Glitz, glam, models, and wings. The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is SO back, making its raging return on the runway in October 2024 in New York City after a six-year hiatus. Was it back better than ever? Or has the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show yet to come back to its former glory? Here is the rundown of the 45-minute show.
In 2018, the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was initially canceled due to criticism about the show’s inclusivity. Concerns about having only certain types of images of models: The typical tall, skinny, pretty, and usually light-skinned, referring to their “Perfect Body” campaign caused much negative publicity towards the brand. Their lack of diversity in racial and ethnic identities, body types, and genders forced them to discontinue their show to reflect on necessary changes that needed to be made as viewership dwindled.
One significant change was in the leadership within the brand. Following along with other issues regarding sexism and sexual abuse, Victoria’s Secret (VS) became tied to the trial of Jeffery Epstein, who was arrested in 2019 for sex trafficking. Leslie Wexner, the former CEO, had employed Epstein as his personal advisor. Scrutinized for his close relationship with Epstein, Wexner had officially stepped down from Victoria’s Secret in 2020. As a common trend in these types of situations, Epstein and Wexner were both wealthy white men in positions of power, who abused their rights and privileges upon young girls. In this environment, VS models and women frequently faced misogyny and mistreatment from their male counterparts.
Fast forward to 2023, Victoria’s Secret was slated to return in 2024, after many internal changes and releasing their documentary “Victoria’s Secret: The Tour ’23,” which displayed their efforts in creating a more diverse and inclusive space within the fashion brand and culture. This sparked their initiative “the VS Collective,” replacing the original Victoria’s Angels. This features seven ambassadors: transgender model Valentina Sampaio, lesbian soccer player Megan Rapinoe, plus-size model Paloma Elsesser, actress Priyanka Chopra, South Sudanese-Australian model Adut Akech, professional skier Eileen Gu and media personality Amanda de Cadenet.
Following the appointment of female CEO, Hillary Super, who was previously the CEO of Savage X Fenty and global CEO of Anthropologie, the brand further emphasizes female empowerment and diversity, as the comeback 2024 show exhibited its first-ever fully-female music lineup of artists such as Cher, Lisa, and Tyla.
Even with all the improvement and excitement of the viewers for the prized show to be returning, there were still some cons to be found. One commonality was the lack of set-up and grandeur of the set, especially the runway, where one model’s heel was stuck, interrupting the flow of her strut as she struggled to put her heel back on, but still finished up with confidence and grace. Additionally, fans criticized the show for its use of fake applause and having ‘soulless walks,’ referring to model Mika Schneider’s RBF and ‘wingless’ catwalk, which quickly became a TikTok meme. Curly girls were also greatly disappointed with the presentation of hair this year as social media took to comparing VS models’ hair from 2024 to the 2000s. It displayed a lack of treatment now than in the past, with people dissatisfied with the brushed-out curls of today in an era that encourages curly girls to embrace their hair.
Viewers felt the show had lost its original touch and didn’t feel like the classic Victoria’s Angels aesthetic. But the reality is that the original Victoria’s Secret has evolved, and it’s working towards a more progressive future: One that leads by example in the fashion industry to be kind and inclusive of all types of aspiring models.
