Victoria’s Secret picks Gisele Bundchen, Naomi Campbell and Adriana Lima
Victoria’s Secret has called on a number of former “angels” to save the beleaguered lingerie brand.
The struggling retailer has hired supermodels Gisele Bundchen, Naomi Campbell, Candice Swanepoel and Adriana Lima to lead its new The Icon Collection campaign, the company announced on Wednesday.
Victoria’s Secret dissolved the impossibly slim Angels in 2018 as the company set out to make the brand more inclusive.
However, overall sales have declined in recent years and the company has lost its market dominance to rivals Aerie, Rihanna’s ultra-inclusive Savage X Fenty, and Kim Kardashian’s Skims, which were recently valued at a whopping $4 billion.
The retailer made $348 million in profit in 2022 — a significant decrease from $646 million in 2021.
The company suffered a net loss of $72 million in 2020 as malls closed due to the coronavirus lockdowns.
Skims also beat Victoria’s Secret on an “Icons” campaign when the company released photos of supermodels Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum, Alessandra Ambrosio and Swanepoel – all former Victoria’s Secret angels – wearing Kardashian’s shapewear clothes last April.
Victoria’s Secret officials did not immediately respond to the Post’s request for comment.
Despite criticism for its very specific brand image, Victoria’s Secret retained its top spot as the top lingerie brand in 2022, according to the consumer insights company Brandessence Market Research.
At the heart of the Ohio-based company’s new ‘Icon’ collection, which also stars Emily Ratajkowski and Hailey Bieber, is the lingerie brand’s new push-up bra, worn by supermodels Campbell and Swanepoel on a A series of black-and-white photos was shared on Victoria’s Secret social media pages on Wednesday.
The collection also includes panties from $18.50 and briefs and bathrobes from $34.95 in sizes XS to XXL.
The centerpiece, the demi-bra, retails for $54.95 and comes in sizes 32A to 44DDD.
Despite the slim waist seen in the campaign images, the collection’s sizing is a nod to the brand’s attempt to reconnect with its consumer base, who have criticized the company for being “numb” and slow at rolling out more inclusive styles has sizes.
“The collection is designed to accentuate a person’s natural shape while staying true to the supportive and seamless look we love,” said Janie Schaffer, Victoria’s Secret chief design officer, in an interview press release.
“It’s an exciting, elevated collection to add to your wardrobe while underscoring that we are all icons.”
The size-zero waist and washboard abs that plagued the televised Victoria’s Secret runway show was one of the reasons why — at least as fans knew — the runway show was canceled ahead of its 2019 edition.
However, Victoria’s Secret announced it would reprise the famous extravaganza after a four-year hiatus in a pre-taped film due out on streaming services in the fall.
This time there will be no “angels” with glittery wings, instead she will be touted as the showcase of women from around the world in a feature-length film titled “Victoria’s Secret World Tour.”
Pieces from The Icon series will be featured in the upcoming show.
Victoria’s Secret, which will report its second quarter results later this month, reported a net income of $1 million in the first quarter.
The number was bleak compared to the $81 million in net revenue the brand brought in over the same period in 2022. Victoria’s Secret attributed the drop to its $400 million acquisition of fellow lingerie brand Adore Me, which completed in January.
Victoria’s Secret noted in its first-quarter earnings report that the company’s second-quarter earnings are likely to follow a similar trend.
