Fashion industry insiders Danielle and Vicki Vlahos have taken their dirty laundry to the NSW Supreme Court, in what promises to be an almighty stoush between the cousins and co-founders of Portia & Scarlett.
The independently owned formalwear label was founded by the cousins in 2014, and at the time of its sale to US bridal group Allure in December 2023, with 1000 stockists in 47 countries.
Just three years ago, Danielle and Vicki wore matching black gowns and grinned side-by-side, as the cousins poured a champagne tower to the cheers of Sydney‘s glitterati.
The blondes looked to be on top of the world as they partied among hundreds of hot pink balloons, fashion industry insiders, and danced on tables at their company’s annual Christmas party.
This week, the court was told the relatives ‘largely got along’ until Vicki wanted to sell the business in 2023.
In bombshell claims about the co-founders’ ruined relationship, Vicki told the court that her ex-business partner and ex-husband are now together: ‘She went on a honeymoon with my ex-husband, yes,’ she said.
‘I think they’re engaged … it was like a pre-honeymoon,’ Vicki told Justice Scott Nixon during the hearing this week.
Meanwhile, the judge also heard Danielle’s claims of being ‘verbally abused’ by Vicki.
Former head designer Danielle said she’s seeking to recover a $170,000 loan, which she gave to Vicki for her divorce settlement, before taking up with Vicki’s ex-husband.
Under cross-examination, Vicki accused the woman she once thought of ‘as a sister’ of ‘double dipping’ by asking for the funds back.
She said that money, sent in January 2023, went toward her cousin’s divorce settlement ‘which now Danielle has the benefit of I might add’.
Meanwhile, the judge also heard Danielle’s claims of being ‘verbally abused’ by Vicki, which Vicki described as ‘family fighting.’
News.com.au reports Vicki said in court, ‘Danielle and me had fights from when she was born,’ she said. ‘So you can say from 1985, if you like.’
She added the amount should be considered ‘a credit,’ against what she claims Danielle owes her.
Vicki (née Chami) and Danielle (née Makhlouf) started their company Love D & V XOXO in 2010 and opened its first boutique, the Doll House, in Top Ryde Shopping Centre.
They went on to open another three boutiques, and then founded Portia & Scarlett to ‘fill a gap’ in the formalwear market inspired by their customers.
The cousins sold the business to US wedding dress manufacturer Allure Bridal in 2023 for ‘an undisclosed sum.’
They’re now going head-to-head over the division of the sale price – and unresolved loans totalling $800,000.
The cousins’ court battle – which is likely to drag on for some time – has already uncovered a tangled web of informal business dealings and personal disagreements between the pair.
Vicki claims that she’s owed $645,000 from an ‘oral’ home loan agreement to help Danielle buy a home in Gladesville, which Danielle says has been ‘more than repaid.’
Danielle claims she paid her cousin back $741,903 for the home loan, through five separate payments, and that Vicki had ‘admitted’ the loan was repaid in a WhatsApp message.
The cousins are also disputing hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses racked up while attending trade shows ($58K), unpaid annual leave ($216K), and accommodation in Los Angeles.
The court has also been asked to rule on how much the Sydney-based relatives owe on their respective company loans.
A court-appointed receiver has been instructed to sell off about $7million of company assets, after the court decides what each cousin owes, and is still entitled to after they’ve paid those amounts back.
