Dec. 20, 2011 The Tommy Hilfiger Group, which is wholly owned by PVH Corp. (NYSE: PVH), announced an agreement with Ittierre S.p.A to license the men’s and women’s runway collections beginning Fall 2012 and pre-collections Spring 2013. While Tommy Hilfiger retains creative control over all collections, Ittierre will have the rights to produce and distribute apparel and the majority of accessories, with distribution concentrated in Europe, North America and Asia.
In addition to Tommy Hilfiger retails stores, the agreement will allow for high-end wholesale , and specialty and online retailers to distribute runway collections. Following presentations during New York Fashion Week in February 2012, the collections will be sold in six showrooms throughout Europe, North America and Asia.
“We are thrilled to enter into this licensing agreement with Ittierre, which will allow us to broaden our upper tier global distribution,” said Fred Gehring, Chief Executive Officer of The Tommy Hilfiger Group. “Over the past few years, the successful repositioning and elevation of the brand has led to an increase in the demand for our runway collections. Partnering with Ittierre is a wonderful opportunity to reach new customers and to further evolve our most elevated expression of preppy American classics with a twist. We look forward to building on the brand’s current momentum with Ittierre, a partner that is renowned for their passion and capability to manage the manufacturing and distribution of designer collections on a global scale.”
Antonio Bianchi, Chairman and CEO of Ittierre S.p.A. asserts: “Tommy Hilfiger, the world’s leading Classic American Cool brand, has chosen Ittierre, the representative of “Made in Italy” craftsmanship and excellence in the fashion industry, as its global partner. We are delighted by this new collaboration with one of the world’s leading designer apparel brands. It is a historic event that enhances the global reputation of Ittierre and rewards the dedication of our management team, headed by General Manager Alessandro Locatelli. This new important license, the fifth awarded in 2011 and tenth overall in Ittierre’s portfolio, marks a fantastic close of year for the Company.” The first collection distributed under the licensing agreement will be in stores July 2012.
