Victoria’s Secret is pulling its famous fashion show from network television, Business of Fashion reports. According to an internal memo sent by Les Wexner the founder of parent company L Brands Inc., the brand is “rethinking” the famous show and planning to turn it into an “event.”
“Fashion is a business of change. We must evolve and change to grow. Going forward we don’t believe network television is the right fit,” Wexner writes. “In 2019 and beyond, we’re focusing on developing exciting and dynamic content and a new kind of event.”
The VS Fashion Show has been on a slow decline over the past couple of years with the 2018 show bringing in the lowest ratings since its start. Not only is network television not the same giant it used to be, but the brand has also been criticized for its lack of diversity and inclusiveness. In an interview with Vogue in December 2018, Chief Marketing Officer Ed Razek doubled down on the brand’s choice not to include plus or trans models by saying that they would take away from “the fantasy.” He then took a misguided jab at one of his more inclusive competitors saying, “we’re nobody’s third love, we’re their first love.”
Despite the swift backlash to his remarks, the brand’s newest cast of Angels still didn’t necessarily reflect the sort of change many were looking for from the brand.
There is no word on what the new event that will replace the show will actually look like— for all we know they could be pitching it to a streaming service and keeping it the same. Hopefully, though, the brand will listen to their customers, and the public feedback, and make some major steps toward inclusion.