Lingerie giant Victoria's Secret is heading towards a bold new direction as it abandons its iconic 'Angels'. The firm will now be partnering with a group of inspirational women from professions ranging from activists to entrepreneurs across different countries in order to promote a new brand image. Victoria's Secret CEO Martin Waters told The New York Times on Wednesday that Angels were no longer "culturally relevant."
Among the inspirational women Victoria's Secret would be partnering up with are Indian actor and entrepreneur Priyanka Chopra Jonas and US pro soccer player and gender-equality activist Megan Rapinoe.
Angels have been a staple of Victoria's Secret brand since the late 1990s. Some of the most famous models in the world such as Gisele Bundchen, Tyra Banks, and Heidi Klum have all been Angels in the past. Angels were the focus of Victoria's Secret's marketing campaigns and its annual runway fashion show, called 'Victoria's Secret Fashion Show', for decades.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Victoria's Secret Angels had played an important role in defining what being "sexy" meant. However, lately, the firm's runway shows and campaigns have been seen as outdated.
Ed Razek, former marketing chief at Victoria's Secret's parent firm, L Brands has largely been cited as the mastermind behind Victoria's Secret fashion shows. Razek had stepped down from his posts in 2019. That same year in November, Victoria's Secret also cancelled its iconic fashion show. This happened a year after Razek had made controversial remarks regarding the participation of transgender and plus-size models in fashion shows.
Victoria's Secret CEO Martin Waters, told the New York Times, that an overhaul of the Victoria's Secret brand was long overdue. "In the old days, the Victoria brand had a single lens, which was called 'sexy,'" he said.
He added: "I've known that we needed to change this brand for a long time, we just haven't had the control of the company to be able to do it."
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