This is the patch that customers could request be added to the sleeve of their Spanish Paratrooper Shirt Dress or Short-Armed Safari Shirt we mentioned in the 1978-79 catalogs. This Coat of Bananas logo was also affixed to a bag called the Diplomatic Pouch or a Safari Cap. I’ve never seen one come up for […]
Over the years we’ve seen a few knock-off items labeled as Banana Republic but clearly NOT Banana Republic. But little has been known about the origins of these items. Here at last, we have a little evidence to go on for at least one source of piracy. This safari-style cotton twill dress was sold on […]
This previously unknown shirt came up on eBay in March 2022. The price tag dates it to late 1988-89, after the Ziegler era and before the first rebrand. The crest on the breast is not seen anywhere else; it’s very distinctive with the globe, banners and starburst. H/t Wendy Joffe for bringing it to my […]
A rare look at a verified knock-off item, these pants are labeled “Banana Republica” (California, Acapulco) with an otherwise accurate label design. BR had a lot of trouble with knock-offs, bringing lawsuits against counterfeiters and shutting down copycat stores. The catalogues even warned against knock-offs from Mexico: Thanks to Wendy Joffe for bringing these to […]
From the very beginning, Banana Republic was a stroke of branding genius. The Stars and Bananas crest, as designed by Patricia Gwilliam Ziegler, was the symbol that sold the concept perfectly. Bananas arrayed like laurel leaves, a martial star at the center, and slightly funky hand lettering all contributed to the tongue-in-cheek nature of the […]
Featured only in the Spring 1985 Amazon issue.
The bag was seen in the Summer 1983 catalogue, with a very unusual source: “British Linen Market Bag-Crafted By Authentic Felons: Made by genuine thieves, thugs, perverts, swindlers, pickpockets. Her Majesty recently put some of the knaves in her prisons to work sewing this classic market bag for little old ladies throughout Great Britain. With […]
I found this shirt with the Employee Name Badge logo in embroidery on eBay a few years ago and didn’t know what to make of it. My assumption was it’s an employee shirt meant to replace the Guide shirts and vests. Judging by the shirt label this would be late in the safari era. Circa […]
Confirmed: This is an employee name badge! I was given this employee badge by Mike Madrid in BR’s design office. It’s a laminated badge with a clip on the back of it, he didn’t recall it’s origin. I found this article in the employee newsletter (below) about a January 1986 Manager’s Conference meeting (In the […]
I found this shirt was found on eBay in February 2021, and the jacket was found several years earlier by Wendy Joffe, also on eBay. They have been identified as fakes by Patricia Ziegler and another BR executive, John Mavrakis. The same result as the Banana Pocket shirt I found. For what it’s worth, however, […]
I’ve had this shirt in my collection for awhile and just didn’t know what to make of it. Patricia Ziegler has identified it to be a knock-off not made by Banana Republic. It’s a very mysterious item and I don’t quite understand what the point of making it was. It’s not like a Gucci handbag […]
Featured only in the Summer 1985 catalogues and the updates these Wanderlust shirts are very rare now, the below example the only one I’ve seen. There were three designs celebrating great adventures: The Odyssey which has a Robert Louis Stevenson quote on the back: “To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive.” , […]
I picked this sweater up on eBay in November 2020 and couldn’t have been more excited. I rashly jumped to a few major conclusions in my first take on it, wishfully thinking it was a very early item, pre-Gap, dating between 1981-1983. I’ve always wanted to find something from that era, and I thought I […]
This is actually listed as a Banana Republic T-Shirt, one of several designs to bear that name. Offered only in Summer 1988, this shirt is found quite a bit now; further evidence how much BR had spread by 1988. From the catalogue: “No republic can take itself seriously without a coat of arms. Much less […]
You could easily buy your way into the sketchy bureaucracy of Banana Republic with a $9 t-shirt or two for $17 as Minister of Finance, Minister of Propoganda, or as a Cultural Attache or Honorary Counsel. The Diplomatic T-Shirts were first introduced in Spring 1985 with a design of the Stars and Bananas surrounded by […]
This concept for a Minister of Finance Checkbook cover was actually around from the very start! One of the surprises I came across in Catalogue #1 was a Minister of Finance Checkbook Cover; We don’t know what the original looked like exactly, though the drawing does tell us the insignia of the Minister of Finance […]
This is listed in the catalogue as the Banana Republic T-Shirt, but since that name is used on several items over the years I am calling this one the Coat of Bananas Shirt. Sold from Spring 1987-Spring 1988, this was a popular item judging by the number of them that show up on eBay and […]
These shirts were only offered in the Fall 1988 Catalogue. However, they are one of the most common BR T-Shirts to show up now. This may be due to the wide distribution of the catalogues by 1988 and/or the large number of stores in operation by then. From the catalogue: “Every culture creates a unique […]
These Banana Republic Beaded Belts come in a wide variety of colors and are the most commonly seen early pre-GAP item on eBay. They were sold into 1984 (top image is from an order form centerfold) but were first seen in 1982. Advertised as “an American Indian condiment for your khakis”, they remind me of […]
Possibly the most famous and recognizable items from the Banana Republic Travel & Safari company, the Old English Wildlife Engraving shirts looked great and were a popular inexpensive item to grab if you wanted to capture the BR magic without breaking your wallet. Due to their ubiquity, they show up on the current eBay market […]
I hadn’t noticed this shirt before because it is hidden within a folded order form at the center of the Fall and Winter 1984 catalogues. When I first scanned them my copies didn’t have the order forms in them, they’d been torn out. Subsequently I’ve found complete catalogues and finally saw this shirt. Hence, “The […]
We are doing a bit of archaeology with this blog, trying to help figure out where certain things fit in the BR timeline, which is especially helpful when collecting BR. A great clue to the puzzle is the label or tag in the clothing itself. Here is the breakdown of BR labels as I understand […]
This was shared by a member of the Abandoned Republic Facebook group. I’ve never seen one before. It wasn’t shown in any catalogs and she purchased it in a store. I love these surprises from Banana Republic! This is a color version of the stacked logo usually seen on the clothing descriptor tags.
Always one of the most affordable and popular items in the catalog, it was easy to throw one in with any order. The style (as evidenced by eBay listings) is classic “Henley” but they called it “The Banana Republic shirt” at the time. It was simply their Yukon Shirt in off-white with a logo on […]
Newly Updated! 1985-1988 Available.
