After a 4-year hiatus, Victoria’s Secret is returning today with a new fashion show on Prime Video. Completely reinvented, the brand has placed a strong emphasis on inclusion and diversity, and new Angels, which was unthinkable years ago.
The importance of victoria’s secret fashion show for the industry
Founded in 1977 by Roy Raymond, Victoria’s Secret was such an innovation for women shopping. The shop was designed to be comfortable and pleasurable to buy lingerie, which was a taboo at the time. The brand also had another innovation, if you didn’t know the size of the person that you were buying lingerie, you could ask an attendant to try it for you. Selling by mail and increasing the catalog, Victoria’s Secret became one of the most well successful brands of all time, which made the company invest in a Fashion Show.
The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show became an annual glamorous spectacle, since its inception in 1995. Everyone in the fashion world eagerly anticipated the show, which always featured an enormous production, performances by famous singers, and, of course, the Angels.
The Angels were high-profile, experienced models chosen to be the ambassadors of the brand promoting the VS all year around, and also being the highlights of the VSFS evening. The brand always liked to create the fashion shows as grand fantasies with this playful atmosphere. In this way, all the Angels wore wings, embodying the character created by the brand and representing an unattainable type of beauty, similar to the divine beauty of an angel. Models like Gisele Bündchen, Adriana Lima and Heidi Klum held this title.
In the golden era of Victoria’s Secret, every model aspired to walk for the brand, and singers solidified their careers by performing in the shows. The runway show was a grand romanticization of the fashion world, marketing itself as one of the most glamorous, exclusive, and coveted events.
THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING THE FASHION SHOWS
Despite being an annual event for many years, the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show took a hiatus since 2018, where they experienced the worst viewership in history. This decline was attributed to the growing controversies surrounding the brand. The public was demanding inclusion and diversity. However, the brand’s Chief Marketing Officer, Ed Razek, responded to these demands by stating that there was no space for transgender and plus-size models in the VSFS, because the show was meant to be a grand fantasy. This statement was not well-received by consumers, leading to the cancellation of the 2019 show.
To worsen the situation, in 2020, The New York Times published an article accusing the Chief Marketing Officer of fostering a culture of harassment and misogyny against the brand’s own models. The publication of the article led to new controversies in the media, including allegations of bullying and harassment by employees and directors towards models who did not conform to the Victoria’s Secret standard.
What can we expect for the comeback?
On March 15th of 2023, Victoria’s Secret social media posted a short video announcing the comeback of the VSFS. The post does not reveal a lot, actually it is very mysterious, but it said what the audience wanted, the Victoria’s Secret decides to embrace a new generation of models, musicians, designers, makeup artists, etc.
Later in August, more information emerged about the fashion show. It will be available for viewing on September 26th on Prime Video, featuring musical performances by Doja Cat and Sabrina Carpenter. According to the group’s director, Rim Johnson, the brand has undergone a complete reinvention, with a primary focus on to defend female voices. As part of this effort, they released a series of videos featuring prominent models who have a history with the brand, such as Adriana Lima and Naomi Campbell, as well as newcomers to the VSFS like Emrata and Paloma Elsesser. In these intimate videos, each model explains what it means to be an icon.
The brand showcased an amount of diversity in the new cast, with plus size, indigenous and trans models of varying ages. This level of inclusion is not something they were used to doing. However, they still drew heavily from the past of the fashion shows, with the experienced angels returning for the 2023 tour, and with a series of videos featuring the new models. In this content, they’re wearing wings from the past fashion shows while walking the street, to promote the show.
The Angels are making a comeback in a different way. The brand introduced the ‘VS Collective,’ a group of 8 women leaders who have taken on the role that was previously held by the Angels. They include Hailey Bieber, Bella Hadid, Adut Akech, Priyanka Chopra, Megan Rapinoe, Valentina Sampaio, Paloma Elsesser and Naomi Osaka. This decision by the brand didn’t please many fans, because some of the women in the “VS Collective” aren’t even models. However, the final judgment will only come after the show’s release.
Remember the most iconic moments from the VS fashion throughout the years
With so many years of fashion shows, some moments are still remembered today as milestones in the history of Victoria’s Secret. With another runway coming up, let’s take a look back at the best of them.
- Gisele: fur scum (2002)
After Gisele signed a million-dollar contract with Blackgrama, America’s largest animal fur companies, some PETA protesters invaded the VSFS runway holding a poster with the message “Gisele: fur scum“. The model stayed neutral and ignored all the situation, but this incident prompted Gisele to reconsider her decisions to work with animal fur brands.
- Karolina Kurkova shoe incident (2006)
At the opening of 2006 VSFS, Karolina‘s shoe wasn’t placed correctly. Because of that, she lost it in the middle of the runway. However, the model handled it so well that it went unnoticed by the audience.
- The gift box filled with angels from the tenth VSFS (2005)
At the 10th anniversary of the fashion show, the brand created one of the most iconic moments in Victoria’s Secret history. The opening segment of the show featured a Christmas theme, with Gisele Bundchen wearing a $12,5 million Fantasy Bra, a custom creation exclusively designed for the event and worn by the most prominent angel of the night. She emerged from a giant gift box on the set, creating one of the most memorable moments in the annals of Victoria’s Secret.
- Adriana and Alessandra wearing two fantasy bras (2014)
For the first time in history, two Fantasy Bras were created for a single show. Brazilian models Adriana Lima and Alessandra Ambrosio celebrated 15 years with Victoria’s Secret. Because of that, the brand arranged for both of them to walk the runway together, each wearing a Fantasy Bra valued at $2 million.
- Adriana Lima’s Tribute (2018)
After 20 years with Victoria’s Secret, Adriana Lima, the greatest Angel of all time, tearfully bid farewell to the VSFS.
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The article above was edited by Mariana do Patrocínio.
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