Lacoste Graphic Tees Resale Value

Lacoste graphic tees: price by condition

Seller-declared grades, sterling with an approximate US dollar equivalent at £1 ≈ $1.33 (July 2026). What each grade means.

What holds its value across Lacoste

• The L1212 pique polo, which has been in production essentially unchanged for decades and is the item buyers search for
• Vintage pieces made in France under the Devanlay licence, printed on the care label, which carry a clear premium over later production
• Older garments labelled Chemise Lacoste, which is the original naming and dates a piece to the earlier era
• Collaboration pieces and the Lacoste Live sub-line, which were made in much smaller runs than the mainline

What pulls Lacoste resale value down

• A frayed, lifted or partly detached crocodile, which is the identifying feature and the first thing anyone looks at
• Stretched or greyed collars on the polos, the normal failure and the reason most used ones sell cheaply
• Faded colours on the brighter polos, which is common and very visible
• Current mainline basics in common sizes, which compete directly with a new one on sale

Identifying and dating yours

1. Lacoste sizes are numbered 2 to 8 rather than lettered, so state the UK equivalent and the flat chest measurement — this is the commonest cause of a return on the label
2. The crocodile should be tightly and evenly embroidered with defined teeth and eye; buyers compare it against reference photographs
3. The care label gives the country of manufacture, and Made in France places a garment in the earlier, more valuable period

What lifts any graphic tee, whatever the label

The graphic is the product here, so print condition and whether the shirt is genuinely old decide the price.

• Sought-after graphics with a following
• Single-stitch construction indicating real age
• Prints with no cracking on modern shirts
• Soft, evenly faded cotton on vintage pieces

And what pulls one down

• Modern shirts distressed to look vintage
• Cracked and flaking prints
• Underarm yellowing
• Plain or promotional tees

Working out what yours is worth

1. Turn the sleeve hem out and check the stitch count
2. Photograph the graphic straight on in daylight
3. Check the neck tag for era markers

What to state in the listing

• Print subject, and any copyright year on the graphic
• Tag brand and whether the hems are single or double stitched
• Pit-to-pit and length laid flat
• Print condition and every hole or mark

Subject, era and size: “90s Cartoon Graphic Tee, Single Stitch, Size L”. Name what the graphic actually depicts, because that is the search. Never claim vintage without photographing the tag to support it.

Preparing and photographing it

1. Photograph the neck tag, which is how buyers date and value the shirt.
2. Check the print for cracking and the shirt for holes, especially at the collar and underarms.
3. Measure it flat rather than trusting the printed size.

1. The front print, flat, filling the frame
2. The neck tag, legible
3. The print surface close up, showing any cracking
4. Any hole, stain or thin patch

When it sells best, and handing it over

Steady all year. Desirable graphics sell within days; generic prints sit and are better bundled.

The cheapest garment there is to post, so international buyers are viable and common for collectable prints.

What buyers ask

What size is a Lacoste 5?

Lacoste uses its own 2 to 8 numbering rather than S to XL, and a 5 is roughly a UK medium to large depending on the cut. Always give the flat chest measurement as well, because this numbering causes more returns than anything else on the label.

Are old Lacoste polos worth more?

Pieces made in France under the Devanlay licence, and older ones labelled Chemise Lacoste, carry a real premium. The care label is what tells you which you have.

How much is a Lacoste graphic tee worth?

Roughly £7 to £33 depending on condition, against £6 to £30 for graphic tees generally. The identification points above are what move a listing to the top of that range.

What the fees would take elsewhere

At the mid-range £20 for a Lacoste graphic tee, against what the commission marketplaces would deduct:

Seller-side rates verified 26 Jul 2026, percentages only — the per-order and processing charges those platforms add are excluded, so the real gap is wider.

Listing is free and there is no commission — read how to sell a graphic tee for the title, handover and timing, or the general graphic tee value guide if yours is not a Lacoste.

See also: all Lacoste value guides · value guides by brand · buying a graphic tee · Clothing · condition grades.