Larry Stemerman, Tommy Hilfiger’s Partner in People’s Place, and CEO of Tailorbyrd, Dies at 73

Larry Stemerman, a longtime fashion executive and chief executive officer of Tailorbyrd, a classic menswear company, died Thursday at age 73.

According to his family, Stemerman “had a lifelong kidney disease that he fought courageously against.”

Born in Elmira, N.Y., Stemerman graduated from Elmira Free Academy in 1969. That same year, at 17 years old, he entered the world of fashion and retail with his friends, Tommy Hilfiger and Jonathan Allen. Together they cofounded the clothing store People’s Place, which quickly became a cultural hub for young people seeking bell bottoms, leather jackets, jewelry, flowery shirts and music.

“We met in junior high school,” said Tommy Hilfiger on Sunday. “He was an entrepreneur at a very young age and was always thinking about how to be in business in high school. A lot of people said you have to finish high school and go to college, and he said, ‘No, no we can be in business now.’ He was 17 and I was 18 and he really was a visionary.”

“We each [the three partners] put $150 in a kitty and drove to New York City in a Volkswagen Beetle and bought 20 pairs of bell-bottoms from the streets of the Village — Saint Mark’s Place — and brought them back to the schoolyard and basically sold them to our friends,” recalled Hilfiger, in a 2012 WWD story.

For People’s Place, the partners purchased the clothes from the East Village boutique Limbo, which is now Trash + Vaudeville. They also bought clothing from manufacturers such as Landlubber, UFO and A. Smile, as well as sold some vintage clothes, jewelry, candles and incense.

Hilfiger said Sunday he handled the creative and Stemerman handled the business. “I designed the stores and a lot of the product, and he really handled the business end of it. We were a great team,” the designer said. (Allen ended up leaving after about a year and went to college.)

The partners expanded to several college campuses in upstate New York and ultimately opened 10 locations over a decade. Back in Elmira, they set up a music management department, called Further Adventures, and promoted local concerts and gigs. People’s Place would sponsor rock shows in the basement and it also sold concert tickets, had a hair salon and record shop. They made sandals, belts, bags and fringed vests in an on-site leather shop.

But the partners stopped paying attention to the details of the retail business, the bills piled up and in August 1977, Hilfiger and Stemerman filed Chapter 11 and split up the remaining four stores. After the bankruptcy, they still ran the remaining stores, but sold them and they eventually closed.

They then both decided to go to New York City and start their own brands.

Stemerman started At Last and then had the opportunity to buy Tailorbyrd, where he ultimately became chairman and CEO, and remained there until his death. “He turned it around,” Hilfiger said.

Tailorbyrd was founded in 2003 strictly as a shirt brand, but over the years expanded into a full sportswear collection and eventually offered tailored clothing. Today the brand features men’s golfwear, fleece sweatshirts, polos, T-shirts, dress shirts, sport coats, outerwear, performance and accessories, and boys’ wear. The brand is sold at Nordstrom Rack, Saks Off Fifth and Bloomingdale’s Outlet.

Stemerman was known for his taste, sharp eye and commitment to quality.

“Larry was a character. He was a unique human being. He had a very memorable personality — for good and bad,” said Traci Young, president of Taylorbyrd. “He could and loved to talk to everyone and anyone. He was one of those people who were so full of life and verve and was consumed with his own perspective.”

“He was truly one of the most positive people I have ever met. No matter how tough his business was or his health, he always believed that things were going to be just fine,” Young said.

She said Stemerman was like “the absent-minded professor,” and had a passion for product like nobody she ever met. “His taste level and eye for the product surpassed what was in our wallet and what our brand positioning was,” she said. “Our business has doubled and next year should be even better,” she said, noting they’re launching women’s golfwear and footwear in January.

“Larry was a hustler and honestly knew how to make a buck,” she added.

The business will be taken over by Young, who has been president of Tailorbyrd for the past seven years, and Stemerman’s wife, Laura, who will be partners.

When Stemerman launched tailored clothing in 2015, he told WWD, “We’re going to bring forward a new look for the middle market. We tested it in some stores for spring, but the real launch will be for fall. We think there’s a void for luxury products at the entry level.” Many of the offerings had retro features, such as buckles on the side of flannel pants or vests with an opening for a pocket watch. Most of the fabrics were from Italy. The tailored clothing was licensed to Greystone International Group, a subsidiary of a large Chinese hedge fund. Tailored clothing moved in-house before COVID-19, Young said.

Earlier in his career Stemerman was partners with Hilfiger and his brother, Andy Hilfiger when they launched JLo by Jennifer Lopez, via Sweetface Fashion Co., in the 1990s, Hilfiger said.

“We stayed very close friends the whole time. He was a great golfer, and he loved sports,” Hilfiger said. He noted that Stemerman raised his family in New Canaan, Conn., where he lived for three decades. One of his other passions was travel, and he became a world traveler for both business and pleasure.

Stemerman is survived by his wife and their two sons, Tyler and Justin.

A memorial service will be held in early April. Donations can be made to Tunnels to Towers, a nonprofit that supports programs such as mortgage-free homes for fallen heroes’ families and injured first responders.