Victoria’s Secret (VSCO) is back in the news again, but for a different reason.
Victoria’s Secret previously was the center of the “me too” movement, where it came to light how much misogyny, harassment and bullying was happening within the company under former executives Les Wexner and Ed Razek. Both execs have since left the company.
Even after there was light shed on the hostile environment within Victoria’s Secret, the public was more concerned with the movement of body positivity that Victoria’s Secret did not promote. A viral video by singer song writer Jax, went on to say, “I know Victoria’s Secret… she was made up by a dude.” This was spot on and resonated with many people. The Victoria’s Secret model that was idolized was a near impossible body.
The company responded to the video by stating they recognize that in the past Victoria’s Secret has promoted images that create body image issues, and that it was working to reshape its present, while it cannot change its past. Former CEO, Amy Hauk, had taken over the company after the departures of Wexner and Razek, and now Martin Waters is CEO. After years of scrutiny and changes in management, it’s definitely time for a dramatic change.
Image source: Shutterstock
Victoria's Secret Plans to Relaunch Brand
At this point it’s not hard to believe that Victoria’s Secret brand, Pink needs a makeover to help revive the brand. Pink was originally introduced in 2002 as a Victoria’s Secret brand that targets tweens and teens. The brand experienced a down quarter in 2023, but Waters knew that Pink needed to get overhauled back in November 2022, according to Retail Dive.
“The level of the change that's required in that brand is really pretty significant in the non-intimates category. So, the intimates business for PINK has been relatively strong and continues to be so. And we don't imagine a whole lot of reinvention in the intimate area other than getting into the sport business within PINK, which is a -- which has been a meaningful gap for us in intimates. So, it's mainly focused on apparel,” said Waters.
“Within apparel, sleepwear -- casual sleepwear and PINK has been strong. So we're good there. We feel like we've got that well positioned. It's really the outerwear. So I think hoodies and T-shirts, and bottoms and fashion, where we have been over reliant on a logo business and a particular articulation of a logo business and that needs to be dramatically refreshed. When will the impact be? It's really the fall season. The very end of Q2 is the first drop of new merchandise.”
Victoria’s Secret working to make changes in 2023, might be too little too late. The movement by young women working to support one another in a positive nature is here, and it is only growing. Victoria’s Secret needed to make its changes sooner to make its mark on the current younger generation.
Waters said that customers are buying intimate and sleepwear, but not outerwear, which is a self-promotion of the brand itself. Perhaps shoppers don’t want to advertise on their bodies where they shop or support a company that has a history of promoting a negative self-body image.
Victoria’s Secret Returns to its Fashion Show
The widely publicized and scrutinized lingerie show by Victoria’s Secret is set to return after a brief hiatus. The fashion show ran from 1995 until 2018, and it was dropped after ratings and sales had fallen amid the scandals around former Victoria’s Secret Executive Razek, who also organized the event.
The event was wrought with world famous fashion models, that embodied the image that Victoria’s Secret had worked so hard at promoting to men and women as the ideal body. Now the company wants to reinvent its iconic show trying to bring back its audience using old tricks.
"We're going to continue to lean into the marketing spend to invest in the business, both at top-of-funnel and also to support the new version of our fashion show, which is to come later this year," Victoria’s Secret CFO Tim Johnson said.
The event will likely work to be inclusive of all shapes, sizes and colors of bodies in its newest version of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, but whether anyone tunes in to see it, only time will tell. The attempt may be too late for some, but others may find the company’s latest attempt to revive its brand refreshing as it has a national stage to give a positive message to its customers.
