Selling sexy : Victoria's Secret and the unraveling of an American icon

Title:

Author:

Summary:

"The story of how Victoria's Secret skyrocketed from a tiny chain of boutiques to an intimates monolith with annual sales in excess of $6 billion-all the while defining female beauty and sex standards for generations of Americans-and how the brand's grip on the industry slipped. Victoria's Secret is one of the most influential, and polarizing, brands to ever infiltrate the psyche of the American consumer. The company's catalog made national headlines in the '70s for its glamorization of lingerie, which was, in the post-bra burning era, sold either by puritanical department stores or tawdry, red-light district shops. By 1984, the owners were forced to sell to Columbus retail magnate Les Wexner, who was swiftly building an empire that would shape retail as we knew it for the next 40 years. Just a decade later, Victoria's Secret was a billion-dollar brand, selling the majority of bras bought in the US. However, its ubiquity in underwear drawers couldn't compare to the influence it had on the greater culture, helping to define what it meant to look like a happy, successful-and most importantly, sexy-modern woman to a whole generation of consumers across the globe through its airbrushed advertisements, pink velvet-lined stores, and annual televised fashion show, which drew in millions of viewers each year. But as culture changed, Victoria's Secret did not change with it. Not only did the company miss out on big expansion opportunities it also refused to change its marketing as the world became less obsessed with thinness and perfection, and more keenly focused on body acceptance. Meanwhile, Wexner, the mastermind, became increasingly known for his complicated relationship with sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, whose lifestyle he funded for many years. In March 2021, with his legacy in peril, Wexner and his wife Abigail stepped down from the Victoria's Secret board as he faced investigation by the FBI. Today, Victoria's Secret is trying to rebuild its reputation-and maintain the still-significant grip it has on the consumer. Selling Sexy expertly draws from sources within the company and across the fashion industry to examine: What happens now to a brand with such a heavy history?"-- Publisher

Edition:

First edition.

Contents:

Prologue: Dreams and fantasies -- Right place, right time -- The rise of a retail savant -- One man's failure is another's opportunity -- The making of the American mall -- The not so ugly stepsister -- Man about town -- Victoria grows up -- Here come the consultants -- Making (something like) movies -- What is sexy? -- On Wednesdays we wear pink -- Scaling sexy -- The last great contract in modeling -- The Epstein factor -- No one left to say no -- THe unraveling -- Apologies aren't sexy.

Physical Description:

xii, 305 pages, 8 pages of plates : color illustrations ; 25 cm

Corporate Subject:

Victoria's Secret (Firm)

Subject Term:

Lingerie industry

Author(s):

Fernandez, Chantal,

Publisher:

Henry Holt and Company,

Publication Date:

2024

ISBN:

9781250850966

Publication Information:

New York, New York : Henry Holt and Company, [2024]

Call Number:

338.7 SHERMAN

Holds: Copies:

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Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003751974	New Adult Nonfiction	338.7 SHERMAN	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

The story of how Victoria's Secret skyrocketed from a tiny chain of boutiques to a retail phenomenon with more than $8 billion in annual sales at its peak--all while defining an impossible beauty standard for generations of American women--before the brand's tight grip on the industry finally slipped

Victoria's Secret is one of the most influential and polarizing brands to ever infiltrate the psyche of the American consumer. Almost right at its start in the late 1970s, the company developed a cult following for its glamorous catalogs. Back then, shoppers had few alternatives to the stodgy department stores that sold most of the nation's intimate apparel. By 1982, the founders of Victoria's Secret avoided bankruptcy by selling to Les Wexner, the fast-fashion pioneer behind the Limited, whose empire of mall brands would go on to dominate American retail for forty years.

Wexner turned Victoria's Secret into a multibillion-dollar business, and the brand's cultural influence soared thanks to its airbrushed advertisements and annual televised fashion show, which drew millions of viewers each year. Its supermodel spokeswomen, the sweet but sultry Angels, personified a new American beauty standard.

But as our definition of beauty expanded, Victoria's Secret failed to evolve and reached a crisis point. Meanwhile, Wexner became increasingly known for his complicated relationship with sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, his former financial adviser and confidant.

Selling Sexy expertly draws from sources within Victoria's Secret and across the industry to examine the unprecedented rise of one of the most innovative brands in retail history--a brand that today, under new ownership, is desperately trying to seduce shoppers again.

Author Notes

Lauren Sherman has been reporting from inside the fashion industry for more than fifteen years. Now a special correspondent at Puck , she was the Business of Fashion 's chief correspondent, and before that a staff reporter at Forbes . She has contributed to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times , as well as Fast Company , Women's Health , and the Gentlewoman . She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and son.

Chantal Fernandez is a writer covering fashion, retail, luxury, and beauty with a focus on business and culture. She is currently a features writer for The Cut at New York magazine. A former senior reporter at the Business of Fashion , her work has appeared in the Financial Times , the New York Times , Elle , and Harper's Bazaar . She lives in Brooklyn with her husband.

Reviews (1)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Journalists Sherman and Fernandez debut with an enthralling deep dive into the history of Victoria's Secret. They recount how husband-and-wife duo Roy and Gaye Raymond opened the first Victoria's Secret store in Palo Alto, Calif., in 1977, seeking to tap an underserved market for upscale lingerie. Roy's thriftlessness imperiled what was otherwise a thriving business, leading him to sell his four stores in 1983 to retail maven Les Wexner, who updated the Victorian decor; stocked cheaper, tawdrier products to bring in more customers; and pushed for rapid expansion across the U.S. Sherman and Fernandez chart the company's transformation into a multibillion-dollar brand, but the most revealing sections cover the business's beleaguered recent past. For instance, the authors discuss how executives' unwillingness to update their business model for the digital age contributed to the company's mounting financial woes throughout the 2010s, when changing mores around body inclusivity heightened scrutiny of the business's glamorization of thinness. Victoria's Secret also took hits to its reputation after Wexner's close ties with Jeffrey Epstein received renewed attention following the financier's 2019 arrest for sex trafficking, and a 2020 New York Times report revealed that chief marketing officer Ed Razek routinely fat-shamed colleagues and made inappropriate advances toward models. A sharp assessment of the company's financial and moral failings, this pulls no punches. (Oct.)

Prologue: Dreams and Fantasies	1
1 Right Place, Right Time	7
For Bay Area entrepreneur Roy Raymond, a taboo sparks a billion-dollar idea.
2 The Rise of a Retail Savant	28
Les Wexner and the invention of fast fashion.
3 One Man's Failure Is Another's Opportunity	43
Roy Raymond and Les Wexner are both shy men with colossal dreams. Only one will see them come true.
4 The Making of the American Mall	50
Les Wexner hooks the shoppers of the 1980s.
5 The Not-So-Ugly Stepsister	60
Les Wexner underestimates the Victoria's Secret mail-order catalog-until it becomes the brand's secret weapon.
6 Man About Town	71
Les Wexner takes on Columbus.
7 Victoria Grows Up	88
Grace Nichols classes up the joint, and a flashy bra launch sets the stage for the Angels era.
8 Here Come the Consultants	109
The days of operating like a family business are over.
9 Making (Something Like) Movies	121
Victoria's Secret chases a high-fashion image as the brand's top adman, Ed Razek, spins a cinematic fantasy.
10 What Is Sexy?	137
With Victoria's Secret's "fashion credibility" intact, the Angels invade television.
11 On Wednesdays We Wear Pink	152
A breakout sister brand challenges the Angels playbook.
12 Scaling Sexy	164
The Great Recession whacks retail, but Victoria's Secret emerges as a bona fide blockbuster.
13 The Last Great Contract in Modeling	186
The Angels, under pressure to meet exacting standards, start to lose their allure.
14 The Epstein Factor	204
How did a convicted sex trafficker become a main character in the life of Les Wexner?
15 No One Left to Say No	225
Les Wexner reasserts control-with disastrous results.
16 The Unraveling	241
The crisis in Columbus boils over, and the Wexner era comes to an end.
17 Apologies Aren't Sexy	259
Victoria's Secret pays penance, but its past remains present.
Epilogue: Final Fantasy	274
Notes	277
Acknowledgments	291
Index	295

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (1)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Table of Contents