Tommy Hilfiger’s front row was a slam dunk. The Knicks are the kings of New York right now, so scoring Josh Hart, Karl-Anthony Towns and Miles McBride, three of the team’s stars, for the guest list of his New York catwalk show was a victory. Travis Kelce, who is co-designing another upcoming collection with Hilfiger and had been rumoured to attend this event with his new bride, was a no show, but you can’t win them all.
Tommy Hilfiger is all about sport. The design vocabulary of oversized jerseys, team stripes, rugby shirts and letterman jackets draws heavily on the visual language of the stadium. Kelce, whose NFL tunnel walks have become a catwalk of their own, is the latest in a line of sporting ambassadors that includes Thierry Henry, Rafael Nadal and Lewis Hamilton. Hilfiger has long stood for a certain glossy stars-and-stripes Americana – its graphic red, white and blue logo is a riff on the flag – but American identity is delicate cultural territory right now. Sport, which unites audiences across all backgrounds and political allegiances, gives the brand a wholesome place to congregate. “People really like him,” Hilfiger said backstage, explaining why he chose to collaborate with Kelce. “He’s really humble, down to earth, sweet, fun, and funny. And a superstar athlete.”
Backstage before the show, Hilfiger said: “Preppy is back in the zeitgeist.” And on the catwalk, sportswear codes and collegiate chic were blended together. A bright, boxy rugby shirt was worn loose over a neatly pleated skirt, a slick quarterzip layered under a neat blazer. Hotdog-stand colours of mustard and ketchup were splashed over civilised tones of Oxford blue and chino beige. There was a deep-cut nod to Hilfiger’s history in the form of a silk dress, which re-printed the audacious Times Square billboard that launched his career. The advert listed the four greatest American menswear designers as Ralph Lauren, Perry Ellis, Calvin Klein and the then almost unknown Tommy Hilfiger. It was a provocative stunt from a rookie which, 41 years later, stands the test of time.
The show was one in a long line of pop culture cameos for the Plaza hotel. This is where Cary Grant was kidnapped from the Oak Room in Hitchcock’s North by Northwest, and where Macaulay Culkin ran into its then owner, Donald Trump, in the lobby in Home Alone 2. For Hilfiger, the venue was a homecoming: the designer lived in the hotel with his family for a decade. “I loved the idea of a show in my former home,” Hilfiger said beforehand, “and I am inspired by all the different types of people who come through these doors every day.” His personal favourite moment in the hotel’s history, he said, was Truman Capote’s Black and White Ball of 1966.
