Family Matters

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Like the children of many a successful parent, David Lauren, the second of Ralph and Ricky's three children, set out to carve a career for himself in a field other than his father's. Like many a child of a successful entrepreneur, he is often asked whether or not he'll end up running the company. Like any sane executive, he won't say.

David, 30, now senior vice president of advertising, marketing and corporate communications at Ralph Lauren Media, had every intention of going his own way. "I never wanted to work for my father," he says. So while still a student at Duke University in North Carolina, he founded Swing, a lifestyle magazine for 20-somethings who, like David, intended to work, not slack. Swing, which had a circulation that peaked at about 125,000, folded after five years — despite plenty of advertising from Dad. David responded as any disillusioned 20-something with a trust fund would: he traveled.

When he returned to New York he told his father about his plans to develop an Internet site with a heavy dose of lifestyle coverage. Funny, Dad had been thinking he'd like a website too. Before long, in 2000, Polo.com was born, and David became chief creative and marketing director of Ralph Lauren Media — a joint venture between Polo Ralph Lauren and the TV network NBC.

In the two and a half years since, bachelor David, who is very much part of the New York social scene, seems to have found his niche. He talks happily about his plans to make Polo.com a shining example of "merchantainment," his own concept which he describes as "a blending of merchandising and entertainment for the Polo lifestyle on the Internet." He envisions Polo TV and Polo Hotels and is working on the launch of a Polo magazine. He seems so at home that industry watchers are beginning to wonder if Dad, now 62, plans to hand over to him. Ron Baron, the CEO of Baron Funds, a big investor in Polo Ralph Lauren, thinks that unlikely. "If it was my business and he was my son, I would want someone who was trained in the ins and outs of the business to know if it was being well run. That's the role of David. He's gaining knowledge to protect the family." David hasn't ruled out running the company. "We'll have to wait and see", he said.