Victoria‘s Secret recent announcement of its new Simple Sexy range, focusing on comfort rather than ostentatious catwalk designs, will no doubt be welcomed by the more modest shopper.
That said, the news that Victoria‘s Secret spectacular annual catwalk will take place in London‘s Earl‘s Court this year will be music to the ears of many Londoners.
Adriana Lima had nothing but praise for the capital, and thinks “it will be amazing to bring the show to London. I love it here. Especially the shopping!” Here we take a look at some of the more surprising facts about the company…
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The inspiration behind the store arose when founder Roy Raymond felt embarrassed purchasing lingerie for his wife in a normal department store. With an $80,000 loan (half of which he borrowed from his parents), Raymond set up the first store in California in 1977. The business made half a million dollars in its first year and Raymond opened four additional stores.
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The store was initially designed to sell women‘s lingerie to male customers, but this didn‘t prove profitable and the company were heading for bankruptcy before Raymond sold the business for $1 million in 1982. Refocusing on selling respectable lingerie to women, the business expanded from 3 to 346 stores in seven years.
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Despite its American owners, the HQ of Victoria‘s Secret was given as a London address on catalogues. This was in fact a fake address used as a marketing ploy to evoke thoughts of ‘Victorian‘ England; the real company HQ was in Columbus, Ohio.
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Men‘s underwear was sold by the company between at least 1985 and 1993. Perhaps unsurprisingly, its catalogue was one of the best-selling in the country, and sales had quadrupled to $120m in four years
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Stores in the Middle East originally omitted the brand‘s ‘infamous lingerie‘ from their stock. Victoria‘s Secret is owned by M.H. Alshaya & Co. in the region, having opened the first in Bahrain, Kuwait in 2010.
