - the illustrator behind the first Crocodile drawing.

Affirming its heritage through a contemporary expression, the new branding has been developed as a bespoke design, “distinguished by the precision of its proportions, rhythms and spacing”.

The new branding draws on the richness of its archives, from the earliest creations of René Lacoste, who founded his eponymous brand - originally called La Chemise Lacoste - in 1933 with entrepreneur André Gillier, who was the owner and president of the largest French knitwear manufacturing company at the time, along with its now-famous piqué polo shirt.

Lacoste’s iconic Crocodile logo has been brought forward more prominently depending on context, particularly when used on its own. The red tongue, already present in the original design, has become more visible across certain branding executions in the new identity.

René Lacoste was first given the nickname ‘the Crocodile’ by the American press after he reportedly bet his team captain a crocodile-skin suitcase that he would win his match. The name quickly spread to French fans of Lacoste, who saw it as a fitting nickname due to his tenacity on the tennis court.

Additionally, the colour palette revisits the brand’s historic hues, with the brand’s emblematic green adjusted to closely match its original shade, “restoring an intensity true to the brand’s history”, alongside clay - echoing the clay courts René Lacoste played on - and farine (French for flour), in tribute to the off-white colour of his first blazer.

René Lacoste’s handwritten script further enriches this visual language. Introduced in selected brand expressions, notably within the Café Lacoste logotype, it brings a more personal dimension directly connected to the origins of the brand.

This visual language is further reinforced by motifs inspired by Lacoste’s graphic archives, in line with the work of Robert George and drawing from the brand’s territories and codes: tennis, golf and the Crocodile. As such, “illustrations inform new expressions”, particularly in packaging.

Developed in collaboration with Commission Studio, Lacoste’s new visual identity will be “progressively deployed across all brand expressions” in the coming months.

Earlier this month, Lacoste unveiled French Formula 1 star Pierre Gasly as its latest brand ambassador. He will most notably be the face of the Lacoste polo shirt, among other upcoming projects.