A horse, a dream, and a city of light: Ralph Lauren’s CNY tribute

What happened As the Year of the Horse approaches, fashion houses are racing to win the hearts of Chinese consumers with dazzling campaigns featuring the zodiac horse. Perhaps few possess more cultural authority in deploying the motif than Ralph Lauren. On February 13, Ralph Lauren staged a cinematic drone show in Shenzhen featuring 1,000 drones that formed both its iconic Pony insignia and the Chinese zodiac horse. The 10-minute performance took place as China prepared for Chinese New Year, its largest traditional festival. Ralph Lauren has long been guided by a belief in aspiration. As founder Ralph Lauren famously said, “I don't design clothes, I design dreams.” The light show — titled "In Pursuit of Dreams" — brought into focus the label's long-held ideals of dreams and hope, through the lens of Chinese culture that contemporary consumers are increasingly re-engaging with on their own terms. The Jing Take When the contour of the Chinese zodiac horse merged with that of Ralph Lauren's Polo Pony logo, the showstopping drone display wove a romantic story across time and space, linking cultural symbolism with the brand’s heritage. As a tribute to CNY, this campaign coalesced the spirit of the zodiac horse — confidence and audacity tempered by a drive for freedom, adventure, and success — with what lies at the heart of Ralph Lauren’s ethos. Ralph Lauren also created a film starring three A-list actors (Li Bingbing, Li Naiwen, and Chen Lijun), speed climber Wu Peng, and scholar Zhong Shu. Composed of four chapters – Vitality, Elegance, Authenticity, and Timeless – the film further captures the philosophy of the brand known for its timelessness beyond garments. Rather than relying on overt cultural nostalgia, the campaign uses technology-driven visuals to engage Chinese consumers who are reconnecting with traditional culture, and at the same time aligns the totemism of the zodiac horse with its core identity. A classy storyteller of dreams The drone show unfolded as a dreamy spectacle, conjuring up festive optimism and hope for the new year. The image of a galloping horse has long represented the pursuit of dreams in Chinese culture. Ralph Lauren is no stranger to dream-making. Its story started with Ralph Lauren, son of working-class Jewish immigrants living in the Bronx, founding the brand in pursuit of the American Dream in the 1960s. In 1967, the young man designed a wide handmade necktie called “Polo” which bucked the then narrow-tie trend and worked out of a drawer in the Empire State Building. A year later, he went on to launch a full menswear line inspired by Old Hollywood and the aspirational spirit of the American dream anchored in the values of freedom and equality at the time. Following shop openings in New York and Los Angeles, he introduced the Polo Pony logo in 1971, first appearing on the cuffs of women’s shirts. The designer launched the iconic Polo shirt and the first full women's line in 1972. In the women’s collection, man-tailored shirts, once again bucking convention, became a breakout hit with female customers. His creation of the iconic looks in the films The Great Gatsby and Annie Hall in the 1970s catapulted the brand to cultural prominence. The 1980s saw the brand expand outside the U.S. market and the next decade witnessed its public listing. In 2000, the already well-established fashion house launched the Pink Pony campaign, a global initiative for cancer care built on its philanthropic efforts for breast cancer prevention and treatment. Over more than six decades, Ralph Lauren has been turning his dreams into reality, carrying its classic, refined aesthetic beyond fashion to lived experience and collective sentiments. The house's evolution is deeply grounded in its founder’s ideology of realizing a dream: breaking conventions while staying true to his original vision, remaining composed, and pursuing long-term goals with determination. Committed to growing in the Chinese market The 2026 CNY campaign also speaks to Ralph Lauren’s deeper and nuanced understanding of the Chinese market. At the end of 2024, it illuminated the sky over The Bund in Shanghai on the eve of the China premier of its HBO documentary Very Ralph, causing a sensation among Chinese audiences. Its Shenzhen takeover was equally deliberate. In recognizing the city’s role as a hub of innovation, inclusivity, and dynamic transformation, the brand tapped into a narrative that mirrors its pursuit of dreams. Ralph Lauren is adept at making an entrance. Despite being a latecomer to the Chinese market, entering in 2011, it expanded rapidly through flagship stores in high-end shopping malls and standalone shops while exploring an immersive online shopping experience. In 2017, it became one of the first brands to join Alibaba’s Tmall Luxury Pavilion, gaining early access to a younger and digitally savvy luxury consumer demographic. Notably, some 65% of Ralph Lauren’s customers in China are women, a figure twice the global average, making the Chinese market an outlier for a historically men’s-heavy brand. Apart from its expansive bricks‑and‑mortar presence in China, which now includes over 200 stores, it was an early mover among luxury maisons in bringing hospitality retail to China. In 2021, it opened the first Ralph’s Coffee shop on the Chinese mainland in Beijing's bustling Sanlitun, followed by an outpost in Shanghai. A year later, the Ralph Bar opened in the southwestern cultural hub of Chengdu, the first of its kind in Asia-Pacific. While luxury spending has slowed amid economic uncertainty, Ralph Lauren has consistently exceeded quarterly estimates thanks to its high-quality, timeless closet staples represented by Polo shirts and cable knit sweaters as well as its precise capture of consumer preferences and social moods In its newly released Q3 fiscal 2026 report, its China revenues rose by more than 30% YoY, sustaining the strong momentum of the previous two quarters. This figure also outpaced 12% growth in Europe and a single-digit increase in North America. Ralph Lauren's horse-themed drone show and film, comprise another love letter to China. Much as in its home market in the U.S., "very Ralph Lauren" has become an adjective in China, evoking a way of life beyond a fashion aesthetic. Built on the ideal of dreams, the house seeks to inspire individuals to write their own stories. The Jing Take reports on a piece of the leading news and presents our editorial team’s analysis of the key implications for the luxury industry. In the recurring column, we analyze everything from product drops and mergers to heated debate sprouting on Chinese social media.

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A horse, a dream, and a city of light: Ralph Lauren’s CNY tribute