Donatella Versace’s Legacy
Donatella Versace’s Legacy
By Brooklyn Hoffmann — March 31, 2025
Donatella Versace is stepping down as the chief creative officer of Versace, a position she has held since 1997 following the murder of her brother and the brand’s founder, Gianni Versace. She will transition to chief brand ambassador, with Dario Vitale—Miu Miu’s former design and image director—succeeding her as chief creative officer effective April 1, 2025.
Gianni and Donatella Versace were born in Reggio Calabria, Italy. Gianni started his brand in 1978, and in 1993 Donatella oversaw the children’s line Young Versace and was named head designer of the diffusion label Versus the following year. When Gianni was tragically shot in July 1997, Donatella inherited a 20% stake in the business and became chief designer.
Donatella’s daughter, Allegra Versace Beck, was granted a majority stake of 50% at just 11 years old. Due to her young age, Donatella was placed in charge of her daughter’s shares until she turned 18. “By giving half of Versace to my daughter, [Gianni] forced me to take responsibility for the company until she came of age. Without this trick in the will, I might have left the company after his death,” Donatella said in an interview for SSENSE.
The House of Versace’s first collection following Gianni’s death was revealed barely three months later. Donatella’s debut haute couture collection took place a year and three days after her brother’s passing in the usual location: the Ritz Hotel in Paris.
Donatella began to formulate her own style by toning down some of the things that were part of the “Versace identity” during her brother’s reign, including bright colors and revealing clothes. Although she removed some of Gianni’s signature elements from the brand, Donatella continued to honor her brother’s life and fashion legacy. For her spring/summer 2018 show, Donatella created a tribute collection in honor of the 20th anniversary of Gianni’s death. She showcased rococo prints and outfits inspired by some of Gianni’s autumn/winter 1992 collection looks. Donatella finished the show with Versace’s most beloved supermodels from the 1990s, including Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Carla Bruni, Claudia Schiffer, and Helena Christensen, all wearing gold chainmail reminiscent of the fall/ winter 1994 collection.
Perhaps the most iconic of Donatella’s designs was the revealing green jungle dress worn by Jennifer Lopez at the 2000 Grammy Awards. So many people searched for the dress online that it caused Google to crash and later create the Google Images function. 20 years later, Donatella’s spring/summer 2020 collection honored this by featuring J. Lo wearing a similar dress on the runway and closing the show hand in hand with her.
Another highlight of Donatella’s career was Fendance, a collaboration between Versace and Fendi that took place in Milan. The event sported 50 looks, 25 per designer, and included models Amber Valletta, Kate Moss and her daughter, Lila Moss Hack, as well as Naomi Campbell, Gigi Hadid, and Precious Lee.
Donatella Versace carried on Gianni’s legacy in a labor of love that has spanned across three decades. Donatella will now take on the role of chief brand ambassador at Versace, focusing on the brand's philanthropic and charitable endeavors. In a release by Capri Holdings, Versace said, "In my new role as chief brand ambassador, I will remain Versace’s most passionate supporter. Versace is in my DNA and always in my heart.”
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