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Victoria's Secret Fashion Show to make a comeback in 2023, four years after it was canceled

Mar. 5, 2023
Victoria's Secret Fashion Show to make a comeback in 2023, four years after it was canceled

The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was set to make a comeback in 2023.

The news was first reported by Retail Dive following the company's fourth quarter 2022 earnings call on Friday.

'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,' revealed chief financial officer Timothy Johnson.

A corporate spokesperson told People the company is committed to championing women and is 'always innovating and ideating in all spheres of the business to continue to put our customer at the center of all we do.' 

The annual fashion show was a glamorous tradition dating back to 1995.

The televised runway not only included scantily clad models, but performances by musical guests, including Bebe Rexha, Halsey, Rita Ora, Kelsea Ballerini, Shawn Mendes and more at the last show in 2018. 

The company cancelled the show and dropped the Victoria's Secret Angel title in 2019 amid criticism the brand did not include models of all shapes and backgrounds.

Purchases by women aged 18 to 49 had been declining for several years prior to the move. 

A damning 2020 article in The New York Times included allegations of misogyny, bullying and harassment by former Chief Marketing Officer Ed Razek.

It also listed concerns about L Brands Chief Executive Leslie Wexner's long friendship with convicted felon Jeffrey Epstein prior to his death in jail.

Epstein was awaiting trial on charging of sex trafficking minors at the time.  

The 2022 Hulu documentary, Victoria's Secret: Angels and Demons, continued to focus the microscope on the lingerie brand's corporate culture.

The three-part series included claims of body shaming, misogyny, and discomfort  that the PINK line, which was aimed at tweens and teenagers, made girls feel bad about themselves. 

Victoria's Secret was separated from the parent company in 2021.

It is now looking to regain its reputation and its hold on its corner of the lucrative intimates market. 

A perusal of its Instagram site shows photos of  young women of various shapes, sizes and ethnic backgrounds, including women of color and non-binary women.

Tennis great Naomi Osaka, 25, has also collaborated on a collection  of comfortable sleep wear and intimate wear with the designers. 

The Grand Slam champ, who is expecting her first child, told Vogue it was the new commitment to inclusion that got her to come on board. 

'Actually talking to everyone at Victoria’s Secret and seeing how inclusive it was... I remember having discussions with them about how I never saw someone who looked like me before in their stores.'

'I thought it would be really amazing to shift the view,' she said.  

Victoria's Secret has faced competition from celebrity brands, such as Lizzo's Yitty brand, Rihanna's Savage X Fenty and Skims by Kim Kardashian. 


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