type private industry consumer goods founded 1978 ; 38 years ago 1978 founder gianni versace headquarters milan italy key people gianni versace founder santo versace chairman & president 1 jonathan akeroyd director & ceo 1 donatella versace artistic director products textiles apparel revenue eu 479.2 million 2013 2 eu 408.7 million 2012 2 number of employees 500 website www.versace.com gianni versace s.p.a. italian pronunciation d anni ver sa t e usually referred to as versace is a world famous italian luxury fashion company and trade name founded by gianni versace in 1978 . the main collection of the brand is versace which produces upmarket italian made ready to wear and leather accessories while other diffusion lines are versace collection mainly in the us versus versace and versace jeans . the versace logo is the head of medusa a greek mythological figure . the logo came from the floor of ruins in rome that the versace siblings played in as children . gianni versace chose medusa as the logo because she made people fall in love with her and they had no way back . he hoped his company would have the same effect on people . the versace brand is known for having flashy prints and bright colors . 3 4 contents 1 history and operations 2 collaborations 3 partnerships 4 palazzo versace 5 references 6 external links history and operations edit in 1972 gianni versace designed his first collections for callaghan genny and complice . in 1978 the company launched under the name gianni versace donna . 5 the first versace boutique was opened in milan s via della spiga in 1978 . 6 7 versace was one of the few independent designers who was in control of everything about the brand from designing to retailing . 3 in 1982 the company expanded into the accessory jewelry home furnishing and china industries . 8 in 1993 donatella versace created the young versace line as well as versus . 5 in 1994 the brand gained widespread international coverage due to the black versace dress of elizabeth hurley referred to at the time as that dress . 4 9 10 versace was often described as the rock n roll designer because they designed for many famous clients including elton john michael jackson and bruce springsteen . versace designed the stage costumes and album cover costumes for elton john in 1992 . versace has also designed clothing for the princess of wales and princess caroline of monaco . the versace company is known for using the same models in their ads as they do on the runway . 8 after the murder of gianni versace in 1997 his sister donatella versace formerly vice president took over as creative director and his older brother santo versace became ceo . 11 donatella s daughter allegra versace was left a 50 percent stake in the company which she assumed control of on her eighteenth birthday . 12 13 14 in 2000 the green versace dress worn by jennifer lopez at the 42nd annual grammy awards gained a lot of media attention being voted as the fifth most iconic dress of all time in 2008 with hurley s 1994 dress being voted first in a daily telegraph poll . 10 the company s profits were in decline in the early 2000s ; 12 15 fabio massimo cacciatori was hired as interim ceo to reorganise and restructure the versace group in 2003 . 16 cacciatori resigned in december 2003 due to disputes with the versace family . 16 from 2004 giancarlo di risio from it holding was ceo of the group until his resignation in 2009 due to disagreements with donatella . 17 18 19 since july 2009 gian giacomo ferraris previously of jil sander has operated as ceo for the group . 20 in february 2014 the blackstone group purchased a 20 percent stake in versace for 210 million . 21 22 23 as of august 2013 update more than 80 boutiques operate worldwide ; the first boutique outside of italy was opened in glasgow scotland in 1991 . 24 collaborations edit in 2006 gianni versace s.p.a. entered into a partnership with automobili lamborghini s.p.a. to produce the lamborghini murci lago lp640 versace . the car had a versace white satin interior with the versace logo embroidered into the seats . the car was available in black and white . there were only ten units produced . the car was sold with a complementary luggage set luxury driving shoes and driving gloves . 25 the versace boutique in milan italy the versace company teamed up with agustawestland in 2008 to create the agustawestland aw109 grand versace vip luxury helicopter . the helicopter includes versace leather interior and a design on the outside . 26 27 in 2011 versace and h & m released a new line of clothing that would be sold in h & m stores . the store sold both men s and women s clothing and some home items such as pillows and blankets . 28 in 2015 versace collaborated with dancer lil buck to release a line of sneakers . 29 partnerships edit versace partnered with the mind group firm in china in 2015 . the two companies designed luxury residence towers called the versace residencies . the goal of the creators were to combine versace s luxury home elements with elements of traditional chinese culture . 30 this same year versace partnered with the abil group in india to develop another residential project . these luxury homes are located in south mumbai . 31 in 2015 donatella versace was featured in riccardo tisci s givenchy campaign . 32 5th avenue nyc 2013 palazzo versace edit soheil abedian of the sunland group approached versace in 1997 and successfully proposed a luxury hotel built upon the versace brand ; the first palazzo versace opened on australia s gold coast on 15 september 2000 . 33 34 the hotel was sold to a chinese consortium in december 2012 . 35 36 the second palazzo the palazzo versace dubai was completed in december 2015 and is located in the persian gulf . 37 a third palazzo is under construction . the palazzo versace macau was announced in 2013 and will be built in partnership with macau s largest casino operator sjm holdings . 38 39 40 the palazzo versace hotels are the first fashion branded hotels in the world and place an emphasis on beauty and luxury . 41 references edit a b bloomberg . retrieved 20 march 2015 . a b mesco manuela 2014 03 27 . gianni versace profit rose 28 % in 2013 lifted by soaring sales . wall street journal . retrieved 2014 08 14 . a b davis daniel 2011 . versace . new york ny infobase learning . p. 29 . isbn 9781604139808 . a b white belinda 3 october 2012 . not that dress again lady gaga wears liz hurley s versace safety pin gown . the daily telegraph . retrieved 2014 08 14 . a b brand history . versace . retrieved march 26 2016 . matthew 2011 01 28 . history of versace . fashion in time . retrieved 2014 08 14 . gianni versace profile . victoria and albert museum . 2003 01 12 . retrieved 2014 08 14 . a b versace . made in italy.com . retrieved march 26 2016 . gundle stephen 2008 . glamour a history . oxford university press . isbn 978 0 19 921098 5 . retrieved 1 may 2011 . a b khan urmee 2008 10 09 . liz hurley safety pin dress voted the greatest dress . the daily telegraph . retrieved 2014 08 14 . 1997 versace murdered on his doorstep . bbc news . 1997 07 15 . retrieved 2014 08 14 . a b horyn cathy 2004 06 15 . a new half owner for versace and she s almost 18 . new york times . retrieved 2014 08 14 . versace niece s 700m birthday gift . sydney morning herald . 2004 07 02 . retrieved 2014 08 14 . allegra inherits versace s fortune . wenn . contactmusic.com . 2004 06 30 . retrieved 2014 08 15 . freeman hadley 2004 10 04 . versace struggles to regain its touch . the guardian . retrieved 2014 08 14 . a b valerie 2003 12 18 . fabio massimo cacciatori quits versace ceo . designtaxi.com . retrieved 2014 08 14 . versace names di risio as ceo and strengthens board . women s wear daily . highbeam research . 2004 08 27 . retrieved 2014 08 14 . meichtry stacy 2009 06 06 . versace ceo di risio resigns . wall street journal . retrieved 2014 08 14 . meichtry stacy 2009 05 22 . bucked by designer versace ceo eyes exit . wall street journal . retrieved 2014 08 14 . ft business of luxury summit 2012 gian giacomo ferraris . financial times . retrieved 2014 08 14 . binnie isla 2014 02 27 . fashion house versace sells stake to blackstone to fund growth . reuters . retrieved 2014 08 14 . binnie isla 27 february 2014 . versace sells minority stake to blackstone . retrieved 27 february 2014 . mesco manuela 2014 02 27 . versace sells minority stake to blackstone . wall street journal . retrieved 2014 08 14 . henderson damien 2005 02 14 . glasgow s versace loss may suit capital . herald scotland . retrieved 2014 08 14 . smeyers mark september 30 2006 . murci lago lp640 versace . lambo cars . retrieved april 4 2016 . 11 incredibly expensive choppers . babamail . retrieved april 4 2016 . gumuchian marie louise march 20 2008 . buckle up to travel in versace style chopper . reuter s. retrieved april 4 2016 . wischhover cheryl october 20 2011 . here it is versace for h & m the complete collection . fashionista . retrieved april 4 2016 . carlos marjon october 30 2015 . versace and lil buck s sneaker collaboration takes flight today . vogue . retrieved april 4 2016 . martens cynthia march 11 2015 . versace to partner with china s mind group . wwd . retrieved april 4 2016 . abil group partners with luxury brand versace . bricking news . october 29 2015 . retrieved april 4 2016 . conlon scarlett june 15 2015 . donatella on her givenchy campaign . vogue . retrieved april 4 2016 . glitz abounds in gold coast tribute to versace . nz herald . 2000 05 27 . retrieved 2014 08 14 . templeman tiana 2000 09 15 . the rise and fall ... and rise ... of palazzo versace . let s travel magazine . retrieved 2014 08 14 . calligeros marissa 2012 02 29 . gold coast s palazzo versace sold to chinese for 68.5 million . brisbane times . retrieved 2014 08 14 . skene kathleen 2014 04 29 . palazzo versace gm russell durnell leaves five star hotel s top job . gold coast bulletin . retrieved 2014 08 14 . fahy michael september 10 2015 . palazzo versace hotel in dubai to open in december . the national . retrieved march 30 2016 . bergin olivia 20 august 2013 . palazzo versace to open in macau . the daily telegraph . retrieved 2014 08 15 . versace teams up with sjm to outfit macau hotel . china economic review . sinomedia holdings . 21 august 2013 . retrieved 21 august 2013 . o keeffe kate 2013 08 21 . palazzo versace hotel slated for macau . wall street journal . retrieved 2014 08 15 . history . palazzo versace . retrieved march 30 2016 . external links edit italy portal companies portal fashion portal official website versace brand and company profile at fashion model directory v t e designer labels etienne aigner akris armani aspinal asprey max azria badgley mischka