What's with the big grudge for Tommy Hilfiger?
What is it about Tommy that is so irksome? Are we just being unfair to him because he's just not cool enough, or is there simply something hopelessly B-list about the brand?
Maybe it's the utter lack of originality that detractors have groused about practically since the brand appeared, and the absence of any effort to ever prove them wrong. You can't argue with financial success, and yet the Hilfiger Brand has had ups and downs lately. The designer's perennial attempts to trade his label up to a more affluent customer have typically fallen flat, but he is trying again with a new women's only store on Bleecker Street that opened today. It's a valiant effort, but we can't help being distracted by that other huge American designer Hilfiger is constantly being accused of copying, you know, the one who already has three shops down the street.
To his credit, Tommy has ordered up an eclectic interior that feels less derivative than we expected with black floors and dark blue walls; kind of a funky boho-'70s look.  We saw all sorts of interesting accessories and shoes that caught our eye, but soon discovered that they were all "vintage" items which have been liberally peppered throughout the store (just like that other designer) The clothes were Hilfiger's typical bridge-ish fare, inoffensive with the occasional smart item, but overall not terribly interesting, and again, whenever we noticed something unusual it also turned out to be "vintage". We use the quotes because we can't say Hilfiger will be giving Resurrection any competition, and the pieces are priced like desirable designer items salvaged from the past, but we saw none of the prized labels that would warrant it. You would do better at the weekend flea markets or at least a few blocks away at Cherry on Hudson Street.
And that's the trouble with this store. It's hard to accept the idea that it isn't just another of Hilfiger's attempts to add luster to his name by elbowing his way on to a sought-after street as if to say, "Me too! Me too!".
Tommy Hilfiger 375 Bleecker Street, West Village