Donatella Versace

Born 2 May 1955, Donatella Versace grew up in the orbit of her older brother Gianni, working closely with him as he built Versace into a luxury juggernaut that fused Italian tradition with pop-culture flash. Together they cast editorial models on runways and helped ignite the supermodel phenomenon of the 1990s. Gianni's murder in 1997 left her with a portion of the brand and the creative director's chair — a role she still holds as chief brand ambassador, steering the house her brother founded through decades of shifting taste.