While Versace’s leadership gets a shuffle in Europe, the fashion brand’s US business has been drifting for months — as one top executive has quietly left the company and another is mired in a sex scandal.
At its Milan headquarters, the racy luxury label is actively looking to replace CEO Giancarlo Di Risio, who is expected to leave within days following a tussle with designer Donatella Versace over strategy and spending, according to industry sources. A frontrunner to replace Di Risio is Gian Giacomo Ferraris, CEO of the chic fashion label Jil Sander.
Ferraris, a Gucci veteran, is “a smart guy and Versace represents a great opportunity for him,” according to one industry executive, who pegs Ferraris’ chances to win the top Versace job as “better than 50-50.”
Insiders say British retail whiz Kim Winser, who recently left the helm of Aquascutum, is also on the short list.
Meanwhile, Versace’s US business — run out of an office above the company’s giant flagship store on Fifth Avenue — has management problems of its own.
Sources said Roberto Lorenzini — a former Fendi executive who was seen as a protégé of outgoing CEO Di Risio — left his post as president and chief operating officer of Versace’s US retail chain earlier this spring. While Versace has made no announcement about his departure, Lorenzini joined the smaller fashion label Miss Sixty about a month ago, sources said.
To make matters worse, Versace’s other top US executive has been hit by an explosive sex-harassment lawsuit. As The Post reported late last year, Patrick Guadagno, who is president and chief operating officer of Versace’s US wholesale business, has been accused of pressuring a former assistant to recite word-for-word sexy phone messages left by his lovers.
The suit, filed in December by former office manager Fay Rodriguez, also alleges that one of the callers accused Guadagno of drugging and date-raping him, while another caller accused Guadagno of giving him a sexually transmitted disease.
While Guadagno hasn’t left his post at Versace, he “seems to be missing in action” from the retail scene since the suit was filed, in the words of one industry executive. The timing couldn’t have been worse for Versace, as demand for luxury goods has collapsed amid a swooning economy.
Guadagno, a former exec at Dolce & Gabbana, “was a real can-do guy who worked closely with retail partners to develop Versace’s strategy in America,” according to one insider. “Now, there’s a real lack of communication” between Versace and its retail clients that doesn’t bode well for its business outlook. james.covert@nypost.com