Alain Schimel, the CEO and Founder of the Zilli brand, was born in 1943 to Oscar and Rose Schimel who were owners of several clothing boutiques in Lyon. In 1968, he graduated from IEP in Lyon, and from IAE. Later in 1970, Alain Schimel bought the traditional workshop of an Italian tailor in Lyon, Teofilo Zilli. Together they launched the luxury leather jacket and the Sport Chic style.

Alongside his passion for literature, art and history, Alain Schimel could claim ownership of the concept of luxury sportswear. Cosmopolitan, he has transformed a family-owned Lyon-based business into an international luxury brand. He has a profound respect for different countries and their cultures - but refrains from assigning certain collections to certain areas.

Energetic and intuitive, the founder's daughter, Alexandra Schimel-Fila, shares her father's insatiable cultural curiosity, thanks to which the House has multiplied its acts of sponsorship. A partner in Lyon's Biennial Contemporary Art and Dance, ZILLI also supports a major exhibition presented each year at the French Academy in Rome.