Jania Ashlynn
After taking a few years off, the most well-known lingerie line is bringing back its controversial fashion show.
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The Victoria’s Secret fashion show is set to return to screens sometime this year. This comes after a four-year pause on the brand’s show due to its close proximity to now-disgraced public figures and its narrow, harmful beauty standard.
The Downfall
The brand began its gradual descent into obscurity in 2019 when it came under fire for its then-CEO Les Wexner having close connections with Jeff Epstein, a sexual predator that is now deceased. The creator of the show, Ed Razek, was also admonished his misogynistic portrayal of feminine beauty. He presented the nature of the show to match the narrow purview of what most call the “male gaze.”
Around this time, the ratings for the show began to dip due to other brands debuting most inclusive lines of undergarments and more positive messages about feminine beauty and empowerment. Body diversity has rocketed into the social space and Victoria’s Secret refused to heal the harmful wounds it inflicted on beauty culture and standards.
In an attempt to remedy the controversy, the brand placed itself on a timeout, taking a break from the fashion show and putting out media statements about reevaluating their selective and sexist views. Razek left the company and the company stopped promoting their coveted, seemingly elite group of supermodels – the VS Angels.
The PR Stunt
The brand has made performative attempts at pretending to be inclusive by including a diverse set of models on its prominent campaigns, and though the models are quite stunning, viewers are not easily fooled by the company’s marketing tactics.
VS ambassador and soccer star Megan Rapinoe commented on the brand’s known nature. She is quoted calling the brand “really harmful, patriarchal, sexist, viewing not just what it meant to be sexy but what the clothes were trying to accomplish through a male lens and through what men desired. And it was very much marketed toward younger women.”
Even still, Victoria’s Secret has decided that four years is a long enough penance. With that, they’ve announced that their fashion will be returning to the circuit.
