‘London is where preppy style originated,’ Tommy Hilfiger instructed from the stairs of a Nantucket-style beach cottage in the heart of Covent Garden. ‘If you want to talk about authenticity, real preppy style came from London. But we changed it. We adopted it, and revised it—a little this, a little that.’
The beach house, complete with a white picket fence, weathered shingle siding and rails of seersucker within, touched down in Covent Garden Piazza for the second stop on Hilfiger’s Prep World global tour.
A carnival of proper Americana, the pop-up shop carries wares from Hilfiger’s Prep World line. But some preppy classics just can’t be bought.
‘This is my little preppy,’ Hilfiger said, beaming at his two-year-old son Sebastian.
Drawing coos of a different kind were the crisply attired cocktail waiters, dressed in matching chambray shirts, white trousers (rolled just so at the ankle) and navy blue bow-ties. Tali Lennox looked on appraisingly. ‘Loafers are nice. Definitely without socks,’ the model said, describing her favourite preppy staple for men.
Along with Lennox, Leah Weller, David Gandy and Marina Diamandis donned their finest preppy attire for the occasion. Even Ronnie Wood wore mint green—practically a neutral in the prep vernacular.
‘Preppy style means class and self-expression,’ mused Ed Westwick, playing the dandy in a slim-fitting plaid suit. ‘I like the use of strong colours, particularly the whole red, white and blue Americana thing that Tommy does.’
And what does Hilfiger, who celebrated his brand’s 25th anniversary last year, expect from the label’s next decades?
‘The f word—fun,’ he said.
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