Tommy Hilfiger, which is owned by PVH Corp., has announced the next step in its strategy to democratize the runway and keep the consumer at the center of its business.
Starting with the Spring 2017 NYFW season, Tommy Hilfiger will redirect its runway investment to align with the retail calendar and debut its Fall 2016 collections with a full-scale fashion show for consumers and press. The collection will be immediately available to purchase across all sales channels, including throughout the business's retail partner network globally. This change channels the global power, influence and visibility of the brand's NYFW shows to deliver consumers instant "Buy Now. Wear Now." gratification.
The brand's September show will mark the public debut of Gigi Hadid's capsule collaboration with Tommy Hilfiger, where the complete TommyXGigi collection will be presented to consumers for the first time at a runway event in the brand's signature entertaining show style. The presentation will also include an exclusive selection of looks curated from the extensive world of Tommy Hilfiger women's, and the launch will be supported by an integrated global advertising campaign. The company will partner with a global multi-media broadcast network to amplify the fusion of fashion and entertainment that has long been at the heart of the brand's DNA.
"I founded my brand to be accessible and inclusive, and I've always considered the consumer to be the most important aspect of our business," said Tommy Hilfiger. "In the past 30 years, we've paved the way in fusing fashion and entertainment. This philosophy has always been a part of my dream to connect our global consumers to inspiring, unexpected fashion experiences. We've been building towards this for a long time, and the natural progression of this approach to democratizing the runway is to make the full excitement and energy of NYFW directly accessible to our consumers in a globally impactful way."
Following the transition for Fall 2016 with the launch of the TommyXGigi capsule collection, the Spring 2017 Tommy Hilfiger women's collections will debut to consumers for the first time in February 2017. In recognition of the current calendars for wholesale buyers and long-lead media, in September 2016 Tommy Hilfiger will stage private advance showings of the upcoming Spring 2017 collections.
The shift in Tommy Hilfiger's women's fashion show strategy reflects the company's commitment to the global growth of its womenswear business. Supported by a highly engaged audience around the Tommy Hilfiger women's show and NYFW, there is a strong potential for additional growth across all women's categories.
"As one of the world's most recognized American lifestyle brands and most visible shows at NYFW, we have a unique opportunity to take a leadership role in moving the runway closer to the consumer," said Daniel Grieder, Chief Executive Officer for Tommy Hilfiger. "In line with our vision to become more consumer centric, it's important that we channel the incredible visibility and engagement that our shows generate into the moment when the product launches. This is the next step in our journey to shorten the development cycle and balance our approach to meet the diverse needs of consumers, buyers and media. We are committed to working in a new way with our business partners and the industry to achieve this goal."
The approach signifies a new era of agility for Tommy Hilfiger that will bring it closer to consumers and provide greater flexibility in adapting to the needs and preferences of a changing market. Further details will be revealed in the lead-up to the brand's September 2016 runway show.
