Tommy Hilfiger in a Timeline
(A Guest Post from MESSINA HEMBRY)
Vintage lovers everywhere, gather round I have an exciting website to share with you! As a fellow bargain hunter, authentic thread lover and the biggest fan of the Tommy Hilfiger brand – what I stumbled upon the other day is pure gold! Messina Hembry is an online outlet (also available on ASOS Marketplace) selling second hand designer clothing – including vintage Tommy Hilfiger! It’s less than half the price of purchasing new season Tommy and being vintage, it’s authentically classic and unique!
Because I have had a lifelong romance with the Hilfiger brand (who doesn’t love that iconic blue and red logo?) I wanted to share with you a timeline of events in the becoming of one of America’s coolest luxury labels. It’s time for Fash-Ed:
1951 – Tommy Hilfiger was born on March 24th in Elmira, New York – the second of nine other siblings in a working class family.
1969- When Hilfiger was 18 he opened People’s Place; a small chain of stores he aimed to sell ‘cool big city styles’ in. This kickstarted Hilfiger’s career in fashion and soon began designing for boutiques in NYC.
1976 – Hilfiger and Susie Carona married and moved to Manhattan soon after People’s Place sadly ended up in bankruptcy.
1979 – Hilfiger moved to the city and began his journey as a successful fashion designer where he met Indian businessman Mohan Murjani. The pair began working together on launching a line of unique sportswear for men.
1985 – Hilfiger’s first signature collection debuted showcasing his ability to modernise classical men’s clothing such as the button down shirt and chinos. His casual yet luxurious designs created a legendary hallmark that would become the brand we know and love today. In 1985, George Lois was hired to produce the famous ‘hangman ad’ which appeared on a billboard in Times Square – a memorable moment in the Hilfiger history.
1995 – The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) named him Menswear Designer of the year.
1998 – Hilfiger was awarded Designer of the Year by Parsons School of Design (NYC) as well as being honoured by GQ magazine for their annual issue entitled “Men of the Year”.
2002 – GQ magazine selected Hilfiger as International Designer of the Year and in November he was also gifted with the Future of America Award from D.A.R.E. to highlight his philanthropic efforts in raising drug abuse awareness for the youth of America.
Hilfiger and Carona split after 20 years of marriage and four children.
2008 – Hilfiger married his second wife; Dee Ocleppo with whom he had a fifth child named Sebastian.
2010 – In 2010 the brand was acquired by PVH Corp., a massive global apparel company who have helped to expand the Tommy Hilfiger empire. However, Tommy himself is still principal designer for his self titled label.
2016 – Tommy Hilfiger today, has a distribution network spanning 90 countries worldwide with just over 1,400 retail stores in Europe, America and Asia.
