Versus (Versace) was a

diffusion line A diffusion line (also known as a bridge line) is a secondary line of merchandise created by a high-end fashion house or fashion designer that retails at lower prices. These ranges are separate from a fashion house's "signature line", or principal ...

of the Italian luxury fashion house

Versace Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury elite fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as well as '' haute couture'' under it ...

. It was founded in 1989 by

Gianni Versace Giovanni Maria "Gianni" Versace (; 2 December 1946 – 15 July 1997) was an Italian fashion designer, socialite and businessman. He was the founder of Versace, an international luxury-fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-up ...

as a gift to his sister Donatella. The line was discontinued in 2005 but was relaunched by Donatella in 2009 with a

capsule collection A capsule wardrobe is a minimalist collection of clothes that can be put together in different ways to cover a variety of outfits and occasions. The aim is to have an outfit suitable for any occasion without owning excessive items of clothing. Thi ...

of accessories designed by British designer Christopher Kane. In 2018, Versus was merged with another Versace diffusion line which is Versace Jeans, to form Versace Jeans Couture.

Brand

Gianni Versace introduced Versus in 1989 stating that, "Versus was born with an innate creative approach, with a strong focus on innovation, and a flair for the unconventional. An artistic force that takes present fashion forward, anticipating new trends and embracing challenge". Versus was endorsed by many celebrities including

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Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

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Leighton Meester Leighton Marissa Meester ( ; born April 9, 1986) is an American actress, singer, and model. She is known for her starring role as Blair Waldorf on the CW television series ''Gossip Girl'', which ran from 2007 to 2012. She has also appeared in fi ...

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and

Alexa Chung Alexa Chung (born 5 November 1983) is an English model and television personality. Chung pursued a modelling career as a teenager after being scouted by a modelling agency at the Reading Festival. She has walked for brands such as Vivienne Westw ...

, and featured in and on the cover of fashion and lifestyle magazines like Vogue, InStyle, ELLE and Glamour.

History

Versus was a secondary line of the fashion house Versace, created by Gianni Versace as a gift to his sister Donatella. The first fashion show was held in Milan in 1990 and subsequently collections were presented in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

during Fashion Week. Versus was known for its rock-chic style, which influenced the main collections of the house. In 2004, when Versace faced a downturn in profits, Versus was reduced to a limited collection of accessories and eventually shut down. However, in 2009, Donatella relaunched the brand with a collection of accessories designed in collaboration with Christopher Kane. Later collaborations included a capsule collection by M.I.A. and another one, in December 2013, by Anthony Vaccarello.

Christopher Kane (2009–2012)

Having acted as a consultant at Versace after Donatella acclaimed his MA collection for Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, Donatella invited Scottish designer Christopher Kane to re-launch the line with her in February 2009 with a capsule collection of handbags, shoes, and jewelry. For spring/summer 2010, Kane presented 16 dresses for the line at Milan Fashion Week. He has since presented two other collections for the line, fall/winter 2009/2010 and most recently spring/summer 2011, his first official runway collection at Milan Fashion Week. Donatella has likened Kane to her brother, the late Gianni Versace. Since Gianni died in 1997, she has become the creative director of the house's main line and other surviving diffusion lines.

JW Anderson (2013–2014)

Irish designer Jonathan Anderson collaborated for a capsule collection with Versus in 2013. This collaboration was unexpected due to the contrasting styles of the brands. Donatella said of Anderson that " ewas very "loyal" to the Versus codes" Anderson launched his label

JW Anderson JW Anderson is a UK fashion label, founded by Jonathan Anderson. Anderson, who is originally from Magherafelt in Northern Ireland established JW Anderson in 2008 and subsequently launched his fashion house in London. The brand initially focused ...

in 2008 and was named the

creative director A creative director is a person who makes high-level creative decisions; oversees the creation of creative assets such as advertisements, products, events, or logos; and directs and translates the creative people who produce the end results. Creat ...

of Loewe in September 2013.

Anthony Vaccarello (2014–2016)

Anthony Vaccarello began working with Versus in 2014 and exited in 2016 to become Creative Director for Saint Laurent.

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://www.versace.com/ Versace High fashion brands Clothing brands of Italy Privately held companies of Italy Fashion accessory brands Clothing companies established in 1989 1989 establishments in Italy Clothing companies based in Milan Eyewear brands of Italy Watch manufacturing companies of Italy