After a while, crocodile!
Lacoste’s green crocodile is one of the most recognizable logos in fashion, but the iconic reptile is temporarily stepping (waddling?) aside to make way for some other deserving creatures.
The French clothing brand created a series of limited-edition polo shirts featuring 10 of the world’s most endangered species, including highly at-risk varieties of rhino, parrot and tiger.
The endangered animals are embroidered in the brand’s green thread, just like the classic croc.
It’s part of a collaboration between Lacoste and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Proceeds from the shirts, priced at about $183, will go toward animal conservation.
There are just 1,775 polo shirts in this limited run, and to highlight the plight of these endangered creatures, the number of polos produced for each species corresponds to the number of the animals left in the wild.
The brand made just 350 shirts featuring the Sumatran tiger — one for every Sumatran tiger left in nature.
Lacoste made 250 shirts for the saola, a rare antelope-like creature found in parts of Asia.
Meanwhile, the brand made 157 polos featuring the kakapo parrot, a flightless parrot native to New Zealand.
As for the vaquita, a porpoise that lives in the Gulf of California? Only 30 shirts were made to reflect this rare creature’s remaining population in the wild.
The limited number of shirts really drives home the desperate plight of these endangered animals.
Luckily, shoppers were eager to help raise money for these animals in need (and of course, own a special piece of Lacoste history in the process). Soon after Lacoste debuted the special collection, it sold out.
The crocodile clearly stepped aside for an excellent cause!