GIVING FROM THE HEART
This article was first published in Issue 36, October 2014
The pioneer spirit burns vast and bright in the heart of Ralph Lauren. And because of this, he’s risen from a humble upbringing, transcended geographical boundaries, and shaped the world’s cultural landscape by transforming a pure, essential vision of American optimism into one of the most globally successful luxury brands on Earth. As Hillary Clinton put it, on the occasion of awarding Lauren the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal in June 2014: “Ralph… would come forth with a vision and an optimism and an energy that marks our country and those who call it home. He would exemplify the American Dream and also make it possible for so many others to have their dreams.”
What she alludes to with the last words of her statement is that, although many of us think we know Ralph Lauren — who has become a star in the world’s collective consciousness — most of us actually know very little about the thing most important to him: the thing that occupies the greatest real estate within his immense, powerful heart — his desire to help other people.
“If people thought more about helping others and less about themselves,” says Lauren, with typical economy, “they might feel better about the way they live.” He reflects on this a moment before adding: “Luxury, for some people, has to do with things that are expensive. I look at it differently. Luxury is relative to each person. For many people, luxury is not about things — it’s about having a piece of a life they want to have. So maybe the greatest luxury is to give people the possibility of having that life, through helping them with their education or their healthcare. Anytime I can help somebody else, I am going to. It makes you feel good.”
Yet for the most part, Lauren’s humanitarianism is something he rarely broadcasts. “My father has been very philanthropic his entire life,” says David Lauren. “The difference is that he doesn’t call himself a philanthropist. He shies away from the spotlight regarding that part of his life, and he shies away from people who give in a loud way.” Ralph Lauren says: “I don’t like it when people call me a philanthropist, because I see it as coming from the heart.” Dr. Harold Freeman, the co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of the Ralph Lauren Center for Cancer Care and Prevention in Harlem, says: “He’s a very quiet man. He’s helping people who need help, but he does it in a very unassuming and quiet way. He steps back and causes it to work, but he doesn’t seem to care about credit. He cares about people.”
“Most of his giving over the last 50 years you will never hear about,” adds David Lauren. “It could be something as simple as an employee with problems, a friend of his or the doorman in his building — it could be anybody who needs help and who affects him with their story. All of a sudden, he is changing their life and helping them without publicising it. I am proud of this, but I’m also proud of the fact that he has taught us that, when you help someone in need, it has to be done selflessly. Sometimes, it’s important to promote the cause — as in the case of the Royal Marsden Hospital [where Lauren built a new breast cancer research centre] — because it can benefit from more funds. But my father’s belief is that the best giving is done privately, and this is often the most emotionally stirring.” When asked about the story of Lauren paying the college fees for his doorman’s children, David Lauren simply says: “There are many [stories] like that which are very moving.”
Cancer care and prevention
Of all the causes Lauren has supported and rallied others to support, cancer care and preventionof having survived this ordeal. I had met Nina Hyde when she was the Fashion Editor of , and she was very kind and very smart. When I went to Washington, she made a real effort to introduce me to people at the White House and, thanks to her, I had a memorable experience. Then, one day, I passed her in the street and she didn’t look like the same person. I instinctively knew something wasn’t right. So I went over to her and said, ‘Nina what’s wrong?’ She said, ‘Ralph, I have breast cancer. But I have a great doctor and he’s on the cutting edge of what’s going on, and I think I have a good chance of beating it.’ I looked at her and said, ‘Nina, what can I do for you?’ She replied, ‘Ralph, maybe you can bring the issue to the fashion industry’. She was right — the American fashion industry is all about women. So I said, ‘I’ll do it’. And I did it with the sense that if I can succeed at this, maybe I can save her. I told myself, ‘I am going to get this done!’ So I brought the idea to the Council of Fashion Designers of America and we started the Fashion Targets Breast Cancer campaign.”
