ZIMMERMANN

Interview by Filep Motwary

From their very first steps into the fashion world, sisters Nicky and Simone Zimmermann never played by the rules — they rewrote them, infusing femininity and inventiveness in generous measure. Through their delicate ready-to-wear collections, they redefined what it means to be a modern woman: confident, self-possessed, uninterested in approval, never excessive, yet undeniably radiant. Their bold, almost theatrical prints quickly evolved into far more than decorative motifs. They became manifestos — symbols of an aesthetic language all their own, at once refined and sensuous. Each new collection is an ode to the woman who stands out, not through noise, but through effortless luminosity.

It comes as no surprise that the origins of the Zimmermann brand are just as compelling as its evolution over the past thirty-plus years. The story begins in the late 1980s, when Nicky Zimmermann, inspired by her mother — who, while not working in fashion, loved sewing and making things by hand — decided to pursue clothing design. In 1989, immediately after graduating from East Sydney Tech (now known as The Fashion Design Studio at Ultimo TAFE), she began selling her creations from a stall at Sydney’s famed Paddington Market. “It was all very romantic,” she recalls. “I made clothes in my parents’ garage, loaded them into the car, and drove off to the market.” There was no grand business plan, no vision of international acclaim — just a desire to sell a few pieces, buy new fabrics, and keep creating. That journey, from a youthful garage to the world’s runways, is precisely what makes the brand so singular.

Every seam, every print, every fabric is a reminder that style is, above all, a way of life. “I was an inventive girl,” Nicky says. “There was never anything else I wanted to do besides fashion. I finished high school, went to fashion school, and as soon as I graduated, I started the brand. I was 21, and my first pieces were handmade — crocheted knits made with a hook.” Luck soon followed, when a friend and former classmate who had just joined Vogue Australia wore one of Nicky’s embroidered western-collar shirts to the office. The result? A two-page feature in the magazine, followed by a wave of domestic wholesale orders and, shortly after, the opening of the brand’s first brick-and-mortar store in Darlinghurst — Sydney’s art-minded, effortlessly chic neighborhood.

Her sister Simone soon joined the business, deftly taking charge of “all the practical aspects of running a company.” A pivotal moment came seven years in, when the sisters decided to launch swimwear, believing it would anchor their identity more firmly to their Australian roots. Conceived as a standalone line — and to this day independent from their ready-to-wear collections — it nonetheless shared the brand’s DNA: graphic prints, romantic details, airy ruffles. “I don’t think we fully realized at the time how unique our approach actually was,” Simone admits of the launch, which was met with enthusiasm from international buyers. “We didn’t have huge expectations for the brand; what mattered to us was longevity — building a healthy business that could sustain us. When we started, it was a particularly creative time in Australia. Many businesses were taking risks, just like us. And fashion wasn’t yet globalized the way it is today, which in a sense protected us, allowing us to grow gradually and, above all, steadily,” Nicky adds.

Growth in Australia was indeed consistent, as was the expansion of their wholesale network. From 2013 onward, however, things accelerated, as the sisters set their sights beyond their continent, opening stores in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom and Europe — with Mayfair and Saint-Tropez among their first landmark destinations. Today, Simone believes balance is the key to managing continued growth. “We aim to maintain a steady growth rate across all channels. Retail is extremely important to us, but e-commerce and wholesale are also performing strongly,” she explains. “Coming from Australia, the idea of becoming a global brand once seemed almost unreal, mainly because of the opposite seasons. But we were willing to flip our calendar and operate on the Northern Hemisphere’s rhythm. From a design perspective, it proved to be the right decision — and we moved in that direction very early on.

“When we later began working with platforms like Net-a-Porter, it became clear that we needed to offer the same product globally. There was no room for delays or regional variations — it simply wasn’t practical, nor was it aligned with our design identity. That shift fundamentally restructured the business: how we work, how we design, and how we organize each collection. From then on, everything flowed smoothly. The idea of global presence had been at the back of our minds since our first participation in Australian Fashion Week. It was exactly what we envisioned when we made our earliest decisions — we just never imagined it would take this shape. We’ve grown alongside our customer.”

From Sydney, they moved on to presenting collections in New York, and since 2022, following the relocation of their headquarters to Paris, they have been showing at Paris Fashion Week. “We needed a base at the heart of fashion,” Simone explains. “This move had a significant impact on the structure of the brand. Since opening our offices in France, we’ve grown even more and truly feel part of the international fashion ecosystem.”

This shift also coincided with a new financial chapter for the family-run business, thanks to an investment by Advent International. In 2023, the powerful private equity firm acquired a majority stake, making Zimmermann the first Australian fashion company to surpass a one-billion-dollar valuation. The brand’s status as a “fashion phenomenon” was further cemented earlier this year, when the Zimmermann sisters appeared on the Australian Financial Review Rich List — the only Australian representatives of luxury fashion with international success, and an estimated combined fortune exceeding $400 million. Now in their fifties, Nicky and Simone retain a minority stake while continuing to steer the brand alongside an experienced executive team, which includes CEO Chris Olliver, Nicky’s husband.

This interview took place immediately after the presentation of their Summer collection in Paris last September, but is published now to coincide with the recent opening of the Zimmermann boutique in Mykonos — the perfect moment for Greek readers to get to know the brand more intimately. The current collection feels like a bridge between the sisters’ roots and the European present. At its presentation, as guests passed through the grand doors of the Palais de Tokyo, screens played excerpts from Morning of the Earth, Albert Falzon’s cult 1970s Australian surf film. Sun-drenched images of boys and girls cutting through waves in Australia and Indonesia flickered on screen — scenes that inspired the collection and lent their hues to organza dresses in ocean blue and sandy beige. Ruffles cascaded like waves, airy volumes evoked palm trees swaying in the summer breeze, while kangaroo prints, oversized straw bags, high-waisted jeans, lightweight metal-fiber crinolines in earthy tones, and shell necklaces with hand-carved dolphin charms brought the aesthetic of old-school, lo-fi surf culture to the runway — reimagined with a contemporary spirit. The collection transformed Falzon’s idyllic universe into something strikingly modern yet equally utopian, seamlessly absorbed into the Zimmermann world — free, joyful, and sunlit.

“What I notice, whether from the girls I meet or the boys who work in our stores, is that people want to know the story behind each collection,” says Nicky. “Why we chose a certain fabric, what inspired a design — those details matter to them.” It’s a sentiment she fully shares, as for her fashion is emotion, memory, and connection. The future of the brand, Simone notes, will depend on her and Nicky’s ability to balance business challenges with creative expression — a duality that has always defined their approach. “You can always learn from others,” she emphasizes. “The key is never believing there’s only one way to do things. Listen to every idea, but always stay true to yourself.”

If their journey so far is any indication, this is only the beginning.