Banana Republic: The History You Never Knew

One of my favorite parts about designing for a show is the historical research that goes into creating a look and a character. It makes the experience richer to have that background knowledge. And if you're at this site, you might enjoy that too so here is some interesting background on Banana Republic.

From the Beginning:

What is a banana republic? Banana Republic - noun Usually Disparaging.

any of the small countries in the tropics, especially in the Western Hemisphere, whose economies are largely dependent on fruit exports, tourism, and foreign investors. Origin: 1930–35

 

The store was founded in 1978 by a couple who spent much of their rather plush lives traveling the world and were at a loss for great, functional clothes in which to do so. Sensing this niche market, they opened a store in Mill Valley California. This store legit started as a safari clothes store! In fact, they used to publish the mail order catalog to end all mail order catalogs. Stories of their travels, poetic descriptions of far off places and the clothing to help you get there. There is a fabulous book, Banana Republic's Guide to Travel and Safari Clothing, that I highly recommend. It's full of the history of specific safari clothes along with tales from the field and musings on what it means to travel and learn and embrace.

As we all know, the store has morphed a tiny bit from its safari roots. It was bought by GAP in 1983. Popularity of the brand, now a high end line of rather run-of-the-mill sophisticated professional clothes, spiked in the 1990s. But seriously, pick up the book. It's 155 pages of drawings, stories, pictures and fun that is truly a fascinating read.