Milan Fashion Week has delivered a major industry scoop that is already sending ripples across the global style landscape: Donatella Versace is officially back in the creative driver’s seat. In a surprise announcement coming out of Milan, Versace has partnered with Los Angeles-based e-commerce giant Revolve Group Inc. to launch an independent new joint venture spanning both the fashion and beauty categories. According to the official press release, the new enterprise is designed as an independent venture that fully reflects Donatella’s personal creative vision, built specifically around how a dynamic new generation discovers style, experiences culture, shops, shares, and connects in the modern digital era.
This high-profile return marks a compelling new chapter for the legendary designer, who stepped down as chief creative officer of Versace in March 2025. That departure coincided with a broader brand repositioning orchestrated by Versace’s then-owner, Capri Holdings, bringing to a close a nearly 30-year tenure at the helm of the luxury house that she assumed following the tragic death of her brother, Gianni Versace, in 1997. Following her exit from the creative director role, she transitioned into the position of Versace’s chief brand ambassador. In the months that followed, the corporate landscape shifted significantly: Versace was acquired by the Prada Group last December. Meanwhile, the designer who initially succeeded Donatella, Dario Vitale, was replaced after just a single season by Pieter Mulier, who took over as the luxury house’s new chief creative officer.
Now, at 71 years old, Donatella Versace is proving that her cultural relevance and creative appeal effortlessly cross generations. With a staggering 12.2 million followers on Instagram, she stands as one of the most popular and actively engaged designers on the platform, while her vibrant persona continues to resonate strongly offline as well. Her recent cinematic cameo in The Devil Wears Prada 2 served as a delightful, knowing callback to the iconic 2001 original film, in which Miranda Priestly famously urges a stranded Andy Sachs to "call Donatella. Get her jet." In real life, an impressive roster of A-list celebrities has continued to champion her historic designs on red carpets throughout the year. Zendaya turned heads on the Spider-Man: Brand New Day press tour wearing a web-like 2016 Atelier Versace dress; Miley Cyrus stepped out in a 2015 Atelier Versace gown for her Hollywood Walk of Fame star ceremony; and Jennifer Lopez stunned at the Office Romance premiere in a 2004 Atelier Versace creation. Of course, Donatella is also the visionary mastermind behind the iconic plunging green 1999 Versace dress worn by Jennifer Lopez at the Grammy Awards—a legendary fashion moment universally celebrated as the catalyst that directly inspired the creation of Google Image Search.
This enduring renown and cultural footprint form the foundation of her new collaboration with the California-based fashion and lifestyle powerhouse Revolve. "Revolve understands something I believe deeply: culture comes from connection," Donatella reflects. "Together, we want to create that connection with a new voice, a new look, and a new energy."
Revolve Group was originally founded in 2003 by Michael Mente and Mike Karanikolas, growing over the past two decades into a dominant online retail force that encompasses roughly 1,600 brands across two distinct digital platforms: Revolve, which focuses heavily on established consumer labels, and Fwrd, which highlights cutting-edge and emerging designer brands. The company reported a robust $1.23 billion in total revenue for the 2025 fiscal year and has increasingly made major waves in the luxury and lifestyle sectors through strategic high-profile partnerships. These include a major joint venture with pop superstar Cardi B—which marked the company’s official entry into the competitive beauty category—as well as successful collaborations with prominent style influencers such as Sofia Richie Grainge.
Leadership at Revolve has expressed immense enthusiasm for the partnership with one of fashion’s most enduring icons. "Donatella is one of the defining creative voices of our time," notes Michael Mente, co-founder and co-CEO of Revolve Group. "This partnership gives that vision an entirely new platform and the freedom to build something from the ground up."
Raissa Gerona, president of brand and partnerships at Revolve, shares a similar sentiment regarding Donatella’s unique market intuition. "Donatella has an extraordinary instinct for what the next generation wants and an unmatched ability to connect fashion with culture," Gerona observes. "That is what makes this partnership so exciting."
Adding to these remarks, co-founder and co-CEO Michael Karanikolas emphasizes the long-term strategic potential of the alliance in the official release. "By combining Donatella’s creative authority with Revolve’s technology, infrastructure, and global reach, we have an opportunity to create something genuinely distinctive—and build it for the long term," Karanikolas states.
The newly formed brand is slated for a broad international rollout, launching across the United States, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Middle East. Industry insiders and consumers can expect the first wave of products to hit the market in 2027, alongside a formal announcement revealing the brand’s official name. The scope and overall ambition of the joint venture are expansive, designed to extend far beyond the traditional boundaries of the runway into broader realms of entertainment and contemporary lifestyle culture.
Elaborating on her motivations and hopes for the venture, Donatella emphasizes a forward-looking, fearless approach to design. "I believe creativity should be fearless, inclusive, and alive in the world," she says. "I have always been inspired by the next generation, in music, film, art, and, of course, fashion. This partnership gives me the freedom to speak to that generation in a completely new and personal way, through beauty and fashion."
