Title: Hilfiger Helps New Designers Make 'The Cut'
Fanatic - June 8, 2005 09:17 PM (GMT)
Hilfiger Helps New Designers Make 'The Cut'
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Born the second of nine children in Elmira, N.Y., Tommy Hilfiger - who bypassed college to work - put up a billboard in Times Square declaring himself to be one of the greatest U.S. designers, alongside Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and Perry Ellis.
Considering his company was in its infancy at the time, it was a brash move, but few would argue with Hilfiger's assertion today. He launched his first signature menswear collection in 1984, and Hilfiger's updated take on such classics as button-down shirts and chinos earned his company $11 million in two years.
Now, the Tommy Hilfiger brand has expanded beyond menswear to clothing for all types of people, footwear, fragrances, and a bedding and bath collection. Looking to expand into luxury brands, Hilfiger recently bought European designer Karl Lagerfeld's Lagerfeld Gallery brand.
On Thursday, June 9, on CBS, Hilfiger expands into television as host of "The Cut," a new reality series that seeks to uncover the next great U.S. designer. Executive-produced by Craig Piligian ("Survivor," "American Chopper") and Peter Connolly, president of worldwide marketing for Hilfiger, the series takes 16 contestants ranging in age from 21 to 42, with diverse backgrounds, and puts them through a fast-forward version of Hilfiger's life. The ultimate winner will have the opportunity to design his or her own collection under the Tommy Hilfiger label.
"I've been designing clothes for over 25 years," Hilfiger says, "and I've done it all in terms of fashion design. So I thought a new challenge would be interesting and exciting, and actually finding a new American designer is something I've been attempting to do for many years."
"We create an incredibly difficult television show for the contestants," Piligian says. "Ours was probably the most difficult reality show to do. These people were put through a horrible test of their skills, their knowledge, their mental ability, their physical ability.
"It was a very difficult show, and no one knew that going in. All they did was work. They didn't rest. They barely had time to eat. They barely had time to go to the bathroom."
Housed together in a Manhattan loft, the contestants are:
- Amy, 26, a single fashion student from Chicago.
- Chris C., 26, a single student and self-described "Hilfiger fanatic" from San Francisco.
- Chris S., 25, a single restaurateur from Nashville, Tenn.
- Deanna, 23, a single retail manager and stylist for a trendy Melrose Avenue boutique, from West Hollywood, Calif.
- Felix, 35, a single professional skateboarder and freelance designer from Los Angeles.
- James, 27, a San Diego beach boy who works for a sportswear company.
- Jeff, 42, a married salesman and father of two from Chicago.
- Jessica, 22, Miss Minnesota USA 2004, from St. Paul, Minn.
- Julie, 37, a St. Louis mother of two described as a "desperate housewife."
- Liz, 30, a single Beverly Hills publisher and editor who lives in West Hollywood.
- Princess, 22, a freelance designer from Philadelphia.
- Rob, 35, a graphic designer and Brooklyn street artist with five stepchildren.
- Shauna, 39, a New Orleans socialite with a husband and two children.
- Tommy, 42, a Chicago teacher and experienced couture designer.
- Vlada, 24, a single sales associate originally from Russia, living in Chesterfield, Mo.
- Wes, 25, a single creative director from New Orleans.
Hilfiger isn't only looking for someone who can design a pretty dress. "As a global lifestyle designer," he says, "I have had to design much more than clothes. It's about building a lifestyle brand. It's about designing everything - watches, pillows, bedding, everything."
He also wants more than just a design sense. "I'm looking for someone with a balance between creativity and business acumen. To get both is unusual, but it can be done.
"It's also about social skills. We have to work with the people who sweep the floors and sew the garments and design zippers for us from all over the world, from all different backgrounds. This industry has a lot of quirky personalities, just here in New York alone.
Talent, says Hilfiger, also takes a back seat to the ability to execute. "You can come up with the greatest idea in the world," he says, "but if you can't execute it, what good is that idea?"
Also, if contestants come in thinking the way to get ahead is to lie, cheat and steal, they probably need to rethink that. Hiding a knife in your sewing kit doesn't win you points with Hilfiger.
"Selfish people always end up at the end of the line somehow," the designer says. "Greed is also something that harms people. Dishonesty is something that harms people. Once you lie, you have to lie to cover up the lie. At the same time, if one could actually feel good with himself with the goal of being dishonest, I wouldn't want him working for me.
"There are tyrants and businesspeople who have received a certain level of success with being dishonest and have found ways to cheat competitors, customers, governments. But those people always get caught. Clear conscience is the key to a healthy lifestyle."
Link.
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Born the second of nine children in Elmira, N.Y., Tommy Hilfiger - who bypassed college to work - put up a billboard in Times Square declaring himself to be one of the greatest U.S. designers, alongside Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and Perry Ellis.
Considering his company was in its infancy at the time, it was a brash move, but few would argue with Hilfiger's assertion today. He launched his first signature menswear collection in 1984, and Hilfiger's updated take on such classics as button-down shirts and chinos earned his company $11 million in two years.
Now, the Tommy Hilfiger brand has expanded beyond menswear to clothing for all types of people, footwear, fragrances, and a bedding and bath collection. Looking to expand into luxury brands, Hilfiger recently bought European designer Karl Lagerfeld's Lagerfeld Gallery brand.
On Thursday, June 9, on CBS, Hilfiger expands into television as host of "The Cut," a new reality series that seeks to uncover the next great U.S. designer. Executive-produced by Craig Piligian ("Survivor," "American Chopper") and Peter Connolly, president of worldwide marketing for Hilfiger, the series takes 16 contestants ranging in age from 21 to 42, with diverse backgrounds, and puts them through a fast-forward version of Hilfiger's life. The ultimate winner will have the opportunity to design his or her own collection under the Tommy Hilfiger label.
"I've been designing clothes for over 25 years," Hilfiger says, "and I've done it all in terms of fashion design. So I thought a new challenge would be interesting and exciting, and actually finding a new American designer is something I've been attempting to do for many years."
"We create an incredibly difficult television show for the contestants," Piligian says. "Ours was probably the most difficult reality show to do. These people were put through a horrible test of their skills, their knowledge, their mental ability, their physical ability.
"It was a very difficult show, and no one knew that going in. All they did was work. They didn't rest. They barely had time to eat. They barely had time to go to the bathroom."
Housed together in a Manhattan loft, the contestants are:
- Amy, 26, a single fashion student from Chicago.
- Chris C., 26, a single student and self-described "Hilfiger fanatic" from San Francisco.
- Chris S., 25, a single restaurateur from Nashville, Tenn.
- Deanna, 23, a single retail manager and stylist for a trendy Melrose Avenue boutique, from West Hollywood, Calif.
- Felix, 35, a single professional skateboarder and freelance designer from Los Angeles.
- James, 27, a San Diego beach boy who works for a sportswear company.
- Jeff, 42, a married salesman and father of two from Chicago.
- Jessica, 22, Miss Minnesota USA 2004, from St. Paul, Minn.
- Julie, 37, a St. Louis mother of two described as a "desperate housewife."
- Liz, 30, a single Beverly Hills publisher and editor who lives in West Hollywood.
- Princess, 22, a freelance designer from Philadelphia.
- Rob, 35, a graphic designer and Brooklyn street artist with five stepchildren.
- Shauna, 39, a New Orleans socialite with a husband and two children.
- Tommy, 42, a Chicago teacher and experienced couture designer.
- Vlada, 24, a single sales associate originally from Russia, living in Chesterfield, Mo.
- Wes, 25, a single creative director from New Orleans.
Hilfiger isn't only looking for someone who can design a pretty dress. "As a global lifestyle designer," he says, "I have had to design much more than clothes. It's about building a lifestyle brand. It's about designing everything - watches, pillows, bedding, everything."
He also wants more than just a design sense. "I'm looking for someone with a balance between creativity and business acumen. To get both is unusual, but it can be done.
"It's also about social skills. We have to work with the people who sweep the floors and sew the garments and design zippers for us from all over the world, from all different backgrounds. This industry has a lot of quirky personalities, just here in New York alone.
Talent, says Hilfiger, also takes a back seat to the ability to execute. "You can come up with the greatest idea in the world," he says, "but if you can't execute it, what good is that idea?"
Also, if contestants come in thinking the way to get ahead is to lie, cheat and steal, they probably need to rethink that. Hiding a knife in your sewing kit doesn't win you points with Hilfiger.
"Selfish people always end up at the end of the line somehow," the designer says. "Greed is also something that harms people. Dishonesty is something that harms people. Once you lie, you have to lie to cover up the lie. At the same time, if one could actually feel good with himself with the goal of being dishonest, I wouldn't want him working for me.
"There are tyrants and businesspeople who have received a certain level of success with being dishonest and have found ways to cheat competitors, customers, governments. But those people always get caught. Clear conscience is the key to a healthy lifestyle."
Link.