What Victoria’s Secret’s Blast from the Past Says About Its Future

This week, Victoria’s Secret orchestrated its biggest cultural moment in the better half of a decade: a star-studded return of its annual fashion show after a six-year hiatus, this time around with splashy performances from Blackpink’s Lisa, Tyla and Cher, and a 40-minute catwalk streak by a jaw-dropping who’s who of supermodels.

So far, it seems like the big production paid off. Victoria’s Secret shares rose nearly 7 percent in the following day, and on social media there was a 5,000 percent increase in mentions from the month prior, according to influencer marketing platform Traackr. The public response has been mostly positive, though many fashion industry attendees exited the show underwhelmed while on social media, some fans of the brand complained that the show’s pared down set and costumes lacked the magic of previous iterations.

The media reception has been mixed, with supportive reports pointing to the female-led production of the event and the visibility of diversity on the runway. Plus-size models Ashley Graham — who in 2017 publicly called out Victoria’s Secret for its exclusion of certain body types — and Paloma Elsesser were among the cast. Trans models Alex Consani and Valentina Sampaio also walked, a first for the brand.

No matter the sentiment, the show got the job done: Victoria’s Secret is in the cultural conversation again, creating a promising foundation for its new CEO Hillary Super, who assumed the top role last month.

But will it be enough to propel Victoria’s Secret into an era of growth?

Capturing momentum will be critical for the struggling lingerie giant, which, despite its continued dominance in the intimates space, has been losing market share for years. In 2023, it raked in $6.2 billion in net sales, down from $6.8 billion in 2021. Its diminishing topline and profits are a reflection of waning cultural relevance among young consumers, too as competitors like Skims and Aerie have more successfully resonated with shifting views around inclusion, body positivity and comfort.

Wall Street is seeing some promising signs. Just a few hours before the show began, Super had lunch with retail analysts, offering a glimpse into her turnaround strategy, which will emphasise customer feedback, brand loyalty and expanding swim and activewear lines, as well as the Pink sub-brand. In recent months, the company has also renovated a number of stores and launched into new markets outside of North America.

“We believe [Super] sees meaningful opportunity to improve brand storytelling followed by promotions and expressed excitement around Pink’s potential,” BMO Capital Markets analyst Simeon Siegel wrote in a note published Wednesday and raised the target of the stock, a move that signals an expectation that its price will rise.

The major media reckoning for Victoria’s Secret came in the wake of the #MeToo movement as reports emerged of ties between Les Wexner, then-CEO of the brand’s former parent company L Brands, and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as well as sexual harassment behind the scenes at the company. In the years since, Victoria’s Secret did its best to move past the scandal. It cancelled the annual fashion show, spun off from L Brands, and transformed its brand identity to champion greater representation of the female body, with a new slate of ambassadors dubbed VS Collective that included athletes and plus-size models.

But these efforts didn’t do much to change consumer perception of the brand; it certainly didn’t sell more bras. All the while, the company had been hearing from customers who missed the fashion show — the Angels, the multi-million dollar fantasy bra and all the magic that had made Victoria’s Secret so popular in the first place.

Its return to the runway Tuesday evening was an answer to those calls, Sarah Sylvester, the brand’s executive vice president of marketing, told BoF ahead of the event.

The resulting spectacle was indeed a familiar one: all the famous Angels of yesteryear returned, including Adriana Lima, Candice Swanepoel and Alessandra Ambrosio. They donned the same pink lace bras, feathered wings and glittery stilettos. While there was a range of body types and ages on the runway, the show was ultimately still dominated by the traditional ideal of beauty, from the performers to the models: almost impossible thinness.

It was a resounding statement that the old Victoria’s Secret is back, with some — some say not enough — changes. To many spectators Tuesday night, the big show was a celebration of the past, an unintended reminder that the heyday for Victoria’s Secret was a long, long time ago.

“It’s a little sad,” one fashion editor said in passing, dashing from the sprawling Brooklyn Navy Yard venue to catch a cab as fireworks illuminated over the East River.

THE NEWS IN BRIEF

FASHION, BUSINESS AND THE ECONOMY

LVMH results spell trouble for the luxury sector. The conglomerate’s critical fashion and leather goods division reported third-quarter sales down 5 percent on an organic basis, badly missing expectations. Analysts had predicted growth between 0 and 2 percent.

Cucinelli bucks gloomy industry trend. Revenues at Brunello Cucinelli rose 12.7 percent at constant exchange rates in the first nine months of the year, driven by double digit growth in the Americas and in Asia. In the third quarter itself, revenues rose 9.2 percent to € 300 million ($325 million), a touch above a consensus of 298 million euros cited by Equita analysts.

Mulberry’s owner rejects increased £111 million bid from Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group. Challice, which owns 56 percent of Mulberry, called on Frasers to ditch plans to take over. The offer from Frasers came after Mulberry said it needed to raise cash after it tumbled to a £34 million pre-tax loss in the year to the end of March, after a slide in sales.

Altuzarra nabs investment from venture fund P180. As part of the deal with P180, Altuzarra will move its e-commerce operations, including inventory management and handling returns, to software and B2B rental platform CaaStle. The goal is for Altuzarra’s e-commerce business to drive profits for the overall brand.

Swiss watch exports plunge as Chinese demand dries up. Exports of Swiss timepieces and watch movements declined by 12.4 percent overall to about 1.9 billion Swiss francs ($2.2 billion) in value, with China’s imports down 50 percent. Overall exports have fallen by 2.7 percent year-on-year in the first nine months of 2024.

Adidas raises 2024 guidance again, citing good brand momentum. Adidas raised its forecasts for the third time this year, saying it now expected currency-neutral revenues to increase by around 10 percent this year. The sportswear maker also upgraded its profit forecast for the year to 1.2 billion euros ($1.31 billion) from 1 billion euros.

EssilorLuxottica sales slightly miss on worsening market. Revenue for three months ended September rose 4 percent year-on-year at constant exchange rates to €6.44 billion ($7 billion). North America, where the French-Italian group generates about half of its sales, grew 1.6 percent compared with the same period the previous year.

Shein adds more banks to arrange London listing. Barclays Plc and UBS Group AG have been picked as bookrunners for Shein’s IPO, said people familiar with the matter. A listing could take place as soon as early next year, the people said. Deliberations are ongoing and details of the IPO could still change.

US retail sales increase solidly in September. Retail sales rose 0.4 percent last month after an unrevised 0.1 percent gain in August, the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau said. Economists had forecast retail sales, which are mostly goods and are not adjusted for inflation, would rise 0.3 percent.

UK retail sales rise unexpectedly. The volume of goods sold in stores and online increased 0.3 percent, rising for a third consecutive month, the Office for National Statistics said Friday. That was slower than the 1 percent increase in the previous month.

Prada and Axiom team up on spacesuit for moon mission. The spacesuit will be used for NASA’s Artemis 3 mission planned for 2026. “I’m very proud of the result we’re showing today, which is just the first step in a long-term collaboration with Axiom Space,” Prada’s chief marketing officer Lorenzo Bertelli said.

Victoria’s Secret returns to the runway. Six years after its last fashion show, the beleaguered lingerie giant staged a comeback. The show had consistent references to the brand’s aughts height but there was more diversity.

Reformation launches jewellery line designed by Clare Waight Keller. The capsule includes earrings, bracelets, and necklaces made from recycled materials. Last year, Reformation entered the accessories market with the launch of its handbag line.

Britain to publish online safety demands for platforms in December. Britain’s media regulator Ofcom announced that starting in December, social media companies must take decisive action against illegal content on their platforms.

THE BUSINESS OF BEAUTY

Glossier launches a swing state ad campaign. The beauty brand has begun a billboard and digital campaign targeting swing state voters that will run from Oct. 14 until Election Day. The brand has also announced donations to various non-profit organisations.

Nail care brand Nails Inc acquired by private equity firm. The British nail care company founded in 1999 by entrepreneur Thea Green has been acquired by private equity firm Pacific World Corporation. The acquisition will see the brand refocus on the North American market, which represents 50 percent of combined revenues.

Luxury skincare line Révuve acquired by Chinese form S’Young group. The ultra-luxury skincare line founded by Dr. Gregory Brown in 1997 was acquired for an undisclosed amount by Chinese conglomerate S’Young Group.

Molly Sims’ Yse receives private equity investment. Yse will use the funding from Willow Growth Partners to help facilitate an entry into wholesale next year. The firm has previously backed Gen-Alpha skincare brand Bubble, clean cosmetics brand Kosas and supplement brand Perelel.

Coty lowers first-quarter sales outlook. The cosmetics maker projected sales growth on a like-for-like basis of between 4 percent and 5 percent for the three months ended September, compared to 6 percent it previously forecast.

P&G reports weak sales growth on lower beauty demand. The company reported a second consecutive quarter of slow sales growth, with organic sales rising just 2 percent. A surprise decline in the company’s beauty category was driven by skincare, which reported a steep drop in sales and lower volume due to weakness in its premium SK-II brand.

Walgreens plans to shutter 14 percent of US stores. The drugstore chain said it will shutter around 1,200 outlets over the next three years, with 500 closures slated for 2025. The company also issued profit guidance for 2025 that met Wall Street estimates. Adjusted earnings will be in the range of $1.40 to $1.80 a share in the year ending Aug. 31, 2025.

PEOPLE

Alberta Ferretti names Lorenzo Serafini creative director. Serafini joined parent company Aeffe in 2014 as part of a plan to relaunch Philosophy. Ferretti announced she was stepping down as creative director of her namesake label last month but will continue her role as vice president of Aeffe.

Gucci’s marketing and communications shakeup continues. Gucci’s chief brand officer Alessio Vannetti has left the brand, BoF has learned. Vannetti previously served as worldwide communications director at Gucci from 2015 to 2019 before leaving to become chief brand officer at Valentino.

Former Off-White head Andrea Grilli was appointed CEO at Pharrell’s Humanrace. Grilli replaces Rachel Muscat, who co-founded the company in 2020 with Williams. The company also announced it has secured an undisclosed growth investment from One Luxury Group, the London-based investment firm that also backs Hailey Bieber’s beauty line, Rhode.

Boohoo CEO steps down. John Lyttle is stepping down as the struggling online retailer begins a strategic review that could potentially lead to a breakup of the company. The review comes as Boohoo reported that first-half revenue had plunged to £620 million ($809.8 million) from £729 million at the same time last year.

CVS ousts CEO Karen Lynch. CVS Health Corp. named longtime executive David Joyner to the top job. The move comes after the company repeatedly missed earnings targets, spurring activist interest and setting off unrest among shareholders that spilled into public view in recent weeks.

MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGY

i-D magazine names global creative director and editorial director. The publication has tapped Jamie Reid as global creative director and Steff Yotka as global editorial director. Yotka and Reid will work alongside newly appointed editor-in-chief and chief brand officer Thom Bettridge to revive the cult publication.

Small Girls PR acquired by Orchestra. The agency specialises in influencer and experiential marketing as well as traditional earned media PR. Under Orchestra’s leadership, CEO Mallory Blair, who founded the agency in 2010, will remain as CEO and become a partner in Orchestra.

Compiled by Yola Mzizi.