A rising swell of backlash round an absence of physique variety pressured Victoria’s Secret to cancel its annual vogue present in 2019. When they introduced it again in 2024, it was with a greater variety of our bodies, however shoppers complained that it lacked the glamour and oomph of the unique.
This yr, the model tried to satisfy within the center.
On Wednesday evening on the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Victoria’s Secret staged the second iteration of its retooled vogue present, the primary true effort below chief govt Hillary Super, who had solely been in her function for a month on the time of final yr’s occasion. And whereas this solid was notably extra numerous than within the present’s previous life (each by way of physique sort and background), it additionally offered a take on sexiness that felt extra filtered by way of a feminine gaze. That was all topped off with additionally a heavy dose of glamour — its most seen distinguishing issue from its high competitor, Skims.
“The goal now is to … honour the heritage of the brand, the things that make the brand special — the sexy, the glamour, the luxurious — but evolve that for a new generation,” mentioned CMO Elizabeth Preis.
Consumers’ verdict? It’s nonetheless not fairly what it was — but it surely’s getting nearer.
Like final yr, there have been extra informal appears to be like, in addition to extra clothes usually, from mini-dresses to silk cargo pants, however all the things was dialed up a notch. Pajama pants have been worn beneath a costume made out of ropes of rhinestones. Models walked down the runway in dishevelled denims and sweatshirts, however they have been cropped and dusted with glitter. While not all fashions wore wings (as a substitute, some had feathered headpieces), there was a larger variety of giant wings and over-the-top equipment, from Gigi Hadid’s sweeping opera coat lined in pink peonies to her sister Bella’s life-size wings and silver fringed getup. There wasn’t a single slicked-back bun in sight.
And whereas there have been loads of ladies strutting down the runway in a bra and barely-there panties, there have been additionally ensembles that felt extra catered to a lady’s interpretation of sexiness. To begin, veteran angel Jasmine Tookes, opened the present highlighting her nine-month pregnant stomach. Liu Wen walked in a sheer, sequined crop high and coordinating pants, one among a number of glowing appears to be like that appeared equally suited to attending a Sabrina Carpenter live performance. “Euphoria” actress Barbie Ferreira’s purple bikini and whistle, sure, felt very “Baywatch,” however topped off with a denim jacket with the sleeves pushed up, felt like a glammed-up seashore outfit.
The appears to be like, in fact, solely go thus far.
“You can do the big hair, the makeup and make it bold, but the way to make it modern is with the women in the show and what they represent,” mentioned retail guide Gabriella Santaniello.
In that sense, the model nailed the project. The runway featured the usual array of high fashions, together with veterans like Adriana Lima, Gigi Hadid and Alessandra Ambrosio, in addition to of-the-moment names like Anok Yai and Alex Consani (who, final yr, grew to become the present’s first transgender mannequin). There have been additionally standout plus-size fashions like Paloma Elsesser, Precious Lee and Ashley Graham, plus just a few who weren’t fashions in any respect — past Ferreira, Olympic gymnast Suni Lee and WNBA star Angel Reese additionally walked.
According to Preis, the hope is that each one of it will likely be sufficient to convey again the patrons who’ve defected elsewhere and lure in youthful ones simply discovering the model.
“If you want to connect with more people … oftentimes it’s through more people, more personalities,” mentioned Preis.
A New-Yet-Familiar Version of Sexy
Celebrity casting, in fact, shouldn’t be a revolutionary tactic in vogue advertising. Still, it is sensible that Victoria’s Secret deployed the technique this go spherical.
Perhaps much more than in 2024, there was immense strain to get this yr’s present proper. The firm’s market cap has greater than halved because the finish of 2021 — in the present day it sits round $2 billion — and in 2025, has confronted accusations of mismanagement from activist buyers.
This time, suggestions from final yr offered a bonus: Consumers have been clear that they wished extra of what made the present such a phenomenon within the first place.
Even earlier than Wednesday evening, it was clear they have been listening — a pre-show Instagram announcement that the bouncy blowouts would return obtained near-universal reward within the feedback. At the identical time, there was a brand new workforce in place, overseeing Super’s imaginative and prescient for the present, and actually, the model at giant. Preis, for example, joined simply 4 months in the past, whereas govt artistic director Adam Selman, who led the present’s manufacturing, can be a 2025 rent.
They introduced forth a steadiness of putting a nostalgic chord whereas additionally staging an occasion that felt match for 2025. That was evident in casting a mixture of veterans and contemporary faces, but in addition within the performances. The present opened with Gen-Z pop star Madison Beer and ended with Millennial favorite Missy Elliott. They additionally appealed to the model’s international buyer base — Colombian musician Karol G sang totally in Spanish, whereas the Okay-pop group Twice soundtracked the Pink portion of the present.
Start to complete, the present was rooted in promoting Victoria’s Secret’s concept of horny, from the “Bombshell” t-shirts worn by the bartenders exterior to the ultra-sparkly appears to be like on the runway.
But all through, it was additionally clear they have been pushing what would really promote. Bras, which Super has mentioned is a specific focus for the corporate, have been a visual a part of practically each look. There was a complete phase dedicated to Pink, the corporate’s teen sub-brand, an aughts hit and a current gross sales excessive level. Through a partnership with Amazon Prime, viewers at house nonetheless may store the appears to be like on-line.
While the present absolutely did its job of getting individuals speaking, time will inform if it will get them to buy.
“It’s hard to turn a retailer around in a year, especially in a very competitive category that’s been declining for years,” mentioned Santaniello. “The stakes are high to get it right, but they’re never going to please everybody.”