Versace to skip Milan Fashion Week, plans next show and new pattern on March 5

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Feb 4, 2021

The house of Versace plans to skip the next Milan Fashion Week, and instead will unveil its next collection solely online during the runway season of Paris.

The Medusa-head maison is also planning to unveil a new pattern in that collection to boost its bottom line, as its new owners, Capri Holding Ltd, attempt to build out Versace’s accessories business.

“Being a digital event has its advantages. One of them is the possibility of connecting with your audience whenever you think is the right moment,” said creative director Donatella Versace in a release on Thursday.

The next Milan women’s ready-to-wear season is scheduled to run from Feb. 23 to March 1. The Paris catwalk season runs from March 1 to 9. Versace thus joins Gucci and Bottega Veneta among major Italian luxury houses that will also not be present during the upcoming Milan season. However, the designer underlined that Versace remains committed to keeping Milan as the base for future shows.

“The decision to present the Fall/Winter 21 collection a few days after the Milan Fashion Week doesn’t affect the fact that Versace remains a proud member of Camera della Moda and that the brand will always be a key player and a big supporter of the Italian fashion system. Fashion is an art and sometimes it has to work outside the usual path to fully blossom,” said Donatella.

The Camera, Italian fashion’s governing body, is due to release the show schedule for the February shows later today, Feb. 4.

The decision to unveil its Fall-Winter 2021 collection in a digital-only broadcast marks a new first in the brand’s history. Versace plans to live stream the event, which will be filmed behind closed doors to ensure the safety and wellbeing of its community. The show is also expected to unveil a pattern, as part of a drive to accelerate turnover at the Milanese marque, according to John Idol, the CEO of Capri Holdings, which also controls Michael Kors and Jimmy Choo.

“I believe it is going to change the trajectory of the company significantly over the next 24 months,” Idol told analysts in a conference all this week. He stressed that Versace plans a major marketing campaign for when the new pattern hits stores and e-tailers.

Though widely acknowledged as one of the world’s great runway brands, Versace has historically lagged behind competitors like Gucci, Christian Dior or Burberry in terms of developing major businesses in handbags, shoes, belts or jewelry.