A Founder’s Formula: Fashion, Faith and the Future According to Eliseé Nzuzi

Founder Elisée Nzuzi. Photo: Anastasiya Davydova/Courtesy of Eidiko Showroom

It didn’t begin with a glossy showroom or a famous name on the door. It began with a question. “Why do so many young designers never make it past the first collection?”. For Elisée Nzuzi, that question became the reason to build Eidiko Showroom. “Too many good ideas were getting lost”, she tells me. “People with real talent, real creativity but the industry only listens when you already have power. I wanted to change that.” Not with a brand and her name on it, but a space for others; a place that worked like a backstage engine for designers who deserved to be on stage.

The name itself tells the story.

“Eidiko comes from ancient Greek, it means special, something unique that you don’t see around. When I search for names, I always look into Latin or Greek. I wanted something that makes people curious. The name itself invites discovery and that’s exactly what I wanted to give to the designers I work with. Something you don’t see around.”

Starting from zero

Elisée Nzuzi in her showroom. Photo: Anastasiya Davydova/Courtesy of Eidiko Showroom

Elisée studied fashion design, later communication and marketing, her strength was building visibility.

“I was always good at giving advice, helping brands find their voice. I love directing, guiding, building concepts. Of course, I could have my own brand one day, and maybe I will, but not now. I want to wait. By then, Eidiko Showroom will be so powerful that I won’t need to present my brand. It’s about timing.”

When she launched Eidiko, she didn’t expect it to take off so quickly. She learned the hardest part wasn’t logistics, it was people.

“When you’re not famous, they don’t come to you,” she says, almost laughing. “No one believed in my concept. I was completely alone. No partners, no investors. But it’s okay, If I did it alone for two years, I can keep going.” She continues with a memory, when Eidiko was finally seen for what it is.

“I’ll never forget the first day of my showroom in Paris. People came in and said ‘Wow.’ They wanted to collaborate, to shoot, to join. I saw their faces and thought this is it. Eidiko was born.” But that moment came from pain.

“When I started, I was in a very emotional place,” she admits. “Division. From work, from friends, from everything. You know how singers write their best songs when they have a broken heart? It was like that. I felt like I had nothing left. In that confusion, in that heartbreak, I asked myself: What can I still do? What can I still push forward? Except my creativity, my vision, my work. So I built something from it.” Elisée is both the creative director and the strategist behind Eidiko.

“When I finish work, I go home and study business. Every night. I watch conferences, I read, I go to meetings. What I don’t know, I learn. Now I’m fifty-fifty, creative and business. You have to balance both, or it doesn’t work.”, she adds:

“The industry changed; fewer buyers, smaller budgets. Emerging brands are struggling. That’s why I built Eidiko. It’s always difficult, but you have to find the window, that small opening that lets you move to the next step.”

Women at the center

Courtesy of Eidiko Showroom

Her team is entirely made of women, something she fiercely protects.

“I love women,” she says simply. “We need to support each other more. When a woman walks into my showroom, I see her moment, I see her energy. When I look into her eyes and she’s smiling, feeling beautiful, feeling happy, that’s what I love. When I work with women, I want them to grow the same way I’m growing. I never feel like I’m better than someone else. I always ask, What can we do to grow together?”

“We are losing women in the system, all the big creative directors are men. We are losing women. We are losing our place. It’s not okay.” she adds. “ Why can’t Balenciaga have a female creative director? We need more women on stage because they design differently. They understand the female body in a different way. My female team is power. I tell them, go out there, have fun, be professional, show your energy. Show your power.”

And when things get tough?

“My motto is always The show must go on, Fashion is emotional, it’s stressful. Everyone has opinions. So I tell my team: You have to develop a strong mindset. To wake up, do your job and push through. If you need to cry, okay, go outside, cry, drink some water and come back. If it’s too much, take a break. But when you come back, you finish your work.”

Milan vs. Paris

Eidiko operates in both cities, but they are different worlds.

“Paris is more open,” she says. “More experimental, more curious. Milan is smaller, more traditional. In Paris, even if you’re not in the official calendar, you still have visibility. You can show who you are.”

She smiles when she speaks about the mix of brands she represents: Vellachor, Tabbe Designs, Deniz Arad, Edis Pala.

“In Paris, people love them. They understand experimental silhouettes, they understand color. In Milan, it’s harder, they prefer something classic. But I can’t reduce my brands’ creativity. If I do, it dies.”

The shift in fashion

With more and more designers reaching out, she’s become selective.

“When I select a brand, I always look at their vision and future. I always ask: Where do you want to go? What’s your plan? If you just want a few days of visibility, it’s not for us. We build long-term. With some brands, we even start from zero. Concept, logo, visuals, collection. And when they’re ready, I tell them: Now you can fly.”

Elisée sees the change happening in real time.

“Luxury is losing credibility,” she says. “People are tired. They want authenticity, they want something with meaning. Paris is full of pop-ups, small showrooms, concept stores. That’s the future.” In Milan, she says, things move slower. “It’s still classic, still about big names. But in Paris, if you want something special, you go to Le Marais. You find new voices. That’s what I love.”

When I ask her what she’d tell young designers starting now, she doesn’t hesitate.

“Don’t be scared to fail,” she says firmly. “Because you will. And that’s okay. Failure teaches you everything. When you fail, you grow stronger. Just go for it. Even if it doesn’t go as planned, you’ll find another way.”

“Look at Beyoncé,” she adds, smiling. “She’s been here for more than twenty years, because she keeps changing. She reinvents herself. Brands have to do the same. Never stop evolving.”

Eidiko today

Photo: Jules Olivier/Courtesy of ECHOGRID

Eidiko Showroom is now two years old and growing fast. The Paris pop-up, the expanding team, the recognition from press and buyers, it all feels like a beginning. But Elisée doesn’t pause long.

“I still have a lot to learn,” she says. “I’m still growing. But I believe in what I do and that’s what keeps me going. My goal is to give space to the new generation, the ones who are dreaming, who are building, who just need someone to say: I see you.”

Eidiko Showroom

Founder & Creative Director: Elisée Nzuzi

Instagram: @eidikoshowroom