Making the Polo

June 2019

Making the March Polo

Ever since we launched the March Tee in 2016, the Polo was the #2 request from our customers (#1 being "Make more March Tees"). When we asked why, customers said they'd like something with a collar.

So last July, we started to work on it. Interacting with Polo people revealed a few things about the Polo –

It must have a formal look (cool!)
Fabric is pokey (okay!)
The collars curl up after use (yuck!)
The fit is super important (ahem, we know)

We took what we learned and used it to design our very own Polo.

Formal look. When you add a collar and buttons, things start to get serious. This was a big challenge. How wide should the collar be? Should we have three buttons? Two? How should they work when fully open and closed?

Fabric. The Polo has always had what is known as a Piqué knit. It's cool and has a rich texture. The flipside is that it's rough on the skin. So we tried a few things on top of our Supima cotton.

We're so proud of this fabric that we gave it a name – Smart Piqué.

Collars. It's the first sign of an ageing Polo - the collars curl up at the sides or just don't keep shape. And that sucks. So we took a tip from classic shirt makers. We took a canvas sheet, added the right amount of stiffness and wrapped it up neatly with fabric using our invisible stitch. The result was a seamless collar that blended in with the body.

The Fit. Last and most importantly, the fit is paramount to a regular Polo customer. We designed this Polo to be a workhorse. Lots of space and comfort around the chest, underarms and stomach, fitted sleeves for a sharp edge, a tapered slit for when you want to wear it untucked and ribbed cuffs that roll up clean for the Long Sleeve.

One final touch. Glossy plastic buttons just didn't cut it for us. So we custom created our own. Each button is coated with a rubberized powdered finish that's soft to touch and instantly looks premium. The buttons blend perfectly with the color of the fabric.