The American lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret announced on Wednesday the return in the fall of its annual fashion show, canceled in 2019 against a backdrop of sluggish sales and a drop in audience for this event in which the most prominent models participated.
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It was through a video published on Instagram that the group announced: “The fashion show is back in the fall”, without giving more details on the date, location and expected models.
“We’ve read the comments and we’ve heard you. The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show returns and will showcase who we are today, plus everything you know and love: the glamour, the runway, the wings, the musical spectacle and more,” the group added, referring to the “angels », nickname of his models who paraded with giant wings on their backs.
The group announced in November 2019 the cancellation of this show, deemed sexist and out of step with the #MeToo movement, the last edition of which dates back to 2018.
This parade, created in 1995, was followed around the world by millions of viewers, but their number had dwindled over the years. In 2014, it attracted nine million Americans to their screens; there were only 3.3 million in 2018.
Famous models like Gisele Bündchen, Heidi Klum, Adriana Lima, Cara Delevingne and Naomi Campbell have paraded for the brand and being part of the “angels” guaranteed the models a certain celebrity.
Taylor Swift, Kanye West, Rihanna and Bruno Mars have performed during fashion shows.
The brand was owned by the L Brands group, which split to create two independent companies.
Victoria’s Secret & Co – which brings together the eponymous brand, Pink, the label aimed at young women and Victoria’s Secret Beauty beauty products – debuted on the New York Stock Exchange on August 3, 2021.
The brand had also suffered from being associated with the case of New York financier Jeffrey Epstein, who committed suicide in prison in August 2019 after being charged with multiple sexual assaults on minors over many years.
Epstein was long close to Leslie Wexner, boss of L Brands who helped introduce him to the jet-set world and to the Victoria’s Secret fashion shows.
In 2023, Victoria’s Secret achieved sales of $6.12 billion, down 2.6% year-on-year, and net profit of $181 million, compared to $173 million a year earlier.
At the end of the year, the group had more than 1,300 stores around the world.
Around 5:40 p.m. GMT, its stock fell 2.17%.
