“Go Woke, Go Broke”: Inclusive Rebranded Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show Sparks Controversy

Nevertheless, the debut of Valentina Sampaio and Alex Consani as the first trans women to walk in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show ignited positive feedback.

TikToker “Mimmi’s Diary” said in a video : “Feeling quite good as a trans woman, being sat here watching the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show after watching it my whole life and finally seeing some representation.

“Shout out to Alex, my trans queen, walking in the show, like, wow. Victoria’s Secret, you actually made a good comeback.”

Back in 2018, Victoria’s Secret former chief marketing officer Ed Razek was slammed for making insensitive remarks about brand talent.

Responsible for a homogenous, airbrushed, and sexualized brand image, Razek infuriated the public with transphobic comments he made in a Vogue interview about Victoria’s Secret’s casting practices: “Shouldn’t you have transsexuals in the show? No. No, I don’t think we should. Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy.”

The confirmation of Razek’s departure from the lingerie brand came on the same day that news talks began circulating about Victoria’s Secret hiring its first-ever transgender model, Valentina Sampaio, Bored Panda previously reported .

A year later, the lingerie company signed Ali Tate-Cutler, its first-ever size-14 model. The retailer worth billions of dollars has since undergone a rebranding.

With the appointment of CEO Martin Waters in 2021, the company implemented policy changes and new partnerships with a number of new spokeswomen, including Megan Rapinoe, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Naomi Osaka.