"Go woke go broke is real": Internet reacts as Victoria's Secret ditches woke branding and returns to its roots amid sales drop

Victoria's Secret, the American lingerie and clothing retailer, has reportedly decided to get rid of its woke and feminist campaigns of recent years as the company's shares kept plummeting.

In a piece from the outlet, published by editorial partner CNN on Tuesday, October 17, 2023, the lingerie company is going back to its "sexiness" image and revamping itself.

As per the New York Post, Cathaleen Chen, the writer of the piece, had reported that the brand's efforts to promote inclusivity had found their success among “favorable reviews from online critics [but] never translated into sales.”

Many netizens decided to use social media to react to the news.

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Victoria's Secret has decided to bring “sexiness” back to help with plunging sales

The lingerie, beauty, and clothing brand, Victoria's Secret, launched a woke campaign two years ago, to promote inclusivity in the brand's message. In February 2021, the former head of Victoria’s Secret’s international business, Martin Waters said:

"When the world was changing, we were too slow to respond. We needed to stop being about what men want and to be about what women want."

To counter the image, the lingerie brand then introduced a group they called the VS Collective, which had seven women, as per The New York Times. The women in the campaign included Megan Rapinoe, the football player; Eileen Gu, a Chinese-American freestyle skier; Paloma Elsesser, a biracial plus-size model, and many other brand spokesmodels.

However, Victoria's Secret observed a significant drop in its revenue in 2023, estimated at $6.2 billion after the shift in its campaign. It would turn out to be a 5% fall from the previous year, and comparatively even lower than in 2021, when the revenue was $7.5 billion, as per The New York Post.

Brand President Greg Unis talked about the new direction for Victoria's Secret in a meeting with its investors last week about increasing its lingerie, swimwear, and activewear line, according to Daily Wire. He declared:

"Sexiness can be inclusive. Sexiness can celebrate the diverse experiences of our customers and that’s what we’re focused on."

Talking about the woke campaigns, Chief Executive Martin Waters said:

“Despite everyone’s best endeavors, it’s [woke initiatives have] not been enough to carry the day.”

Netizens gave their opinions on the news about the new campaign:

As per CNN, the brand has also increased its sleepwear and lingerie piece offerings like slip dresses, corset tops, and more. Victoria's Secret would also be updating its stores and opening 400 new locations outside the United States and Canada.

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Why did the company introduce woke campaigns in 2021?

The backlash in 2021 was in part because of the brand's relationship with s*x offender Jeffrey Epstein. Victoria's Secret had also been linked to a misogynistic corporate culture that trafficked in sexism, sizeism, and ageism, as per The New York Times. In the wake of the #metoo movement, the aforementioned allegations came to light.

As per the New York Post, Megan Rapinoe, the LGBTQ pro women’s soccer player had previously spoken out about Victoria Secret's "harmful message" in 2021.

She said that it represented the "patriarchal, sexist, viewing was not just what it meant to be sexy but what the clothes were trying to accomplish through a male lens and through what men desired. And it was very much marketed toward younger women."

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In August 2023, Victoria's Secret announced that it was bringing back well-known and established VS Angels like Candace Swanepoel and Naomi Campbell for its campaigns, as per Daily Wire.