Lilly Brændgaard

Lilly Brændgaard Hansen née Jacobsen (1918–2009) was a Danish fashion designer and businesswoman. In 1947, she opened a studio in Vejle where she designed various clothes for women but soon specialized in the more profitable business of wedding dresses. In the mid-1960s, she moved into larger premises in Vejle, founding Denmark's first clothing factory. Established as Kjoleateliet LILLY (LILLY Dress Studio), over the years her firm became known simply as LILLY. On the occasion of its 50th anniversary in 1997, there were nine outlets in Denmark and 13 in Germany.

Early life Born on 6 March 1918, Lilly Brændgaard Jacobsen was the daughter of the housepainter Martinus Julius Jacobsen (1892–1960) and Ane Kathrine Lauridsen (1898–1973), a seamstress. The eldest of six children, she was brought up in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen. When she was 14, after training as a seamstress and tailor, she was able to make a living altering clothes the clothes people brought to her, even during the war years where there was a shortage of materials.