I’m often asked by friends if Ralph Lauren Polo shoes are worth getting over Converse-related canvas shoes or canvas shoes by other brands and if it’s worth getting because they are made in China.
Well, unless you purchase a canvas shoe made with Italian leather and pay the premium if they are made in Europe, the truth is that many canvas shoes are made in China. My Converse All Stars are made in China. My Vans canvas shoes, Nike canvas shoes, Skechers canvas shoes, Kenneth Cole Unlisted canvas shoes were also all made in China.
A lot of canvas shoes are made in China, with the exception of my old school Airwalks, which were made in Korea and Lacoste canvas shoes which are made in Peru.
My thoughts on canvas shoes, because they are inexpensive is too not be overly picky of where they are made and to not be too self-conscious if they are made in China. If you want to wear those Chuck Taylors or Jack Purcell’s, they are going to be made in China.
And if you are going to wear them daily and put them through a lot of stress, don’t expect them to last as long as your running shoes or sneakers.
And as for Ralph Lauren Polo canvas shoes, I own several of them as I love the design, I love the polo emblem on the sides and I tend to wear a lot of Ralph Lauren clothing anyway.
But are there differences between the various canvas shoes that Ralph Lauren Polo offers? The answer is yes.
So, let’s take a look at a few of the canvas shoes that Ralph Lauren Polo has to offer:
Ralph Lauren Polo Faxon Low Canvas Shoes
Under the shoe – Ralph Lauren Polo – Faxon, Harvey, Hanford, Jerred and Harvey Mid’s.
- Lace-up silhouette. Leather patch with a debossed “Polo” logo at the tongue.
- Padded collar. Padded insole. Lightly treaded “Polo”-embossed rubber outsole.
- Our signature embroidered pony accents the outer side.
- Cotton. Leather. Imported.
The Ralph Lauren Polo Faxon low canvas shoes are for those who want a straightforward canvas shoe. This shoe has a lot of positives, from the two-tone colors throughout the shoe including the shoelaces. The shoes feature a canvas upper, rubber outsole, synethetic lining.
The shoes come in Heritage Royal Blue, Devon Red and Bittersweet redish/orange. The top logo is synthetic rubber, as with the top lining inside the shoe. The shoe does feature good padding but that’s not saying much as like all canvas shoes, if you are prone to foot aches, you may want to look for padded insoles.
The front has top front stitching, similar to the Jerred’s but if you don’t like stitching on the front, you will want to take a look at the Ralph Lauren Polo Harvey’s.
I like the sidewalls for this shoe and there is no Polo logo identifier in the back.
If there was one thing I didn’t like about this canvas shoe compared to the other Ralph Lauren canvas shoes, there is no better gripping sole. You have to be careful of walking around wet surface as you may slip.
The second thing I didn’t like is because the shoe uses a thinner rubber sidewall, there are bump and ridges right where the stitching is and can look like a crease.
But of the Ralph Lauren Polo canvas shoes, I like the look of the Faxon low cuts canvas shoes…just don’t like the underlying rubber sole when compared to the other Ralph Lauren canvas shoes. It’s reminiscent of plain soles comparable to Kenneth Cole Unlisted canvas shoes.
Ralph Lauren Polo Harvey Mid-Cut Canvas Shoes
- Rounded-toe silhouette. Lace-up styling.
- “Polo”-embossed leather patch at the tongue.
- Padded collar. Padded canvas insole. Treaded rubber outsole with contrasting stripes.
- “Polo”-embossed leather trim at the padded collar.
- Our signature embroidered pony accents the outer side.
- Cotton. Leather. Imported.
The Ralph Lauren Polo Harvey mid-cut canvas sneakers feature a rounded toe, a padded brown collar and have contrasting stripes on the outsole, while featuring treaded sole underneath.
In essence, they are the same as the Harvey low-cut but having that extra inch or inch and a half for the mid top. You also have a vertical leather at the heel like the Hanford’s and the POLO branding is right at the top.
I have two of these, in dark blue and red, the other in white with dark blue. They are really cool looking shoes and the bottom sole are the same as the Harvey low-cuts.
Ralph Lauren Polo Harvey Canvas Shoes
- Rounded-toe silhouette. Lace-up styling.
- “Polo”-embossed leather patch at the tongue.
- Padded collar. Padded canvas insole. Treaded rubber outsole with contrasting stripes.
- “Polo”-embossed leather trim at the padded collar.
- Our signature embroidered pony accents the outer side.
- Cotton. Leather. Imported.
The Ralph Lauren Polo Harvey Canvas Shoes are for those who want a classy-looking canvas shoe with cotton canvas and leather trim and tongue. The rear features synthetic in two-tone, the top features a grown synthetic inside and the contrasting red, white and blue stripes on the sidewalls. The rear of the shoe sports the “POLO” logo.
Padding is the same compared to the other shoes, so if you are prone to foot aches, buy a padded insole.
Under the shoe, it has a better grip and both the Harvey and Hanford share the same type of treaded gripped sole.
But for those who want front stitching and canvas/synthetic and not stripes on the sidewall, will want to take a look at the Jerred’s.
Ralph Lauren Polo Jerred Canvas Shoes
- Rounded-toe silhouette. Lace-up styling.
- Tubular construction at the toe. Embroidered “Polo” accents the tongue.
- Padded leather collar. Padded canvas insole. Treaded rubber outsole.
- Leather trim accents the back. Rubber “Polo” tag at the heel.
- Our signature embroidered pony accents the outer side.
- Cotton. Imported.
The Ralph Lauren Polo Jerred canvas shoes is like a combination of the Faxon and the Harvey shoes.
To compare with the faxon, it has the top front stitching and the rear has a lined side rubber. While compared to the Harvey, it also features canvas and leather trim and tongue but more of the leather as it extends up to the top collar and also features treaded rubber outsole but has lineds towards the logo in the center. For those who don’t like the stripes on the Harvey’s, then you will definitely prefer the Jerred’s much more.
Features rear POLO tag at the heel.
While the Faxon’s feature the second tone color for the bottom sole, the Jerred’s feature a brown sole which I like a lot!
While I really like the combination of canvas and leather of the Jerred’s, what I don’t like, similar to the Faxon’s are the thinner rubber sidewall, there are bump and ridges right where the stitching is and can look like a crease.
Ralph Lauren Polo Hanford Leather Canvas Shoes
- Rounded-toe silhouette. Debossed “Polo” logo accents the leather patch at the tongue.
- Lace-up styling.
- Padded collar. Canvas lining. Padded insole. Treaded “Polo”-embossed rubber outsole.
- Our signature embroidered pony accents the outer side.
- Leather. Imported.
NOTE: It’s important to note that I used a flash to showcase the look and features of the Ralph Lauren Polo Hanford shoes. They are much darker in appearance!
The Ralph Lauren Polo Hanford’s are all crafted from smooth leather. Less stripes than the Harvey shoes, with a leather embossed pony accent.
Like the Jerred’s, it has the POLO logo at the rear but also a lined vertical stitch at the heel.
I like how the shoe has metal eyelets and it’s a gorgeous shoe. But similar to the Faxon and Jerred, what I didn’t like is because the shoe uses a thinner rubber sidewall, there are bump and ridges right where the stitching is and can look like a crease.
Overall, the Ralph Lauren Polo canvas shoes are very good and I haven’t had one break apart and made me feel these shoes were low quality. I see some reviews saying they are “made in China” so they are not good quality, but the truth is that a lot of the canvas shoes are made in China, and as mentioned aside from Airwalks and Lacoste, many of the other shoes I have from major companies such as Vans, Nike and Converse were made in China.
I’m sure you can find canvas shoes made in the USA or other countries but a lot of them are made in China and that’s the reality for canvas shoes. And if you own a lot of shoes, more than likely, you won’t wear them daily, so you probably won’t don’t damage your shoes. For those who use it to walk long distances and even run with them, I wouldn’t recommend it.
The Ralph Lauren Polo canvas shoes are true to size and if you wear no-show thin socks, then get your true size, if you wear thick socks or regular socks, then always get a half size extra.
But in my experience with canvas shoes, I have never had any problems with Ralph Lauren Polo canvas sneakers. They are comfortable, attractive and you can often find them on sale at the Ralph Lauren website for $24.99 (they retail for $69.99).
