Nick Hilton
Nick Hilton has a lifetime of experience in the apparel field, beginning with his work during high school summers as a shipping clerk in his great-grandfather’s clothing factory. After graduating from Bard College in 1970, he lived and worked in Florence, Italy for an Italian trouser maker, developing a command of the language and a familiarity with the European modus operandi of apparel production. After stints at English knitwear brand John Smedley and Burberry of London, Nick became president of his family’s company in 1980, taking charge of the Norman Hilton collection, the premier traditional menswear brand.
In 1990, Nick created his first complete collection for men, the Nick Hilton Collection, with products ranging from traditional tailored clothing to shirts and ties, casual and dress trousers, knitwear and outerwear. The Nick Hilton retail store in Princeton opened in 2001, followed by the Fair Haven location in 2007. We are also pleased to announce our new online store, coming soon.
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Jennifer Hilton
After graduating with a business degree from Simmons College in Boston, and a short stint at D’Camm, Ltd., a Connecticut retailer, Jennifer Hilton joined the executive training program at Lord and Taylor in New York. Having married Nick, she was recruited by Norman Hilton to assist with the American marketing effort and styling development of Burberry of London, for which the Hiltons had been named U.S. agents. Jennifer’s first styling experience involved the merchandising of Burberry’s women’s collections, which had up until then been sized and designed for a mature European woman. She was responsible for recreating Burberry’s women’s tailored and outerwear collections to appeal to a smart, younger, American customer.
Five years later, when their first child went to school, Jennifer turned her attention to creating a women’s collection under the Norman Hilton brand. Quickly realizing that the traditional tailoring methods for men’s clothing were too structured and “manly” to produce the kinds of clothing that offered the silhouette and drape a woman’s collection required, Jennifer sought out patterns, fabrics, trims and work shops that produced a Norman Hilton line that had a truly feminine character. Researching and perfecting these resources was an enormous task, and gave her experience and knowledge that most would not get in a lifetime.
Having raised two more children, she joined Nick in the inception of their own business in the late 1990s. Starting literally in a garage, Jennifer organized and administered the design, manufacture and importation of Nick Hilton’s menswear collection, which was being produced in Italy. This import and distribution business, after a time, spawned the Nick Hilton Studio, the couple’s store on Witherspoon Street in Princeton, and, after five years of continuous successes catering to the tastes of the affluent and discriminating men of the Princeton community, Jennifer added a women’s department, which today represents an integral and essential part of the Nick Hilton retail business.
Jennifer’s unerring eye for appropriate and up-to-date styling, combined with her truly passionate care for her customers’ comfort and appearance, has created a following for her among women who seek and appreciate the advice, care and service of a truly professional clothier. The like of Jennifer Hilton, with her taste, experience, and style sense, is terribly rare in this age of mass merchandising and label-crazed hype. Jennifer’s customers rely on her selection and on the attention she pays to their every need. Her reputation, the breadth and scope of her merchandise, and the number of women who have come to rely on her help, has grown steadily for years.
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