# Parisienne Italia ## Facts | | | |---|---| | Founded | 1955 | | Origin | Italy | | Headquarters | Malalbergo (province of Bologna) | | Owner | HQ Holding | | Status | Acquired | | Previous names | Fape | | Manufacturing | Altedo (BO), Italy | | Distribution | Multi-channel | | Website | https://en.parisienneitalia.com/ | Parisienne Italia is an Italian manufacturer of hair and body care products based in the province of Bologna. The company traces its history to 1955 and to Fape, a hair brilliantine, and says it was the first company in Italy to produce hairsprays for the Italian market [1]. Italian trade press has described it as a pioneer of aerosols [10]. It makes products for hairdressers and salons, lines for supermarkets and other mass retail, and goods made to order under other companies' labels. Parisienne Italia is no longer independent. In November 2021 the Milan hair-colour company Lisap took a 75% stake, and by September 2023 the holding company that heads the combined group, HQ Holding, owned all of it [12]. The business continues to trade under its own name. ## Origin & founders The company tells its origin story against the backdrop of post-war Italy, on the eve of the economic boom and the "dolce vita" years. In that setting, it says, 1955 was the year of Fape, "an innovative brilliantine for hair" that set the company on the national market. The Italian version of its website uses the same date in its tagline, "Eccellenza cosmetica dal 1955" (cosmetic excellence since 1955). Independent accounts agree on the year: Italian trade reports and the adviser's announcement of the 2021 acquisition both give 1955 as Parisienne's founding date [13]. According to the company, Fape became Parisienne Italia shortly afterwards. The same account says the business then began producing hairsprays for the Italian market, as the first company in the country to do so. The company's wording leaves it unclear whether Fape was the name of the business, the name of the brilliantine, or both. No source names the company's founder. What is documented is a family succession. At the time of the 2021 sale, the chief executive was Eleonora Favalini. She described the deal as a new chapter "in continuity with the work carried out by my father Luigi" [10]. The M&A adviser on the transaction described the company as managed by the second generation of the Favalini family. ## History & milestones For most of its history Parisienne Italia grew around aerosols and hair styling. The company's own summary of its path is brief: yesterday it was the first to make hairsprays for Italy, today it says it anticipates trends and serves specialists "gaining an international profile". The Italian homepage speaks of "over sixty years" of activity since the founding. Over time the business spread across three channels. It sells professional lines to salons, mass-market lines to retail chains, and contract manufacturing for other brands. The adviser's 2021 deal note put it this way: the company "develops and distributes hair and body care products for the large retail chains and professional channel, in addition to private label" [13]. The same note gave a snapshot of the company's size at the time. It projected turnover of US$16.5 million for 2021, generated in equal shares in Italy and in the 58 international markets where the company operated. It listed two facilities, in Bologna and Altedo, and 65 employees. The company joined the Regional Operational Programme of the European Regional Development Fund (ROP ERDF) 2014–2020. It links this participation to its environmental commitments. The project sheet it publishes is titled "Asbestos removal and installation of a photovoltaic system". ## Ownership Parisienne Italia changed hands in two steps. The first came in 2021. On 9 November that year, Lisap Laboratori Cosmetici, a Milan company founded in 1952 and best known for professional hair colour, signed an agreement to acquire Parisienne Italia. The deal gave Lisap control of 75% of the company [10]. Italian trade press reported that the enlarged group would be headed by a newly formed holding company, HQ Holding, with Luca Papetti as chief executive of both Lisap and HQ Holding. The stated aim was to create an industrial group specialising in high value-added products. According to the 2021 reports, the partners hoped the group could become Europe's leading producer, by volume, of aerosols for the professional salon channel, and one of the main producers of hair dyes. Both companies were described as producing entirely in Italy. The group's stated revenue target for 2022 was more than €65 million. The second step followed in 2023. In October that year, Italian trade press reported that HQ Holding had acquired 100% of Parisienne the previous September, having earlier held 75% [12]. The same report described HQ Holding as an industrial holding company that controls Lisap, Parisienne, Schulze and Diapason Cosmetic. It gave the group's consolidated 2022 revenue as €60 million, half of it earned abroad. HQ Holding also appointed Gianfranco Castro as group general manager at that time. The two ownership figures reflect a change over time rather than a disagreement: Lisap held 75% after the 2021 deal, and HQ Holding held the whole company from September 2023. Parisienne Italia's Italian website now links to an HQ Holding code of ethics and to an HQ group whistleblowing portal. ## Philosophy & positioning Parisienne Italia presents itself as a keeper of Italian cosmetic tradition. Its English tagline reads "Italian cosmetic tradition from 1955", and the company stresses that its products are "rigorously labelled Made in Italy". The company organises its public identity around four values: knowledge, respect, quality and research. Under research, it says formulas are developed at its own research hub, with the aim of "merging the effectiveness of scientific research with the gentle strength of nature". Under quality, it says it does not compromise on raw materials, and that it tests its products one by one, releasing them only after checking that they work. That is a statement about in-house testing rather than a reference to a published clinical study. The company's positioning spans price points and audiences. It describes its mass-market range as "professional-quality mass market products", while a separate group of brands is aimed at hairdressers. The Parisienne Italia line itself sits among the mass-market brands. ## Products & innovation Parisienne Italia operates as a portfolio of brands rather than a single product line. Its professional brands, sold to salons, include Black Professional, Niamh Hairconcept, Parisienne Professional, Allwaves Professional, Rebeel Professional and Claire Fontaine. Its professional-line page also lists Evelon Pro, Dandy and Nutri Elements. Several of these, including Allwaves, Black, NiaMh and Rebeel, were named in 2021 among the proprietary brands of the combined Lisap and Parisienne group. The mass-market side is broader and more varied. It includes Parisienne, Evelon, Latte d'Asina (donkey milk), Fiorile, Leniped, Lin Exance, Cinque Stelle, Elf, Elegans and Naif. Some lines serve narrow needs. Pit Stop is a root-touch-up product for regrowth, Mr P is a beard-care line, and Il Solvente is a nail-polish remover. Aria Gaia covers household products, which lie outside personal care. The company's third activity is private label, making products for other companies to sell under their own names. Its private-label page lists hair care, including hairsprays and mousses, treatments, styling products and hair dyes, and skin care, including hand and body creams, foam baths, liquid soaps and nail-polish removers. The same page lists "No animal testing" among its quality points [6]. No independent cruelty-free certification is documented. Hairsprays remain central to the company's identity. Both its founding story and the 2021 trade coverage frame Parisienne Italia first as an aerosol maker, with body care for mass retail as a second pillar. The company also runs the Parisienne Italia Academy, a training programme for hairdressers and students. According to the company, it was created in response to demand from stylists for specialist courses. It says the courses combine theory and practice and are taught by international teachers. ## Sustainability Parisienne Italia describes its environmental work as "a certified commitment" to environmental protection, energy efficiency and renewable energy. In support, it points to its participation in the ROP ERDF 2014–2020 programme and publishes a recycling certificate. That certificate, issued by L.C.I. under a scheme called Project Resily and dated 22 January 2026, states that the company sent 2.84 tonnes of silicone-coated paper, used as label backing, for recovery during 2025 [8]. The certificate concerns waste recovery and is not a certification of the products themselves. No third-party product certifications are documented. ## Current status Parisienne Italia is an acquired company that continues to operate under its own name. It has been wholly owned by HQ Holding since September 2023, following Lisap's 75% purchase in November 2021. The company's Italian website shows recent upkeep, including files uploaded in 2024 and the recycling certificate dated January 2026. It continues to present both its professional and mass-market brand portfolios alongside its private-label business. The company's own websites give two different addresses. The Italian site's company-data page lists the registered and operating office at Via Del Lavoro 16/A in Malalbergo, in the province of Bologna [7]. The English-language site's company-information page and footer instead give Via di Corticella 190 in the city of Bologna as the registered office [3]. The Italian pages are the more recently updated of the two, and the English homepage's contact block lists both addresses. ## Timeline {#belagg-timeline} | Year | Event | Source | |---|---|---| | 1955 | Fape, a hair brilliantine, which the company says set it on the Italian national market | https://en.parisienneitalia.com/ | | 2021 | Lisap acquired control of 75% of Parisienne Italia; agreement signed 9 November 2021, with the newly formed HQ Holding to head the group | https://www.estetica.it/2021/11/10/lisap-acquisisce-parisienne-italia/ | | 2021 | Acquired (75%) by Lisap (Lisap Laboratori Cosmetici, Milan area); agreement signed 9 November 2021; group to be headed by newly formed HQ Holding | https://www.estetica.it/2021/11/10/lisap-acquisisce-parisienne-italia/ | | 2023 | HQ Holding acquired 100% of Parisienne in September 2023 (previously held 75%) | https://beauty.pambianconews.com/2023/10/hq-holding-gianfranco-castro-e-il-nuovo-direttore-generale-di-gruppo/57106 | | 2023 | HQ Holding raised its stake to 100% (September 2023) | https://beauty.pambianconews.com/2023/10/hq-holding-gianfranco-castro-e-il-nuovo-direttore-generale-di-gruppo/57106 | | 2025 | L.C.I. certificate (dated 22/01/2026, Project Resily) states the company sent 2.84 t of silicone paper label backing for recovery during 2025 | https://parisienneitalia.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Certificato-Parisienne.pdf | | — | Shortly after 1955, Fape became Parisienne Italia and (by its own account the first company in Italy) began producing hairsprays for the Italian market | https://en.parisienneitalia.com/ | | — | Joined the Regional Operational Programme of the European Regional Development Fund (ROP ERDF) 2014-2020; the linked project sheet is filed as 'Asbestos removal and installation of a photovoltaic system' | https://en.parisienneitalia.com/ | ## Signature products {#belagg-products} - **Fape (hair brilliantine, 1955; historic product)** — This is the Italy of 1955, that of Fape, an innovative brilliantine for hair that revolutionised the market of Italian cosmetics, and which set our company on the national market. — https://en.parisienneitalia.com/ ## Mentioned in {#belagg-press} - **Estetica.it (Italian trade press)** (2021) — Report 'Lisap ufficializza l'acquisizione di Parisienne Italia': Lisap takes 75% control; agreement signed 9 November 2021; group headed by the new HQ Holding — https://www.estetica.it/2021/11/10/lisap-acquisisce-parisienne-italia/ - **Beauty Pambianconews (Italian trade press)** (2021) — Report 'Lisap acquisisce il 75% di Parisienne Italia'; describes Parisienne as an aerosol pioneer founded in 1955 — https://beauty.pambianconews.com/2021/11/lisap-acquisisce-il-75-di-parisienne-italia/44709 - **Beauty Pambianconews (Italian trade press)** (2023) — HQ Holding names Gianfranco Castro group general manager; notes HQ Holding acquired 100% of Parisienne in September 2023 — https://beauty.pambianconews.com/2023/10/hq-holding-gianfranco-castro-e-il-nuovo-direttore-generale-di-gruppo/57106 ## Sources 1. (T1) https://en.parisienneitalia.com/ 3. (T2) https://en.parisienneitalia.com/complete-company-information/ 6. (T2) https://en.parisienneitalia.com/private-label/ 7. (T2) https://parisienneitalia.com/dati-societari/ 8. (T2) https://parisienneitalia.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Certificato-Parisienne.pdf 10. (T4) https://www.estetica.it/2021/11/10/lisap-acquisisce-parisienne-italia/ 12. (T4) https://beauty.pambianconews.com/2023/10/hq-holding-gianfranco-castro-e-il-nuovo-direttore-generale-di-gruppo/57106 13. (T4) https://www.oaklins.com/it/en/deals/107630/ --- Glowpedia · · Published 2026-09-30 Please cite with a link to the article URL.