MILAN — Versace is giving the Versus brand a high-tech tune-up.
Dante D’Angelo, a longtime Versace executive, is spearheading Versus’ return to the marketplace with products such as leather accessories, eyewear, fragrance and costume jewelry.
But rather than focus on the mere design of these items, Versace is out to incorporate technology into every product bearing its name. Last year, Versus launched a cell phone/MP3 player with Samsung, its first foray in this direction.
“We want to create a new market niche called technological luxury,” said D’Angelo, who has been working on the Versus relaunch for about a year. “We are not planning on doing apparel. Instead, we want to exploit the accessories business. This is a category that lends itself best to technological development.”
Versus, once a full-fledged secondary line at Versace, has been absent from the runways for several seasons now as Versace chief executive officer Giancarlo Di Risio has focused his restructuring efforts on the top-tier collection.
D’Angelo, who has spent the last decade working on marketing and licensing products at Versace, is now leading a fully dedicated team on the Versus project. A local Milan agency is handling Versus’ public relations, part of an overall strategy to distance Versus from Versace and give the younger brand its own identity. A Versus showroom is scheduled to open here next year.
“We didn’t want to just put another brand on the market,” D’Angelo said. “When we talk about Versus, it is not in terms of a design department but of a research department.”
D’Angelo declined to give a sales forecast for the brand. In July, Di Risio estimated Versus sales would reach 35 million euros, or $46 million, by this year.
Versus has a string of licensing agreements for each product category. The brand will show its watch collection at the Basel World show in April, and stage a launch event. The timepieces are produced by Vertime. An eyewear line, manufactured by partner Luxottica, will bow in March at this year’s Silmo in Paris.
Versus and its production partner Works, based in Florence, unveiled a 40-piece collection of handbags and footwear for spring as a test run. But the fall collection will more fully embody the technology concept, whether with a color application or an innovative material.
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In the pipeline for next year is a fragrance with Versus partner Euroitalia. The brand is also plotting a strategy for costume jewelry.
D’Angelo said he was starting to work on a store concept for Versus, but he hadn’t set a date. Initially, the brand is focusing on specialty distribution for eyewear, watches and accessories.