Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show to return with ‘new version’ after 4-year hiatus
The Victoria’s Secret Angels are floating back to earth.
The lingerie retailer announced the return of its iconic Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show during a 2022 earnings call on Friday — but fans should expect some changes to the sexy runway spectacle, which has been on hiatus for the past four years.
As first reported by Retail Dive, the company announced it will bring back its fashion show this year after plummeting ratings and criticism over its lack of racial and body diversity caused the retailer to put the annual event on pause in 2019.
“We’re going to continue to lean into the marketing spend to invest in the business, both at top-of-funnel and also to support the new version of our fashion show, which is to come later this year,” the retailer’s CFO, Timothy Johnson, said on the call.
Victoria’s Secret has yet to share what the “new version” of the fashion show will entail, but the brand tells us the show will “reflect who we are today.”
In an exclusive statement shared with Page Six Style, Victoria’s Secret writes the company will double down on its “commitment to championing women’s voices and their unique perspectives.”
“As we’ve previously shared, our new brand projection and mission will continue to be our guiding principle,” the statement continues. “This will lead us into new spaces like reclaiming one of our best marketing and entertainment properties to date and turning it on its head to reflect who we are today. We’re excited to share more later this year.”
The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show launched in 1997, with its bombshell models — including Claudia Schiffer, Naomi Campbell, Heidi Klum, Tyra Banks — and has come to include Miranda Kerr, Gisele Bündchen, Adriana Lima, Karlie Kloss, Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner and many more over the years.
Although it was a sure-fire ratings bonanza for years, the show’s popularity slipped in the wake of #MeToo, causing the company to reassess the show.
“It used to be that you did VS and you became this superstar,” a Victoria’s Secret insider told Page Six in 2019. “The industry has just changed overall. I could see the Angels going away.”
After pulling the show, the brand moved to a more female-empowered marketing message that focused on inclusivity — a decision Klum welcomed with open arms (or wings).
“About time, is all I can say. About time,” she told The Sunday Project in 2021.
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While the brand has switched up its marketing strategy, its CEO admitted the revamp is still a work in progress.
“We believe we’re two years into a five-year journey in the turnaround of our business, and we have a clear roadmap to be the world’s leading fashion retailer of intimate apparel,” Victoria’s Secret’s CEO, Martin Waters, said on Friday’s earnings call.
