Donatella Versace is not here for the new Miami hotspot. The legendary designer is slamming a new hotel and restaurant that’s using her name, without her approval. Even worse, it's happening near the location where her brother, Gianni Versace, was murdered.
Donatella took to Instagram to share a screenshot of her statement. “Let me be clear. The hotel and restaurant named Donatella, located near our former family home in Miami, will never have anything to do with me or my family,” she wrote. The famous designer continued, “To try to capitalize on our tragedy and my name for profit is disgraceful.”
It's not new tension. The project, the Donatella Boutique Hotel & Restaurant, is being launched by Nakash and Vida & Estilo Hospitality. The group bought the former Versace mansion at auction in 2013, beating Donald Trump. Gianni was tragically shot and killed on the front steps in 1997.
They adopted the Versace aesthetic, and after nearly three years of renovations, became the Villa Casa Casuarina and Gianni’s, a luxury hotel and restaurant. But despite the name and glamor, the Versace family has no formal connection to the business. It used to be the place they called home before the rebrand. Now, thousands of guests have paid a lot of money to sleep in Donatella's old room.
It's probably a triggering situation for Donatella, and now the remodeled six-room hotel and 170-seat restaurant just steps away has her name slapped on it. After seeing the success of the mansion, it makes financial sense why they wanted to.
It'll be interesting to see if Donatella tries to intervene legally, because she might have a case.
The end of an era
This all comes after Donatella stepped down as chief creative officer of Versace after more than 25 years at the helm.
Still, Donatella has remained in the spotlight. At this year’s Met Gala, she wore a tailored, embroidered crystal, metal mesh, and chainmail gown that took over 400 hours to make. She arrived with Chance the Rapper, looking incredible in his Versace look.