Tommy Hilfiger

Born on March 24, 1951, Elmira New York, Thomas Jacob Hilfiger created his first storm in the fashion industry as a dealer of hippy chic to New York campus youngsters in 1969.

Tommy Hilfiger developed on the success of his initial store, People's Place, and set up a chain of another 10 specialty shops in upstate New York by the age of 26. Throughout the 1970’s, he evolved in creation and design, while he labored for Jordache for a couple of years prior to introducing his private brand in 1985. A smart businessman with highly creative skills in the field of marketing, Hilfiger's earliest ad campaign, that reached the expense of $3-million, caused a stir of fascination, once revealing him as one of the "Four Great American Designers for Men", together with Perry Ellis, Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren. Total revenues of Tommy Hilfiger apparel had reached $25-million by 1990.

Up to the beginning of the 90’s, Hilfiger's industry profile was comparable to that of Calvin Klein: mainly middle-class, middle-aged, middle-American white men. Nevertheless, once his styles were bought by young Afro-Americans, gangsta rapper Snoop Dog showed up having a Tommy Hilfiger shirt on the leading US TV show Saturday Night Live in 1994 and Hilfiger’s product sales went sky high immediately. Hilfiger wisely capitalized on the ramifications of this opportunity and he swiftly started to develop baggier, more everyday clothing satisfying the new desire for the developing street wear fashions. The Council of Fashion Designers of America honored Hilfiger as Menswear Designer of the Year in 1995.

These days the Hilfiger fashion empire continues expanding, accompanied by fragrances and other marketing by-products, and is valued at more than $400-million a year. In the meantime Hilfiger is noted to devote a great deal of his free private moments such as his 50th birthday in March 2001 - and income on the Caribbean island of Mustique.

Hilfiger publicized in July 2000 that he had "mutually and amicably" split up with his wife Susie after 20 years of marriage. The couple has four children from their marriage.

Tommy presents a considerable collection of fragrances. The homonymous Tommy Hilfiger cologne was released in 1995 and has warm scents of cinnamon and cranberry. A year later in 1996 the famous Tommy Girl perfume was introduced, with floral notes, sandalwood, and heather, and comes in the trademark red, white, and blue box. Additional colognes feature Athletics, Freedom, T by Tommy, Tommy 10, Tommy Jeans and True Star. Even more aromas for women are Freedom, T Girl, Tommy 10, Tommy Girl Jeans, True Star, and True Star Gold, for which Beyonce Knowles is representative. The seasonal summer collection for men and women Tommy Summer and Tommy Girl Summer is highly popular and since its debut in 2002 has new summer releases every year.