Saw a few RL Purple Label leather jackets on Ebay and was curious if you guys think they are comparable in quality to these other high-end brands. I know that "base" RL is considered mall brand stuff, but supposedly Purple Label stuff is leagues better (I haven't yet handled any). All the Purple Label stuff I saw was made in Italy, fwiw. Is $1k a reasonable amount to pay for a NWT leather jacket from Purple RL? What about $2k?
-
The Fedora Lounge is supported in part by commission earning affiliate links sitewide. Please support us by using them. You may learn more here.
Thoughts on RL Purple Label vs Aero, Vanson, Flat Head, Real McCoys, etc.
- Thread starter ProfG
- Start date
One of the less than a handful of leather jackets I've seen in a mall and caught my eye was a Ralph Lauren (unsure if it was RRL, Purple or what). I think that one was on par but it was 5000 euros, which completely offsets any kind of price/quality ratio. I will leave it to someone more experienced with the brand to claim if they are worth paying 1-2k instead of spending that money on any of the other brands you've listed, as I can't evaluate that.
What I will say is that "made in Italy" is nothing but a *******ized term. You can make anything anywhere and it will be of different ranges of quality. A product can be made elsewhere, brought to Italy for the finishing touches and already qualify to slap the Made in Italy tag on it.
What I will say is that "made in Italy" is nothing but a *******ized term. You can make anything anywhere and it will be of different ranges of quality. A product can be made elsewhere, brought to Italy for the finishing touches and already qualify to slap the Made in Italy tag on it.
I’ve seen some RLPL leather jackets. The thing about RLPL line is that they are meant to be sleek and elegant, whereas quality leather is meant to be rugged in contrast. So for RL lines, RRL leather jackets in cowhide appear to be in ok quality. RLPL is heavily processed lambskin to compete with Tom Ford, for example. In short, RLPL leather jacket is not worth it. It’s comparable to made-in-Pakistan lambskin leather jackets.
Last edited:
I had an rlpl black shearling jacket, it was a short minimalist cr type design, no chest pockets, it had a nice pattern, shearling was really nice and was around $4k retail, I bought it slightly used on ebay though for around $500.
I later resold it and realized that I had only bought it because it looked good and was a good deal by comparison (to msrp).
I later resold it and realized that I had only bought it because it looked good and was a good deal by comparison (to msrp).
Last edited:
I would have to disagree with this.
Could you elaborate a bit? Do you consider rlpl to be worth paying serious money for?
l0fielectronic
Practically Family
- Messages
- 770
- Location
- UK
I've picked up a couple of RRL jackets over the years and found they were pretty disappointing/average material wise, nicely made and all but thats it. I feel you're not paying for durability with these just a 'look', and the name obviously.
Also had an RRL Browns Beach jacket and the material of that was such a let down compared to the Japanese items of that material.
Also had an RRL Browns Beach jacket and the material of that was such a let down compared to the Japanese items of that material.
Here’s one that just popped up on eBay. The leather looks paper thin. It actually looks worse than made-in-Pakistan Master Supply Co. leather jackets. It looks more like mall leather jackets like Wilson’s.
A pic is worth a thousand words. You be the judge.
A pic is worth a thousand words. You be the judge.
TartuWolf
Call Me a Cab
- Messages
- 2,580
- Location
- Tartu, Estonia
A proper RL jacket is a needle in a haystack kind of thing. I do recall seeing a few nice looking ones (Mark comes to mind, yeah) but 99% of what I have seen looked not worth considering. Even after visiting the RRL store in London I left extremely disappointed.
Post in thread 'Thoughts on this Ralph Lauren leather jacket?' https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...lph-lauren-leather-jacket.108916/post-2948781
Post in thread 'Thoughts on this Ralph Lauren leather jacket?' https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...lph-lauren-leather-jacket.108916/post-2948994
Post in thread 'Thoughts on this Ralph Lauren leather jacket?' https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...lph-lauren-leather-jacket.108916/post-2948781
Post in thread 'Thoughts on this Ralph Lauren leather jacket?' https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...lph-lauren-leather-jacket.108916/post-2948994
Last edited:
Peter Mackin
One Too Many
- Messages
- 1,799
- Location
- glasgow
Sorry but that just looks horrible. Imo.
Absolutely looks likes a Pakistan knock off.
Looks like the equally generic Shearling/Lambskin combos from the later Belstaff generations. Similar looking leather, same awful zippers, almost indistinguishable design.
As they are both "made in Italy", it could well be the same tailoring shop.
They are actually not that bad if you are into the designs and willing to pay the premium on the "brand-value". Leathers are disappointing though, if you take the nice cowhide they used until ca. 2006-8 or so as a baseline.
I have never pulled the plug on any RRL or RLPL piece so far; some visually nice pieces, but not my pricerange. Marc´s Shearling coat was an aweseome piece, though!
- Messages
- 17,489
Ralph Lauren Purple Label is top quality stuff. Even earlier plain RL was regularly on Aero or Schott level but Purple Label is often as good as it gets.
Reasons why Purple Label is what it is are many, namely it is a design complexity of the styles and of course, material.
For example, this coat may not be your thing but comparing it to some (reproduction of a) mail order leather jacket from the 50's is wild business.
Reasons why Purple Label is what it is are many, namely it is a design complexity of the styles and of course, material.
For example, this coat may not be your thing but comparing it to some (reproduction of a) mail order leather jacket from the 50's is wild business.
As with anything, it depends on the item, but generally speaking yes. (Also, bear in mind that full retail is essentially fictional for RL items.)
Styling plays a huge role here. There is no shortage of high end RTW companies that cost as much as bespoke. (The thinking man would always elect to get bespoke over such things, but allow me to continue.) Unlike competitors like Brioni or (the high end lines of) Zegna like Tom Ford, though, RLPL is almost always rooted in classic menswear styling and fit from the 'Golden Age'.
Competitors may have as much (or even more) hand stitching or other details, but the RLPL garment is rarely going to be overly constrained by present day fashion. (There are few things worse than a high end garment that looks visibly dated a few years into wear.) Also almost all of the cloths are commissioned by RL directly from the mills and merchants, so that can also provide something special.
I think it's often forgotten that RL was the original repro brand. He started in the 70s doing 1920s-1930s repro clothing, from workwear to tailoring.
This item caught my eye, which is why I started the thread. Not sure how it compares to, say, Schott:
TartuWolf
Call Me a Cab
- Messages
- 2,580
- Location
- Tartu, Estonia
Looks pretty atrocious if you ask me, but to each his own.
This is my main take away from this thread:
These are RL competitors, not Schott, Vanson, Thedi, Aero, etc..
Featured products
-
John Lofgren Monkey Boots Shinki Horsebuttt - $1,136 The classic monkey boot silhouette in an incredibly rich Shinki russet horse leather. -
Grant Stone Diesel Boot Dark Olive Chromexcel - $395 Goodyear welted, Horween Chromexcel, classic good looks. -
Schott 568 Vandals Jacket - $1,250 The classic Perfecto motorcycle jacket, in a very special limited-edition Schott double rider style.
Agreed, I don't like that one particularly, looks thin and plasticky. There's another RLPL being sold by the same seller that looks much better to my eye.
I think the thing to evaluate here is what are you looking for in the jacket. If you're looking for the brand name/recognition, RL is a no brainer. But if you are just looking for raw quality, you can spend basically the same money from the used RLPL on a new Schott in the same style.
I think the thing to evaluate here is what are you looking for in the jacket. If you're looking for the brand name/recognition, RL is a no brainer. But if you are just looking for raw quality, you can spend basically the same money from the used RLPL on a new Schott in the same style.
- Messages
- 17,489
I wouldn't go to Ralph Lauren for a biker jacket. It's not really their thing per se. As you can tell, they're trying to do something with the style in order to elevate it but it rarely ever works. These jackets are meant to be rudimentary, crude, such as they are. That's why people like them. They're tough jackets but hardly a pinnacle of craftmanship.
Accessibility was the guiding principle behind their creation, more so than the later attributed durability. Thickly split hide was always, and indeed still is, cheap(er). Tough to work with, even tougher when you make clothes with it. Any leather, regardless of how thick it is, is as tough as its epidermis.
jun
New in Town
- Messages
- 9
- Location
- Pittsburgh