James Jeter Breaks Barriers as Ralph Lauren's First Black Creative Director

Amid New York Fashion Week, according to Essence, Morehouse alum James Jeter was appointed as the first Black Creative Director in the 57-year history of Ralph Lauren. His journey with the brand began when he started as a part-time salesperson at age 16, eventually leading to an internship.

The year 2020 was marked by social unrest, with the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, and the ensuing BLM protests. During this period, Jeter, then the Director of Concept Designs and Special Projects at Ralph Lauren, participated in a company discussion on racial reconciliation. He used this opportunity to share his experiences from Morehouse and advocate for diversity, which later influenced Ralph Lauren’s major 2022 campaign.

Jeter and his colleague Dara Douglas developed the Morehouse and Spelman Collection, which aimed to reflect the influence of higher education on clothing for Black people. This collection marked Ralph Lauren’s first campaign curated by an all-Black creative team and cast. It challenged the brand’s traditionally Ivy League and predominantly white American aspirational image, according to Jeter.

“All the while these images were kind of alive and well at these amazing HBCUs that are Morehouse and Spelman College,” Jeter said. 

The collection drew motivation from the 1930s and 1950s, which featured varsity jackets, white dresses, and collegiate sweaters. The goal was to create unity among HBCU alumni and students.

“A lot of this project was really about changing ownership around how we think about clothing,” Jeter said. “So, who owns three-piece suits? Who owns cable cardigans? Who owns the circle skirt, for instance? And while it’s typically and historically been relegated to Ivy League schools, if you see a lot of these archival images from [Morehouse and] Spelman, that has helped to inform a lot of the way that we approached not only the design but the way that we approached the campaigns as well.”

After the success of the campaign and the enthusiastic reception during New York Fashion Week, Ralph Lauren experienced a resurgence of young Black consumers. 

That’s essentially why Jeter was appointed.