A new eyewear collection with Safilo was launched last summer, jewelry is slated to debut in a year's time, and if any [Boss] brand could test the home market in a cool way, "it would be Hugo. All these little things are very important to create a picture of a trendy fashion brand," he said.

Hugo sales are now divided 70-30 men's-women's, and accessories are a separate 10 percent of that. "But in the future, accessories could be 20 percent, and in an ideal world, one day, it'll be 50-50 men's-women's."

Hugo's biggest market remains Germany, followed by the U.S., Holland and Japan. He sees big potential for Hugo Stateside, "because Hugo is New York. Miami. L.A. — these big urban cities filled with creative people," he stressed. "And we can build a much bigger business — not only with men's, but women's and accessories, too."

There are currently 12 Hugo company-owned stores globally, including doors in N.Y., Miami and L.A. There are an additional six franchise stores and around 100 shop-in-shops. "We want to grow in all fields. I see a strategy where we can go to big department stores like Saks, Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom, as well as independent multilabel stores. Plus more freestanding stores in places like San Francisco, South Beach [Fla.], New York, Chicago, Boston. These are all very interesting places for Hugo, especially now." The collection also will be present in the new Hugo Boss store opening in New York City's Meatpacking District in April.