While browsing through the mall with my mom this past weekend, we shopped at all my top stores: Express, H&M, and my most favorite, Aerie. I loved every single thing they had at Aerie—it was practically impossible to choose what to buy. As my mom and I made our way around the mall, we came across Victoria’s Secret. My mom suggested we take a look in there, but I quickly shut her down. My reasoning? To put it bluntly, Victoria’s Secret has a pretty bad reputation. I, along with many other people, refuse to shop at Victoria’s Secret anymore. Instead, I look towards more inclusive and comfortable brands, such as Aerie.
Victoria’s Secret has a long history. The brand was launched in 1977 by Roy Raymond, with the goal to create a store that was a safe space for men to buy their wives scandalous pieces of lingerie. The brand was built on what men would like to see their wives wearing, but this didn’t have the happy ending that was planned — by 1982, Victoria’s Secret was on the brink of bankruptcy. Leslie Wexner acquired the brand and tried to save it, creating pieces of lingerie that were catered specifically towards women, for women. For the time being, this was successful and the brand was on the rise once again.
On August 1, 1995 the first Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show hit the stage. At first, it was used as a marketing tactic but it soon became so much more. To sum it up, uber thin models walk down a runway wearing scandalous pieces of lingerie, extravagant costumes, and the highest heels I’ve ever seen. While at first the fashion show was a smashing success with record breaking views, it didn’t take long for controversy to arise. In my opinion, the controversy that makes me the most angry is their lack of inclusivity. In 2017, Ed Razek (chief marketing officer for L Brands, Victoria Secret’s parent company) said “If you’re asking if we’ve considered putting a transgender model in the show or looked at putting a plus-size model in the show, we have … Shouldn’t you have transsexuals in the show? No. No, I don’t think we should. Because the show is a fantasy. It’s a 42-minute entertainment special. That’s what it is.” This quote sparked outrage, rightfully so. Razek was basically saying that transgender and plus size women can’t serve the same fantasy as thin women. Viewership for the following fashion show in 2017 dropped from 5 million viewers to 3.3 million.
Since 2017, the brand has shut down a multitude of stores. In 2020 alone, 250 locations closed their doors for good. This year, Victoria’s Secret has tried to implement a new face of models, including “… trans model Valentina Sampaio, British plus-size activist Paloma Elsesser and US footballer Megan Rapinoe,” as The US Sun reported. I can’t help but to wonder: Is this all just a performative act to save their brand and increase sales? It took a long time for Victoria’s Secret to even scratch the surface of inclusivity, so I’m a little bit skeptical of their rebranding.
Aside from past controversy, I speculate that the reasoning for their decline in performance is the rise of more inclusive and comfortable brands, such as Aerie. I believe women today shop for comfort and style, not just one or the other. Aerie has done an amazing job at combining sexiness and comfort, with their clothes and store environment—this is something Victoria’s Secret lacks. Ever since I was a teenager, I always found the Victoria’s Secret store intimidating and I felt as if I didn’t belong. Their apparel is unconventional and the store environment is very dark, scandalous, and mature. In comparison, Aerie’s main objective is to include everyone and make their customers feel welcome. Their stores are bright, laid back, and have an overall positive vibe.
While I don’t know what holds in the financial future for Victoria’s Secret, I do know that as a woman, I cannot support this brand. The lack of inclusivity, the blatant disrespect towards women that look even slightly different than a classic Victoria’s Secret Angel, and the intense environment turn me away. It will always be a right turn back into a positive and welcoming atmosphere, like Aerie.
Girl Talk is an Opinion column written by a current female student to discuss issues surrounding women, whether it be feminism, current events, personal experiences at Stevens or in life, and more.
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