The easiest story is that Ralph received a present from his design team in the '80s, a teddy bear wearing a polo uniform, and liked it so much that he started putting the bear on his designs.

Collab Bears is a new NFT project launching with artwork from Audrey Schilt, a 45-year fashion industry veteran and the woman who first conceptualized Ralph Lauren’s iconic Polo Bear.

The bear was wearing a tiny Polo outfit, and Ralph liked it so much that he started selling the gifts in his stores. In 1991, the designer decided to add the image of the bear to a sweater because ...