As part of the VS Collective, lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret, has appointed actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas, American footballer Megan Rapinoe and model Adut Akech to redefine the brand.
The diverse roster, appointed as VS Collective ambassadors, will work to replace and redefine the brand’s ‘hyper-sexualised’ models, who have faced criticism in recent years for inaccurate representations of female body image.
The US retailer, which brought seductive lingerie to the masses in the 1970s, bolstered by their Angels catwalks, has been overshadowed in recent years by brands that have openly embraced both bodily and ethnic diversity.
Criticised for its objectification of women, Victoria’s Secret in 2019 abandoned its famed fashion show, a globally televised event that saw women parade down the catwalk in scant but bedizened lingerie.
In an effort to compensate for lost sales, Victoria’s Secret, which saw sales drop 7.7 percent in 2019 even pre-pandemic, launched its new collective of female brand representatives on Wednesday, favouring activists over Angels.
Taking to social media to share the announcement as part of a thread, Chopra Jonas posted images that displayed other ambassadors in the VS Collective, alongside the caption: “Representation matters. It’s crucial for us to show everyone ALL over the world that they matter and are seen! As a founding partner of #TheVSCollective and advisor to the business this is exactly what I intend to do. @VictoriasSecret.”
Representation matters. It’s crucial for us to show everyone ALL over the world that they matter and are seen! As a founding partner of #TheVSCollective and advisor to the business this is exactly what I intend to do. @VictoriasSecret
(1/3) pic.twitter.com/g8Rrt3bzrj
— PRIYANKA (@priyankachopra) June 18, 2021
Victoria’s Secret plans to resume its fashion show in 2022, but in a very different format, Waters told the Times.
Find out more about the VS Collective here: www.victoriassecret.co.uk/the-vs-collectiveÂ
