Victoria's Secret is a retail marketer of women's clothing and beauty products, but is most recognizable as a marketer of lingerie. The company was founded in San Francisco, California, USA, in 1979 by Roy Raymond, who sold it in 1982 to The Limited Inc., and it is now owned by The Limited's successor company, Limited Brands. Since the takeover the company has been based in Columbus, Ohio, though it has at times sought to foster an image of being British. Raymond eventually committed suicide in 1993, jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge.
Victoria's Secret had sales of more than US$ 2.4 billion through their 900 retail stores in the United States in 2005. All stores of Limited Brands are corporately owned. Victoria's Secret products are also available through the catalog business, Victoria's Secret Direct, with sales of approximately US$870 million.
 |
The company gained notoriety in the 1990s after it began to use supermodels in their advertising and fashion shows; prominent supermodels featured by Victoria's Secret include Alessandra Ambrosio, Tyra Banks, Ana Beatriz Barros, Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, Laetitia Casta, Selita Ebanks, Isabeli Fontana, Izabel Goulart, Eva Herzigova, Bar Refaeli, Adriana Lima, Karolína Kurková, Petra Němcová, Frederique van der Wal, Heidi Klum,Veronica Varekova, Lindsay Frimodt, Tricia Helfer, and Fernanda Tavares. The "Victoria's Secret Angels" are the models with contracts to Victoria's Secret. Many other models appear in the catalog that appear as part of campaigns. |
|
