Zilli

Zilli is a French luxury house based in Lyon, known chiefly for men's leather outerwear and ready-to-wear, with a fragrance line added in the early 2020s. The company traces its origins to the workshop of Teofilo Zilli, an Italian tailor working in Lyon. The brand's own account dates it to 1965 [1], while several third-party sources place the founding of the Zilli label specifically in 1970, when Alain Schimel bought Zilli's workshop and, together with him, launched the house's signature luxury leather jacket [6].

The house remains active. It operates under Negma Group ownership following a December 2021 acquisition [8], and its site references a Spring 2026 collection alongside an ongoing fragrance range.

Alain Schimel, born in Lyon in 1943 to parents who ran several clothing boutiques in the city, is credited as the founder of the Zilli brand. According to editorial accounts, in 1970 he bought the traditional Lyon workshop of the Italian tailor Teofilo Zilli, and the two launched the house's luxury leather jacket and its "Sport Chic" style together [6]. The brand's own Maison page frames the beginning slightly differently, describing a founding "in 1965 by a French family in partnership with Teofilo Zilli" [1]. The two dates are not necessarily contradictory: the earlier year appears to reflect the Schimel family's existing Lyon clothing business, while 1970 marks the dated launch of the Zilli label itself.

The Moodie Davitt Report describes the enterprise as a family business, with Schimel's son Laurent as managing director, his daughter Alexandra directing travel retail, and his wife Roberta overseeing selection and quality control [5].

Zilli's core output is men's ready-to-wear and leather goods, spanning outerwear, suits, shirts, shoes, and accessories. The house positions itself at the top of the luxury market; a 2008 profile cited a crocodile-leather jacket with a detachable chinchilla-fur collar priced at around 100,000 US dollars, and noted garments trimmed with 24-karat gold thread [5]. Manufacturing is carried out in the house's own ateliers, with the original workshop in Lyon and additional sites in Bergamo and Pescara, Italy [1].

The brand describes its outlook as understated luxury built on craftsmanship and materials, prizing discretion over visibility. Its manifesto states that "if something is not perfect, that particular something is not ZILLI," and the company frames its mission as remaining "faithful to the culture of quality" [1]. Historically its clientele has skewed toward very wealthy men; Schimel was quoted in the 2008 profile saying he sells "to men with power… kings and queens," with reported customers among Russian oligarchs and buyers from the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and South America [5].

Zilli entered fragrance in 2020, when it introduced its first men's Eau de Parfum, including Blue Titanium [9]. A Millésime collection followed in 2021, among them Millésime Bois de Feu [10]. The catalogue has since grown to a range of men's Eau de Parfum that also includes Cuir Impérial, Black Velvet, and Cachemire Noir.

The fragrances are not produced in-house. They are developed in collaboration with Création Beauté International, a Paris-based company that builds niche and designer perfume lines, meaning the scents are effectively licensed rather than made by the fashion house itself. Named perfumers include Delphine Lebeau, who worked on Blue Titanium, and Karine Dubreuil-Sereni, credited with Millésime Bois de Feu [10].

In December 2021, the investment company Negma Group, together with the Italian corporate-finance advisory Futuro all'Impresa (FAI), acquired Zilli [8]. The stated aim was to consolidate the house and establish it as a key player in luxury menswear, drawing on its Lyon heritage. The acquisition was reported at the time by trade press including WWD [11]. The brand's own site dates the deal to 2022, likely reflecting the closing or announcement rather than the December 2021 signing.

Zilli is an active, independently operating luxury house. Since the 2021 acquisition it has continued under Negma Group ownership, with a current-season collection and an ongoing fragrance line on sale. In the Nordic market it is the fragrance range that is most relevant, the ready-to-wear and leather goods being sold chiefly through the house's own boutiques and points of sale internationally.