Versace
Gianni Versace S.r.l. (Italian pronunciation: [ˈdʒanni verˈsaːtʃe]), usually referred to simply as Versace, is an Italian luxury fashion company and trade name founded by Gianni Versace in 1978.[1] The main collection of the brand is Versace, which produces upmarket Italian-made ready-to-wear and leather accessories. The Versace logo is the head of Medusa, a Greek mythological figure. The logo came from the floor of ruins in the area of Reggio Calabria 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 and on those who wore his clothes and shoes.
The Versace brand is known for its innovative designs having symbolic flashy prints and bright colors but with style. The company announced in 2018 that it would stop using fur in its collections. On 25 September 2018, Michael Kors Holdings acquired all outstanding shares in Gianni Versace S.r.l. for $2.12 billion (USD); the acquisition was completed on 31 December 2018, keeping on Donatella Versace as head of creative design.[2]
Controversy
In December 2016, a former Versace employee was suing the company for unfair business practices, and one of the allegations in his lawsuit is that the luxury fashion label used a secret "code" to alert employees when a black customer enters the store.[3] Apparently, whenever black customers walked into the store, co-workers would relay a message that a “D410” has entered the store. D410 is the color code for black shirts at Versace. Sampiro responded by asking the manager, "You know that I'm African American?" In the lawsuit, Sampiro self-identifies as one-quarter African American. After this response, Sampiro claimed the store's management treated him differently and did not give him "legitimate" training. Sampiro was fired after working two weeks in September because he didn't "understand luxury" and didn't "know the luxury life," according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit also alleges Sampiro was not paid for time worked, did not receive rest periods and was wrongfully terminated.
Versace responded to this accusation by saying that they "believes strongly in equal opportunity, as an employer and a retailer, and do not tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, national origin or any other characteristic protected by our civil rights laws. We have denied the allegations in this suit, and we will not comment further concerning pending litigation."[4]
References
- ↑ https://www.versace.com/us/en-us/about-us/company-profile.html
- ↑ https://cavesocial.com/versace/
- ↑ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/former-versace-employee-says-store-uses-code-words-black-shoppers-a7496636.html
- ↑ https://edition.cnn.com/2016/12/27/us/versace-code-lawsuit-trnd/index.html
