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Victoria’s Secret, the famous lingerie brand, has embarked on a pivot to change its traditional models and famous “angels” to political activists promoting progressive causes.
“At Victoria’s Secret, we are on an incredible journey to become the world’s leading advocate for women. This is a dramatic shift for our brand, and it’s a shift we welcome from within,” CEO Martin Waters said in a statement on Wednesday.
Among them are footballer and LGBT activist Megan Rapinoe; actress and entrepreneur Priyanka Chopra Jonas or the first trans model who paraded for the firm, Valentina Sampaio, who form The VS Collective, responsible for creating “revolutionary collections” and generate support for “vital causes for women.”
In her Twitter account, Rapinoe said Thursday that the spokeswomen are “icons of our time” and said she will work to “show ALL women their individual and collective beauty and power” from the firm, which has also restructured its executive leadership to include a majority of women.
In an interview with The New York Times, Rapinoe went further and described the “patriarchal and sexist” message that the previous Victoria’s Secret sent with its image, thought “from a male point of view and through what men wanted”, as “really harmful.”
With these positions, the Victoria’s Secret brand is moving away from the fashion business to enter the political business, championing progressive causes.
The firm also detailed that it will give a prize of “at least 5 million dollars annually to examine and address racial and gender inequalities.”
Victoria’s Secret held at the end of 2019 its last major parade starring “angels”, with its traditional models presenting the underwear catalog.
