Victoria's Secret

1977–1981 Victoria's Secret was founded by Roy Raymond, and his wife, Gaye Raymond, The first store was opened in Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, California. Raymond reportedly spent the next eight years studying the lingerie market. At the time when the Raymonds founded Victoria's Secret, the undergarments market in the U.S. was dominated by pragmatic items from Fruit of the Loom, Hanes, and Jockey, often sold in packs of three at department stores, while lingerie was reserved for special occasions such as one's honeymoon. Considered niche products, lingerie items (such as lacy thongs and padded push-up bras) were only found in specialty shops like Frederick's of Hollywood, located "alongside feathered boas and provocative pirate costumes". Victoria's Secret grossed $500,000 in its first year of business , and a mail-order operation. operated at that location until 1990, when it was moved to the larger Powell Street frontage of the Westin St. Francis. In April 1982, Raymond sent out his 12th catalog at a cost to customers of $3 (); catalog sales accounted for 55% of the company's $7 million annual sales that year. 1982–1990 In 1982, Victoria's Secret had grown to five stores, a 40-page catalog, and was grossing $6 million annually. In 1983, Wexner revamped Victoria's Secret's sales model towards a greater focus on female customers. To further this image, the Victoria's Secret catalog continued the practice that Raymond began: listing the company's headquarters on catalogs at a fake London address, with the real headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. In October of that year, the Los Angeles Times reported that Victoria's Secret was stealing market share from department stores; in 1986, Victoria's Secret was the only national chain devoted to lingerie. The New York Times reported that Victoria's Secret swiftly expanded to 100 stores by 1986. and described it in 1987 as a "highly visible leader" that used "unabashedly sexy high-fashion photography to sell middle-priced underwear." In 1990, analysts estimated that sales had quadrupled in four years, making it one of the fastest growing mail-order businesses. Sales and profits from the catalog continued to expand due to the addition of clothing, swimwear and shoes and wider circulation. Cynthia Fedus-Fields oversaw the company's direct business, including its catalog, from the mid-1980s until 2000. 1991–2005 Victoria's Secret experienced quality problems with their product in the early 1990s and was working to resolve the issues. In 1991, Howard Gross was assigned to fix the L Brands subsidiary Limited Stores. The company's margins tightened, resulting in slower growth in profits. Victoria's Secret introduced the 'Miracle Bra' in 1993, selling two million within the first year. At the same time, in 1994, Wexner discussed the creation of a company fashion event with Ed Razek. The first Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, held in 1995 in New York, became a mainstay for the company's image for the next 23 years. By 1998, Victoria's Secret's market share of the intimate apparel market was 14 percent The following year, in 1999, the company added the Body by Victoria line. The catalog had achieved "an almost cult-like following". In May 2000, Cynthia Fedus-Fields stepped down as CEO after delivering record profits in 1999 and early 2000. Fedus-Fields later claimed that, up until the time of her departure, the company had acted in accordance with the sensibilities of what a European woman would choose to wear. After her departure in 2000, the brand pursued an image that was "much more blatantly sexy." In May 2006, Wexner promoted Turney from the Victoria's Secret catalog and online units to lead the whole company. In September 2006, Victoria's Secret reportedly tried to make their catalog feel more like magazines by head-hunting writers from ''Women's Wear Daily''. The company had about a third of the market share in its category in 2013. Victoria's Secret was split into three divisions: Victoria's Secret Lingerie, Victoria's Secret Beauty, and Pink, each with a separate CEO. In 2016, direct sales only grew 1.6% and fell by 7.4% in the last quarter of the year, typically a high revenue period due to the holidays. The company discontinued its use of a print catalog and dropped certain categories of clothing, such as swimwear. Sales revenue continued to stagnate and drop in early 2017. In late 2018, CEO Jan Singer resigned amid declining sales. The Wall Street Journal reported that only one quarter showed an increase in same-store sales between 2016 and 2018. Singer's announcement came one week after CMO Ed Razek made a controversial comment that the company does not cast transgender or plus-size models in its annual fashion show "because the show is a fantasy." After a 40% stock plunge in a single year, Victoria's Secret announced the closure of 53 stores in the U.S. in 2019, as well as the relaunch of its swimwear line. In August 2019, chief marketing officer Ed Razek resigned following a disastrous Vogue interview in which he made inflammatory statements about transgender models. Also in 2019, executive vice president April Holy stepped down after 16 years. In November 2019, Victoria's Secret announced it would no longer hold the annual fashion show featuring its angels, indicating a major change in marketing strategy. In January 2020, L Brands chairman and CEO Lex Wexner was in talks to step down. Reports of widespread bullying and harassment at Victoria's Secret surfaced in February 2020. On February 1, 2020, The New York Times published an exposé on "the culture of misogyny" at Victoria's Secret, which painted a picture of long-time influential executive Ed Razek's rampant sexual misconduct. On April 22, 2020, The Wall Street Journal reported that Sycamore Partners wanted out of the deal, which included exceptions for a pandemic. The deal ultimately fell through. Wexner stepped down but maintains a role as chairman emeritus. In June 2020, a shareholder filed a lawsuit against the company for inaction following reports of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation at Victoria's Secret. Shareholders of parent company L Brands filed a complaint in the Court of Chancery of Delaware on January 14, 2021, stating that former chair Wexner, among others, created an "entrenched culture of misogyny, bullying and harassment" and was aware of abuses being committed by accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, which breached his fiduciary duty to the company, causing devaluation of the brand. The complaint also names Wexner's wife, Abigail, current chair, Sarah E. Nash, and former marketing officer, Ed Razek, whose "widely known misconduct" was long allowed at the company. 2021–present In 2021, after the resignation of Razek as well as the sale of the company by Wexner, Victoria's Secret's new ownership and management implemented policy changes and new partnerships with a number of new spokeswomen, including Megan Rapinoe, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Naomi Osaka. Wexner's parent company, L Brands spun Victoria's Secret off to become an independent business under the name '''Victoria's Secret & Co.''' (trading on the NYSE as VSCO) on August 3, 2021. Following this brand positioning, Victoria's Secret reported sales increases in all three completed quarters of 2021. Martin Waters was named CEO in 2021, replacing Stuart Burgdorfer, who had served as interim CEO. In July 2022, Victoria's Secret named Amy Hauk chief executive of both the Victoria's Secret and Pink brands. In November 2022, it was announced that Victoria's Secret had acquired the New York-headquartered lingerie brand, Adore Me for US$400 million. In May 2025, Victoria's Secret shut down its website and some store services because of a security incident. ==Products==

In addition to the primary brand of lingerie for Victoria's Secret, the company has secondary product lines: namely, activewear known as Victoria sports, swimwear, and a beauty division with fragrances, make-up, accessories, and other bath and body products. The swimwear, introduced in 2002, was made available until April 2016, when the company announced that the line would end and be replaced by a new line of activewear. The swim line was relaunched in November 2018. In March 2019, the swim line was made available in shops. In 2010, Victoria's Secret launched the 'Incredible' bra. The company released Victoria's Secret Designer Collection in 2012, described by Vogue as the company's "first high end lingerie line." In 2016, Victoria's Secret confirmed the elimination of swimwear, apparel, shoes, and accessories. In 2017, the company began to put more emphasis on bralettes (bras without underwire, often intended to be worn visibly) and sports bras (under the Victoria Sport label) to appeal to a younger customer base. In 2019, Victoria's Secret relaunched its product line of eyewear and footwear, in hopes of boosting struggling sales for the brand. In 2022, Victoria's Secret & Co. announced they would no longer use cashmere in their product lines. ==Operating divisions==

The Victoria's Secret brand is organized into three divisions: 'Victoria's Secret Stores' (physical locations), 'Victoria's Secret Direct' (online and catalog operations), and 'Victoria's Secret Beauty' (bath and cosmetics). In the early years, Wexner himself was involved in carefully orchestrating store interior design through the use of English floral wallpaper circa 1890, gilded fixtures, classical music, soft lighting, the scent of old-fashioned sachet, and elegant perfume bottles that "look like your grandmother's crystal". , Delaware During the 1990s, in-store sales at Victoria's Secret increased by 30% after the company tracked and applied data analysis of where specific styles, sizes, and colors were selling. The decade also brought an expansion of store size to triple from to an average . The trend continued into 2002, when the average Victoria's Secret store was . In 2000, the Los Angeles Times reported that the company continued the practice of putting on "a British air—or what the Ohio-based chain thinks Americans believe is British. Boudoirish. Tony. Upscale." By 2010, there were 1,000 Victoria's Secret lingerie stores and 100 independent Victoria's Secret Beauty Stores in the United States, mostly in shopping centers, then offering bras, panties, hosiery, cosmetics, and sleepwear. Canada The drive for growth, coupled with a maturing American retail market, led to a shift towards expansion, first into Canada. In 2010, the first Canadian store opened in Edmonton, Alberta. In 2012, Victoria's Secret opened stores in Nova Scotia and Quebec. Several of the company's stores in Canada are considered large by retail standards and span more than each. , the company's Canadian locations included cities in all ten provinces, from British Columbia all the way to the Maritimes. However, the company announced in May 2020 plans to permanently shutter 13 of its 38 Canadian stores, representing a loss of one-third of the Canadian fleet. United Kingdom Victoria's Secret opened a store at the Westfield Shopping Centre, Stratford, London in July 2012. Their flagship store on New Bond Street, London followed in August 2012. Locations in the United Kingdom include the cities of Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham, Bristol, Westfield London, Bluewater, Brent Cross and Glasgow. , there were 25 stores in the United Kingdom. That same month, Retail Dive reported that the brand's UK arm went into administration, as it struggled with falling sales, profits, and market share. China In 2016, it was reported that L Brands fully purchased 26 stores back from its franchise partners in China. That same month, the company permanently closed its flagship store in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong after only two years of operation. On January 25, 2022, Victoria's Secret announced a Joint venture partnership agreement with Regina Miracle International (Holdings) Limited. Under the terms of the agreement, Victoria's Secret will own 51% of the joint venture and Regina Miracle will own 49%. CEO Martin Waters commented, "I am delighted to announce this partnership with Regina Miracle, who has been a valued merchandise supplier partner for more than twenty years. Together with Regina Miracle, we aim to grow the China business through joint investment in product development, distribution, and marketing. We expect the partnership will positively impact the speed and agility of the business to benefit consumers and provide us with a platform for a strong future in this important market." Victoria's Secret Direct Catalog (1977–2016) Prior to the emergence of e-commerce, the company's catalogs were a key aspect of successfully marketing a product considered risqué to consumers in the privacy of their own homes. According to Joseph Sugarman, the 1979 catalog was "a lot more sensuous" and took the form of "an upmarket version of a Frederick's of Hollywood lingerie catalog." The New York Times reported that the success of Victoria's Secret catalogs influenced others to present lingerie as "romantic and sensual but tasteful" with models photographed in elegant settings. The company was known for accepting phone orders at any hour, which helped it establish dominance in the lingerie market. The Los Angeles Times described the catalog in 2000 as having achieved "an almost cult-like following." The company was mailing more than 400 million catalogs annually in 2010. In May 2016, the brand decided to discontinue the catalog, which had run at a cost of $125 million to $150 million annually, due to concern that catalogs had grown stale as a marketing device and confidence that sales would not be affected. E-commerce Victoria's Secret spent three years building an e-commerce website that was officially launched on December 4, 1998. Following heavy promotion of the 1999 fashion show, the website experienced high traffic volumes, with visitors enduring "slowdowns and bottlenecks" while viewing the first online fashion show on February 3, 1999, the largest online streaming event to date, reaching an estimated 1.5 million viewers. Ad placement in the Wall Street Journal and a 30-minute TV spot during the Super Bowl contributed to drive record numbers of visitors to the website. The goal for Intimate Beauty Corporation was to manage and develop the bath, fragrance and cosmetic products for Victoria's Secret. The company sought to expand its beauty and accessories stores at airports around the world in the early 2010s. Franchise locations worldwide (VSBA) Victoria's Secret Beauty opened a provisional UK boutique at Heathrow Airport in 2005 through partnership with World Duty Free. In 2010, Victoria's Secret expanded with Victoria's Secret Beauty & Accessory (VSBA) franchises internationally. That year, M.H. Alshaya Co. opened the first Victoria's Secret store in the Marina Mall in Kuwait, selling cosmetics and accessories but not the company's lingerie line. Two VSBA stores were opened in the early 2010s at Schiphol International Airport, Netherlands. That same year, the first Latin American franchise store opened in Isla Margarita, Venezuela, followed by a store in Bogotá, Colombia, in July 2012. An additional store opened in the Multiplaza Mall in San Salvador, El Salvador, in 2012. A Caribbean location opened in November 2011 at Plaza Las Americas in San Juan, Puerto Rico followed by a store in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, at the Agora, A first Serbian store opened in January 2014 at the Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade. Another store opened in Usce Shopping Mall in Belgrade in 2025. , L Brands had more than 370 VSBA franchise shops worldwide, with the company's largest international market reportedly in Turkey and the Middle East. ==Corporate affairs==

Ownership and name The company's business name changed from Victoria's Secret, Inc. to Victoria's Secret Stores, Inc., after the 1982 sale to Wexner. In 2005, the name was revised to Victoria's Secret Stores, LLC. Victoria's Secret was acquired by The Limited in 1982. By 2006, the majority of the revenue for Limited Brands came from Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works. In July 2007, Limited Brands sold a 75% interest in Limited Stores and Express to Sun Capital Partners, in order to focus on expanding their Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works units. The sale resulted in Limited Brands taking a $42 million after-tax loss. Victoria's Secret recorded peak worldwide net sales in 2016 of $7.78 billion. In 2019, worldwide net sales had receded to $6.81 billion. Victoria's Secret Stores was helmed by Lori Greely from 2007 until 2013. Cynthia Fedus-Fields served as president and CEO and oversaw the Victoria's Secret Direct business, including its catalog, from the mid-1980s until 2000. John Mehas was appointed CEO starting in 2019. He was replaced by Martin Waters in November 2020. Hired by L Brands in 1998, Robin Burns was CEO of Victoria's Secret Beauty until 2004. Burns was succeeded in August 2004 by Jill Granoff, COO, and Sherry Baker, president. In November 2012 Susie Coulter became president of Victoria's Secret Beauty. Greg Unis was hired to serve as CEO of the beauty division in 2016. Manufacturing and environmental record In 2006, the Financial Times reported that Victoria's Secret paid factory workers $7 per day to make bras in Thailand. In 2012, Victoria's Secret was manufacturing bras in the South Indian city of Guduvancheri. In 2021, Victoria's Secret fronted the money to more than 1,250 Thai garment workers who were owed $8.3 million when their factory, Brilliant Alliance, closed after declaring bankruptcy. After years of pressure from environmentalists, Victoria's Secret and a conservation group reached an agreement to make the catalog more environmentally friendly in 2006. Catalog wood pulp was required to contain 10 percent recycled paper and avoid source forests with woodland caribou habitats in Canada, unless certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The company bought organic and fair trade-grown cotton to make some of its panties in 2012. ==Marketing==

, Nevada store, 2006 Since the company's founding, the mail order catalog has been its main method of marketing. Early catalogs featured lingerie-clad models holding violins and glasses of sherry. Catalog marketing shifted towards female models accompanied by men for several years in the 1980s, a practice that was eventually abandoned by 1991. In 1989, FCB/Leber Katz Partners and Victoria's Secret executed a national advertising campaign with a ten-page glossy insert in the November issue of Elle, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Victoria, House Beautiful, Bon Appétit, New Woman, and People magazines. However, Razek credited Wexner as the creative force behind much of the marketing. Well-known models hired in the early 1990s included Stephanie Seymour, Karen Mulder, Yasmeen Ghauri, and Jill Goodacre. The models helped the brand gain an audience and were soon featured in televised commercials. From 1995 to 2018, L Brands used the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show as a significant marketing tool. Victoria's Secret sued a strip-mall store in Elizabethtown, Kentucky called Victor's Little Secret over the issue of trademark dilution. On March 4, 2003, the US Supreme Court ruled against Victoria's Secret in Moseley v. V Secret Catalogue, Inc. on the grounds that there was insufficient proof of actual harm to the trademark. Razek, then chief creative officer, credited Wexner himself with the idea to cast Dylan in a commercial. Victoria's Secret announced the appointment of Raul Martinez as head creative director in December 2020. Martinez, formerly of Condé Nast, took on the role following the departure of chief executive John Mehas, who stepped down in November 2020. The fashion show, overseen by Ed Razek, was described by Newsweek as "a combination of self-assured strutting for women and voyeuristic pleasures for men" that made lingerie mainstream entertainment. Ken Weil, vice president at Victoria's Secret, and Tim Plzak, responsible for IT at Victoria's Secret's parent company, Intimate Brands, led Victoria's Secret's first-ever online streaming of their fashion show in 1999. as a result of Victoria's Secret's technology falling short being able to meet the online user demand resulting in network congestion and users who could see the webcast receiving jerky frames. In total, 1.5 million viewers either attempted or viewed the webcast. The 1999 webcast served to create a database for Victoria's Secret of over 500,000 current and potential customers by requiring users to submit their contact details to view the webcast. In November 2019, Victoria's Secret canceled its runway show. In July 2021, the company said there are plans to relaunch the show, but without the Victoria's Secret Angels. In May 2024, PageSix reported that Victoria's Secret intends to bring back the fashion show after a five year-hiatus. Victoria's Secret Angels , the longest-running Victoria's Secret Angel from 2000 to 2018 The company's Angels underwear collection was marketed in 1997 by a television commercial that included supermodels Helena Christensen, Karen Mulder, Daniela Peštová, Stephanie Seymour, and Tyra Banks. In the commercial, the Angels appear in a white cloudscape in dialog with "God", played by Welsh singer Tom Jones, widely known for his fans' tradition of tossing their panties at him during shows. The spoof proved popular and the Angels, as characters, became a regular feature of the advertising as brand ambassadors. The term "Angel" soon became synonymous with the brand. Official Angels have greater responsibilities than other runway models for the brand, as the Angels are obliged to appear in marketing campaigns, talk shows, major runway shows, and the annual fashion show. The Angels are contracted spokesmodels for the brand, but the company is not transparent about the terms of these contracts. The brand's Fashion Show and the Angels were closely connected through 2018, the final year that event was held. Some of the early Victoria's Secret Angels included Inés Rivero and Laetitia Casta. In 2004, the company did not hold a fashion show due to fallout from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy, and instead alternately marketed the brand via a tour called Angels Across America. Victoria's Secret sent its five contract models (Banks, Klum, Bündchen, Lima, and Ambrosio) out for the event. Victoria's Secret's Angels continued to be featured in popular culture and were chosen to be part of People magazine's annual "100 Most Beautiful People in the World" in 2007. The Angels became the first trademark awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 13, 2007, with Klum, Lima, Ambrosio, Kurkova, Goulart, Ebanks, Marisa Miller, and Miranda Kerr at hand. Alongside new Angel Doutzen Kroes, they also took part in the grand reopening of the Fontainebleau in Miami in 2008. In 2009, the brand held a nationwide competition for a new Runway Angel. Thousands of contestants applied; Kylie Bisutti prevailed as the winner but soon grew disillusioned and parted ways with the brand. Ellingson, Kroes, and Kloss departed after the 2014 fashion show. Several promotional tours featuring the Angels have been organized by the brand. These included the 2010 Bombshell tour, the 2012 VSX tour, and the 2013 Swim tour. In 2015, Angels featured on the brand's first Swim Special were Elsa Hosk, Martha Hunt, Jac Jagaciak, Stella Maxwell, Lais Ribeiro, and Jasmine Tookes, along with model Joan Smalls. In 2019, new Angels Leomie Anderson, Grace Elizabeth, Alexina Graham, and Barbara Palvin, were added to the roster. Palvin made her fashion show debut with Victoria's Secret in 2012, not appearing again until 2018, while Graham (the first redheaded Angel) walked in both 2017 and 2018. Other notable spokesmodels for the brand have included Claudia Schiffer, Eva Herzigová, and Bregje Heinen, as well as celebrities such as Taylor Momsen. In 2021, the Angels were discontinued in favor of a new concept known as the "VS Collective", which features a more diverse array of models and influencers as spokespeople, such as photographer Amanda de Cadenet, Adut Akech, actress and Miss World 2000 Priyanka Chopra, Paloma Elsesser, soccer player Megan Rapinoe, and Valentina Sampaio—the first openly transgender model to be featured on the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Pink spokesmodels ==Criticisms and controversies==

Harassment and abuse In 2019, nonprofit advocacy group Model Alliance and several other publications reported on initiatives underway in California, New York and the United States aiming to protect models from harassment and sexual abuse. Silencing of harassment complaints After Razek left Victoria's Secret in 2019, Monica Mitro, a high-ranking executive at the company reported she had been repeatedly verbally abused by Razek during his time there. Mitro was executive vice president of public relations for the brand and was heavily involved in the production of its annual fashion show, having been one of the public faces of the brand. The day after Mitro made her allegations, she showed up to work to find she had been locked out of the building and placed on administrative leave. Though the brand claimed this decision was made prior to Mitro lodging her complaint, many believed this was a retaliatory action by the company and in late 2019 Mitro indicated she was pursuing legal action against her dismissal. It was reported in 2020 that she had settled with the brand for an undisclosed sum. Connections with Jeffrey Epstein Les Wexner, who acquired Victoria's Secret in 1982, as part of his retail empire, reportedly had direct ties with Jeffrey Epstein, an American sex offender and a pedophile, whom he met sometime around 1986. Wexner was also alleged to have given Epstein power of attorney, and that Epstein lived for a time at his "Wexner Xanadu", which is a property of Les Wexner located in Ohio. Wexner also reportedly gave Epstein money, an Upper East Side townhouse (which later sold for $51 million), and a Boeing 727 owned by L Brands. Epstein would represent himself as a recruiter for Victoria's Secret when approaching girls and young women. Racism and corporate apologies The company has faced a number of major complaints of racism, profiling, and discrimination Each time, Victoria's Secret management or a corporate spokesperson has issued an apology and disavowed the discriminatory actions of any individual employee. Victoria's Secret has changed some employment practices, and settled some of the cases, including a $12 million settlement in California and New York reached in 2017, and a $179,300 settlement with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Influence on socio-cultural body image norms In the 2008 academic research article "Victoria's Dirty Secret: How Sociocultural Norms Influence Adolescent Girls and Women", authors from Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Waterloo stated: "Women's body dissatisfaction is influenced by socio-cultural norms for ideal appearance that are pervasive in society and particularly directed at women", cautioning that the marketing practices of Victoria's Secret, delivered through TV commercials, ads, and magazines send a message to girls and women that their models are a realistic standard of beauty, concluding that "Exposure to societal messages that reflect the socio-cultural norm for ideal appearance has a negative effect on women." In 2012, the company drew criticism for a lingerie collection offer for sale on their website that was titled 'Go East', with a tagline that pledged to women the capacity to "indulge in touches of eastern delight with lingerie inspired by the exquisite beauty of secret Japanese gardens." The Wall Street Journal confirmed that the geisha outfit was "accessorized with a miniature fan and a kimono-esque obi sash" and the Asian-themed collection "that traded in sexualized, generic pan-Asian ethnic stereotypes" was removed by the company. At the 2016 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, the brand was accused of cultural appropriation during the segment entitled 'The Road Ahead' which drew inspiration from both Chinese and Mexican culture. Kendall Jenner's flame tail wings, Elsa Hosk's dragon costume, and Adriana Lima's embroidered thigh-high boots caused an uproar, as some media and fans believed it was inappropriate for women of other descents to wear items important to Chinese culture. Victoria's Secret claimed it included this segment in the 2016 show because of their recent expansion into the Chinese market, and believed a segment featuring Chinese garments, as well as Liu Wen and Ming Xi, two popular Chinese models, would be a good way to appeal to their new Chinese customer base. No apology or statement was released from the brand. In the 2017 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, the brand faced further controversy and allegations of cultural appropriation. The criticism was directed at fashions in the 'Nomadic Adventures' segment that appropriated Native American and Indigenous African cultures. Nylon magazine suggested that the company had learned nothing from previous, similar incidents. Transgender models In a November 2018 interview with Vogue, Victoria's Secret president Ed Razek stated (when discussing diversity in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show): "Shouldn't you have transsexuals in the show? No. No, I don't think we should. Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy. It's a 42-minute entertainment special. That's what it is." These comments received immediate backlash from transgender model Carmen Carrera as well as Victoria Secret models Kendall Jenner, then Angel Lily Aldridge, and former Angel Karlie Kloss. Razek later issued an apology, stating "My remark regarding the inclusion of transgender models in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show came across as insensitive. I apologize. To be clear, we would absolutely cast a transgender model for the show." That same month, Razek stepped down. In 2022, the brand hired Emira D'Spain as their first Black transgender model. In 2023, the brand hired Alex Consani to be a part of the Victoria Secret rebrand in the 2023 fashion show. ==See also==