Tommy Hilfiger: Failed in school; he had dyslexia; he was the child of a poor family; but managed to become a brand

American entrepreneur Tommy Hilfiger is a name that dropped out of school at a young age and went into business. Tommy Hilfiger, who opened a store for adolescent clothing and accessories called People's Place in his early 20s, soon went bankrupt. Despite losing all his savings, this job earned him important connections.

Hilfiger was born in 1951 in Elmira, New York. He is the second of nine children born to a jeweler father and a nurse mother. He has Swiss German and Irish roots. He was raised Catholic. Tommy, whose mother is a nurse and father is a watchmaker, was not very successful in school life. He had dyslexia and was a frail child. That's why Tommy, whose school life ended early, was enthusiastic about entrepreneurship.

With the support of these connections, he re-established a business in 1985 at the age of 25 and named this company Tommy Hilfiger after his own name. With only $150 in his pocket when he started the company, Tommy Hill owns a big brand that was worth more than $6 billion in 2019 because he firmly believes in innovation and has a great taste in fashion.

How Was Tommy Hilfiger Founded?

American fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger was born on March 24, 1951, in New York. He was one of 9 children born to a middle-class family of Irish descent. Tommy, whose mother is a nurse and father is a watchmaker, was not very successful in school life. He had dyslexia and was a frail child.

That's why Tommy, whose school life ended early, was enthusiastic about entrepreneurship. When he was just 10 years old, he was fixing and reselling the jeans he bought from old shops. At the age of 18, he opened a small store called People's Place, where records, t-shirts and posters were sold. Tommy, who earned a lot of money for a short time, went bankrupt in 1977 due to the economic depression and had to close the shop.

In 1976, Tommy fell in love with Susie Carona, one of the employees at his store, and moved to Manhattan after bankruptcy with his new wife. The couple, who was hired as a designer by a clothing brand called Jordache, was fired after working for this company for 1 year. During this period, Tommy Hilfiger, who became famous for his hard work and vision, received job offers from brands such as Perry Ellis and Calvin Klein, but he wanted to establish his own brand.

In 1984, Indian entrepreneur Mohan Murjani was looking for a designer for his men's sportswear brand, and he finally found Tommy. The Indian entrepreneur allowed Tommy to name the brand after himself. So in a sense, Tommy cleverly used the blank check that was given to him, and Tommy Hilfiger ads began to appear on all billboards in New York. In a statement he gave in 1986, "I will be America's greatest designer. I will surpass Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein.”

Even though these assertive statements of Tommy Hilfiger caused turmoil in the fashion world, Tommy's bold statements were extremely beneficial to him. Stylish clothes bearing the red, white and blue logo of the Tommy Hilfiger brand soon began to be in incredible demand.

In the early 1990s, the US hip-hop community was different from wearing Tommy brand oversized t-shirts, and even Snoop Dog, one of the most popular names in the hip-hop world, appeared on Saturday Night Live in 1994 with a Tommy t-shirt. March 1994 was a month when the brand broke sales records. Even Michael Jackson has appeared in Tommy Hilfiger commercials.

Although Tommy Hilfiger was commercially successful, he was scorned by the fashion elite. Although Tommy Hilfiger was the top nominee for the US Fashion Designers award in 1994, the award council decided not to award the award that year.

The decline in the popularity of the brand at the beginning of the 2000s was also reflected in the sales and the magic of the brand was broken. There was a self-criticism within the company as neither the business world nor the hip-hop world stopped wearing Tommy brand clothes. Tommy Hilfiger learned from the mistakes made and the necessary steps were taken.

In 2009, the Tommy Hilfiger brand was sold to the famous clothing company Philips-Van Heusen, which includes different brands, for 3 billion dollars. Today, Tommy Hilfiger is still at the head of his handmade brand and still continues to lead the design team.

Now, let's take a look at Forbes magazine's interview with Tommy Hilfiger and learn a little more about Tommy Hilfiger's perspective on life and business.

Q: The fashion world is an extremely competitive environment. What kind of difficulties did you encounter while entering this sector and how did you establish your brand?

A: I grew up in the Elmira area of ​​New York. My teenage years were spent in the rock-and-roll environment. I wanted to be a part of this culture. However, in Elmira, the neighborhood where I grew up, there was nothing that reflected this culture. Therefore, it has been my biggest dream to design clothes in the style of rock-and-roll. When I was 18, I opened my first store called People's Place. I was selling pretty cool clothes. That's when I realized that fashion is my true passion.

I moved to New York in 1985 and founded the Tommy Hilfiger brand. At first I was very inexperienced and had to learn everything on my own. This experience introduced me to important people and these people contributed greatly to the establishment of my brand. When I look back at it 30 years later, it's amazing to see where I've come from. There will always be challenges, but I think the most important thing is to enjoy the adventure and not lose your passion.

Q: What kind of legacy do you want to leave to the next generation?

A: I can say that the best is yet to come. I look back at the periods that defined my career and personal life and I still think about tomorrow. Even today I dream about how I can do better tomorrow.

Q: If we could ask 3 pieces of advice you can give people, what would they be?

A: Never give up on your dreams and vision.

Be honest with yourself.

And keep dealing with the things that matter to you.

"My wife is half Turkish, Tommy Hilfiger brand has Turkish taste and taste"

Hilfiger has been contract manufacturing in Turkey for a long time. His second wife is also of Turkish origin. The real name of his wife, whom he calls Dee, is Deniz Carolina Erbug. His wife's father is Turkish and his mother is English.

My logo comes from sail

Q: The similarity of Tommy Hilfiger's logo to the American flag has been discussed since day one. Have you ever regretted creating a logo with the colors of the flag?

A: Never. Because I did not design my logo based on the flag. This logo came out of my passion for sailing. The combination of the flags symbolizing the letters T (Thomas), J (Jacob) and H (Hilfiger) in the flag sail alphabet created Tommy Hilfiger's logo.

Q: Do you have a dating story?

Tommy: St. We met in Trope. It was July of 2005. I was at the beach with my sons. She was doing yoga at Tommy's. We met through a yoga instructor. The next day he invited us to his boat. We warmed to each other and became very good friends. I was downright in love, but Dee's initial feelings were at the friendship level.

Q: What did you think when you learned that he was of Turkish origin?

Tommy: She said it a few days later, I was very surprised. I had never met a Turkish girl before. I thought they must all be this good.

Q: Do you know Turkish?

Dee: I dont know. My father wanted to raise me like an American. I never had the urge to speak a second language, either.

Q: How Turkish do you feel yourself? For example, do you have any behaviors peculiar to being Turkish?

Dee: I'm fifty percent Turkish. My mood varies just like Turks. I used to smoke. I was saying this is my Turkish side. And everyone says I'm very friendly.