Selling sexy : Victoria's Secret and the unraveling of an American icon / Lauren Sherman and Chantal Fernandez.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sherman, Lauren, author.

Fernandez, Chantal, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Victoria's Secret (Firm).

Lingerie industry--United States.

Lingerie industry.

Sex--United States.

Sex.

Sex discrimination in employment.

Young women.

Physical Description:

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

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

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

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?"-- Provided by publisher.

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.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781250850966

1250850967

OCLC:

1428706866

Publisher Number:

90100420068