What is Tommy Hilfiger's full name?

Tommy Hilfiger’s full name is Thomas Jacob Hilfiger.

“Tommy” is the familiar name he uses professionally, while Thomas Jacob is his birth name. The formal name appears in biographical records and distinguishes the designer from the brand that carries his shortened first name. He was born on March 24, 1951, in Elmira, New York.

Hilfiger began building his fashion career long before his name became a global label. In 1969, while still in high school, he opened People’s Place, a clothing store in Elmira. After moving to Manhattan in 1979, he worked toward establishing himself as a designer and introduced his first Tommy Hilfiger collection in 1985.

Readers sometimes assume “Tommy Hilfiger” is simply a nickname with no separately documented formal name. The name Thomas Jacob Hilfiger is the canonical birth-name form; “Tommy” is the public and professional name used throughout his career.