How the Gold Coast’s fashion hotel became today’s Imperial Hotel
The Gold Coast is racing to add more beds before the 2032 Olympic Games, with more than 5,500 extra hotel rooms needed over the next decade. New openings are on the way, including the Ritz-Carlton at The Spit, KTQ’s Kirra Point in the south and the A$500 million Marina Mirage redevelopment joining Marriott’s Luxury Collection, but one property still captures the city’s luxury tourism pivot: the former Palazzo Versace, now the Imperial Hotel.
The Gold Coast Bulletin recently noted that when it opened in September 2000, Palazzo Versace was billed as the world’s first fashion-branded hotel and one of the most opulent stays anywhere. The concept took shape in 1997 when Gold Coast developer Sunland Group began talks with Italy’s House of Versace. As Sunland co-founder Soheil Abedian recalled in 2020: “The fashion industry had grown rapidly in the 1980s and one of those geniuses was Gianni Versace.” He added: “Versace was the only fashion house in the world at the time which was not just concentrating on clothing but homewear too.” And the vision flowed from Gianni’s philosophy: “Gianni always made a statement, saying he did not want to dress people, he wanted to dress the environment they live in.”
A planned meeting with Gianni Versace never happened — the designer was murdered by spree killer Andrew Cunanan in July 1997 — but Sunland pursued the partnership. After 14 months of negotiations, the Abedians flew to Milan in August 1998 to meet Santo Versace, then the house’s new president, and settled on the Fisherman’s Wharf site beside Marina Mirage, where the idea had first been sketched. The once-famous venue had struggled financially, closed in early 1998 and was swiftly demolished to make way for the high-end hotel.
Members of the Versace family made repeat trips to the Gold Coast to check progress. The doors opened on Friday, 15 September 2000, the same day as the Sydney Olympics opening ceremony — a neat alignment with Australia’s global spotlight. Over the years the hotel hosted a string of A-listers including Johnny Depp, U2 and The Rolling Stones.
Time, however, caught up with the property. By the 2020s, age was showing and owners explored sale options. In 2023 the branding agreement with the House of Versace expired and was not renewed, prompting the removal of signature elements — even the Medusa mosaic in the lobby floor. One piece stayed: an antique chandelier from the State Library of Milan, once owned by Gianni Versace, which was excluded from the branding deal and still hangs in the main foyer.
The Versace name may be gone on the Gold Coast, but Sunland’s replica in Dubai continues to trade — a reminder of the hotel that helped redefine luxury on The Spit as the city prepares for its next tourism wave.
Jonathan Jackson, 25th September 2025
