Tommy Hilfiger — The Maker

Tommy Hilfiger grew up in a small town in New York, and climbed his way to success. Without taking any formal fashion or business classes, a mix of youth and passion led him to open his first store with his friends selling jeans. In 1985, Hilfiger and Mohan Murjani, owner of Gloria Vanderbilt jeans launched Tommy Hilfiger. The brand of red, white, and blue remains iconic and withstands the changing of time. From the early Britney Spears to Gigi Hadid, the latest influencers will continue to wear Hilfiger’s classic designs.

Q&A with Tommy Hilfiger

Q:How would you describe your lifestyle and how does it influence your work?

A:I grew up on the American East Coast, and that classic all-American lifestyle has remained one of my core sources of inspiration in my work. Since I founded my namesake brand 30 years ago, our core DNA has always been rooted in “classic American cool” style that celebrates East Coast prep with a West Coast twist that’s laidback and confident.

Q:What would you say is your favorite part of your job?

A:I love to see consumers wearing our products – it’s amazing to see how the brand embraced around the world.

Q:How do your travels inspire your work?

A:My wife, Dee, and I love to travel – from the Mediterranean to India and Brazil, we’re constantly exploring new places. Experiencing the cultures, local design and architecture, cuisine and landscapes always leaves an impression, and that often influences my designs. It’s part of what brings a unique twist to the classic, American style at the heart of my brand.

Q:Where is your favorite place in the world?

A:I love the energy of big cities like New York, Paris and London, but I also enjoy getting away from it all to relax. We have a home on Mustique, a small island in the West Indies, which is our favorite place to get the whole family together.

Q:Have you ever been to China? What are your general impressions?

A:I’ve been to China many times throughout the course of my career and am always inspired by my visits. I find China’s design, art and culture scene to be fascinating and stimulating. I love the diverse and eclectic style; you can see locals wearing anything from Italian-made suiting to classic East Coast American collegiate fashion to more traditional garments.

I was in Beijing on my most recent trip to China as part of our brand’s global 30th anniversary celebrations. We opened our largest store in China in the prestigious In88 shopping center and hosted an exclusive presentation of our Fall 2015 runway show. It was the first time we recreated the entire show experience outside of New York Fashion Week, and it was an amazing event.

Q:We all know that you started to work in retail at the age of 18. Would you like to share the story of how you started your career?

A:I grew up in Elmira, a small town in upstate New York. When I was a teenager, I fell in love with rock-and-roll and wanted to be a rock star, except I couldn’t play an instrument. I decided to try and look the part instead, but the styles I wanted weren’t available in Elmira, so it became my new dream to develop very cool, rock-and-roll-inspired clothing. When I was 18, I opened my first store, People’s Place, where we sold bellbottoms and fashion that hadn’t been seen in our small town before. It set the foundation for my career and confirmed that designing was my true passion. Soon after that, I moved to New York City and in 1985, I founded the Tommy Hilfiger brand.

Q:If you could give any advice to the Chinese young entrepreneur, what would it be?

A:The past 30 years have taught me the value of hard work, dedication and passion. Follow your dreams and stay true to yourself.

Q:What are your plans for the future, both personally and professionally?

A:You never know what the future will hold – but I always say the best is yet to come!

Tommy Hilfiger在纽约一个小镇长大，也在这里走上了他的成功之路。他没有上过任何正式的时装或商务课程，凭借着一腔青春和激情的热血，促使他和朋友一起开设了他的第一家牛仔裤专卖店。1985年，Hilfiger和Gloria Vanderbilt jeans的老板Mohan Murjani正式推出Tommy Hilfiger。品牌的红白蓝经起了时间的变化成为了品牌的标志。从早期的Britney Spears到Gigi Hadid，最新有影响的人将继续穿著Hilfiger的经典设计。

采访Tommy Hilfiger

Q:你会怎样评价你的生活方式，它又是如何影响你的工作？

A:我从小在美国东海岸长大，那全美国的经典生活方式一直是我工作中保持灵感的核心来源之一。30年前从我创立了我的同名品牌，我们的核心DNA始终植根于“美式经典而又酷味十足”风格，为庆祝东海岸准备好扭转成西海岸的休闲自信的风格。

Q:你最喜欢你工作中的哪一部分？

A:我喜欢看到消费者穿着我们的产品 - 看着这个品牌如何被世界所接受是一件很不可思议的事情。

Q:你觉得旅行对你的工作有什么启示？

A:我的妻子Dee和我都很爱旅行 - 从地中海到印度和巴西，我们仍在不断探索新的地方。体验当地的文化、设计、建筑、美食和风景，总是留下深刻的印象，这些时常影响着我的设计。这是给我心目中品牌的经典美式风格带来了独特的发展的一部分因素。

Q:世界上你最喜欢的地方是哪里？

A:我喜欢大城市的能量，比如纽约，巴黎和伦敦，但我也很享受远离这一切去放松。我们有一个家在马斯蒂克岛，西印度群岛的一个小岛，这是我们最喜欢的让全家人在一起的地方。

Q:你去过中国吗？你对它的总体印象是什么？

A:在我的职业生涯中，我去过中国很多次，而且我总是在这里得到灵感。我觉得中国的设计、艺术和文化的景象是迷人和刺激的。我爱多样化和不拘一格的风格；从意大利制造的西服套装，到美国东海岸的经典学院风，到非常传统的服装，都可以在当地人的身上看到。

我最近的中国之行是在北京举办我们品牌的全球30周年庆祝活动。我们最大的专卖店开在中国有名的In88购物中心以及独家呈现了我们的2015年秋季时装秀。这是我们第一次在纽约时装周之外重新创办一场完整的秀，而且整个活动办得非常棒。

Q:我们都知道你在18岁就开始从事零售工作，你可以和我我们分享一下你是如何开始你的职业生涯的吗？

A:我在纽约州北部的小镇埃尔迈拉长大。当我还是个青少年的时候，我爱上了摇滚想要成为一个摇滚歌星，但我不会演奏乐器。所以我决定在装扮的部分做尝试，但我想要的风格是埃尔迈拉所不具备的，所以开发酷味十足充满摇滚风格的服装成了我新的梦想。当我18岁的时候，我在人民广场开了我的第一家店，在那里卖我们小镇上从未见过的喇叭裤和时装。它奠定了我职业生涯的基础，并让我意识到设计是我真正的激情。不久之后，我搬到纽约市，并在1985年，我创立了品牌Tommy Hilfiger。

Q:如果你可以给中国年轻的企业家一些建议，那会是什么？

A:过去的30年让我明白了辛勤工作、无私奉献和激情的价值。追寻你的梦想，坚持做自己。

Q:你对个人和专业的未来有什么计划？

A:你永远不知道未来会得到什么 - 但我总是说最好的还在后头！