Imagine my surprise when I was reading the morning news and came across an article about Victoria’s Secret planning to become more relevant to its buyers. Victoria’s Secret is owned by L Brands, which also owns Bath and Body Works. I’ve been trying for months to get L Brands to update its racial and ethnic categories to include Multiracial.
After numerous emails, a failed Zoom meeting, and finally their admitting they were not going to promote Multiracial Heritage Week as they did Asian American Month and Pride Month. All the while they begrudgingly admitted they did recognize the Multiracial population, just not publicly. They are retiring their “angels” and bringing onboard the “VS Collective,” which will feature more of the way their buyers really look, but probably not the Multiracial ones.
“This is a dramatic shift for our brand, and it’s a shift that we embrace from our core,” said Victoria’s Secret CEO Martin Waters in a statement. On Wednesday, Waters told the New York Times that he doesn’t see the Angels “as being culturally relevant” any more. No kidding.
Susan Graham for Project RACE