HISTORICALLY, Ralph Lauren hasn’t stage menswear shows without good reason and it was this track record of elusiveness that made his recent runway in Milan feel even more grand. Something was up at the storied American label . . .

Staged at Palazzo Ralph Lauren, the autumn/winter 2026 runway brought together Ralph Lauren’s two most philosophically distinct menswear lines – Polo and Purple Label – on a single runway in a show that sharpened the threads of inspiration through proximity.

Polo opened with the perfect amount of colour and energy. The clothes carried the looseness and curiosity of youth without tipping into costume. Heritage American references were present, but they were treated more as materials or building blocks rather than strict codes. Utility outerwear arrived in unexpected fabrications, knitwear was graphic, denim was worked-in rather than worked-over (the day that brands stop whiskering their jeans cannot come soon enough for me).

There was also an ease to the styling – trousers cut wide but intentional, tailoring softened rather than undone – that spoke to how younger wearers are already engaging with the brand through vintage and personal remixing. Nothing felt precious or pretentious. The revival of WASP swag and preppy tailoring comes with the risk of leaning too heavily into “private club” territory but this felt fun, sporty and accessible. Particularly appealing was the accumulation approach to styling – layers upon layers, as if each look had been assembled over time rather than styled for effect.

In the second act, Purple Label slowed the room. Where Polo thrived on movement, Purple found its feet in a more restrained setting. Cashmere, flannel and shearling were handled with quiet assurance, and tailoring moved fluidly between formal and functional. It was peak Lauren – the debonair cowboy, the velvet-clad rancher. It hit all the registers of the Ralph Lauren stable, to push the pun to its etreme. From city to country, from evening to day without ever losing sight of itself. Even when references edged toward adventure, the execution remained composed, grounded in cut and fabrication rather than narrative flourish.

Shared craft elements and accessories threaded both collections together, reinforcing the idea that these lines are different expressions of the same worldview. Fashion has often tripped on its own feet in an attempt to capture the imaginations of a younger audience. What we saw at Ralph Lauren felt generational, with a stylistic and cultural language that exists within a single, coherent universe.

It would be wrong to say that there was zero spectacle – it was a runway show, after all. It’s all spectacle. But it was refreshing to see a brand showcase a collection where they actually trusted the clothes to do the work and trust the audience to read the nuance.

The show’s clear sense of continuity of Ralph Lauren’s legacy was arguably one of its strongest points. With seasons happening faster than ever, the sudden changes in creative direction or total brand overhaul, there’s something deeply comforting in the knowledge that we still, at least, have Ralph Lauren.

Related:

Ralph Lauren’s riding high – in sales, in style, and on the world stage

Ralph Lauren has always been the King of quiet luxury