The fancy of designer merchandise has since the past been associated with taste, class, and sophistication. People wear designer clothes and other things because of the status it gives them in society. Gianni Versace or simply Versace was founded in 1978 by Gianni Versace; it is an Italian based luxurious fashion company.
It produces ready to wear clothes and leather accessories. Its business Logo is the head of the Medusa; his choice was influenced by the fact that the Medusa made people fell in love with her and never left, and so he hoped that the logo would bring the same spirit into his business.
This brand is known for its unique designs over the years, the company was acquired by Michael Kors Holdings for $2.12 billion in December 2018, but kept Donatella Versace as the head of creative designs. If you are interested in knowing how Versace came to be, here is a simplified summary of its inception, evolution, and Net Worth.
Inception
The late Gianni Versace was the founder of the Versace company; he designed his first collections in 1972 for Callaghan, Complice, and Genny. The company was launched in 1978 and was named ‘Gianni Versace Donna’ the first store was opened in Milan in 1978. Versace was independent and controlled everything on his brand, from retailing to designing. In 1982 they diversified and started producing Jewelry, accessory, china industries, and home furnishing. The line “Young Versace “was created by Donatella Versace in 1993.
Evolution
Versace gained a lot of fame in 1994; this was after designing a black Versace dress for Elizabeth Hurley. He gained the name “Rock n Roll” designer; this is due to the fact that they designed for celebrities like Michael Jackson and Elton John. In 1992 he designed stage costumes for Elton John album cover, he also designed for Princess of Caroline of Monaco and Princess of Wales. They use the same models in their ads and runway.
Gianni Versace was murdered in 1997, Donatella Versace, his sister, and formerly the vice president became the creative director Santo Versace; their older brother became the CEO. Allegra Versace, the daughter of Donatella Versace, inherited a 50 percent of the company, which was to be officiated at her 18th birthday.
In the 2000s, the Versace company profits declined greatly; Fabio Massimo Cacciatori was hired as the overall in a bid to restructure and reorganize the Versace group. He resigned in December 2003 due to constant disputes with the Versace family. Giancarlo di Risio took over in 2004 but resigned in 2009 due to disagreements with Donatella Versace. In 2016, Jonathan Akeryod was appointed by the Versace group as the overall CEO.
The Blackstone family bought twenty percent of Versace for 210 million Euros. The Versace group is said to have 1500 boutiques in operation globally, the first boutique located outside Italy was opened in 1991 in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2018, one hundred percent of Versace and Blackstone were sold to the Michael Kors Limited Group. They joined Capri Holdings together with Jimmy Choo and Michael Kors to form a new fashion luxury big group.
Awards and Achievements
The green Versace Dress designed in 2000, was voted as the 5th most Iconic dress in 2008, this dress was worn by Jennifer Lopez during the forty-second Annual Grammy Awards.
The dress worn by Hurley in 1994 was also voted as the first during the polls held by Daily Telegraph.
Versace designed clothes for famous people like Michael Jackson and Elton John, and this was a great achievement because his designs are head-turning.
Net Worth Versace in 2024
At the death of the founder of Versace, Gianni Versace was worth $1 billion. You might wonder if Gianni was worth all this humungous amount of money what was the Versace the company Net worth. Versace was worth $2.12 in 2018 when it was acquired by Michael Kors. As of January 2024, Versace net worth is around $3 billion.
Versace before its acquisition had around 1500 boutiques in operations, being classy luxury wear, their merchandise is won with people who are willing to spend money to afford such luxury.
Versace continues to be a multi-billion business and great designers of all time. Having made designs that are stylish and unique over the years, it already gained a place in a certain class of people. In order to wear an original Versace merchandise, you have to part with a good amount of money, because designers like this can be afforded by a few, Afterall luxury goes hand in hand with wealth.