Fragrance house

Van Gils

Van Gils began in fashion: the label was created in 1978 after founder Miel van Gils had built a postwar tailoring business. The fashion business passed to his children in 1980, and after financial difficulties following rapid growth, the Van Gils brand passed into other hands in 1992. Its fragrance business began in the 1980s with VAN GILS STRICTLY FOR MEN, as the label evolved into a fragrance brand that connects perfume with personal character and treats scent as an extension of personality. Van Gils presents a primarily masculine, Netherlands-made fragrance identity, alongside fragrances intended for a younger audience and a women’s variant. Strictly for Men is described as the brand’s fragrance icon and the defining starting point for its later collection; Strictly No.01 was launched in 2023. In 2018, 3i invested in Royal Sanders, whose own brands included Van Gils, after Royal Sanders purchased the business from Egeria. Today, 3i lists Royal Sanders as a current portfolio investment and Van Gils among its own brands, while Koninklijke Sanders B.V. is identified as the Benelux contact for the Van Gils fragrance site.