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Underwear was utilitarian it covered all the bits that needed to be covered without much fuss.
Victoria’s Secret helped change all that.
But behind the sparse unmentionables is a hidden side to the company many do not know.
“Our original idea was to have a store where men felt comfortable shopping for lingerie.
It all began when Roy went shopping for me, and felt out of place in a lingerie store.
“I remember making the velvet curtains for the first changing rooms.
But its decor left much to be desired.
Despite the less than tasteful decor, Wexner saw potential in the burgeoning business.
“I saw ingredients in it.
What if we mixed it up differently?”
The company almost went bankrupt
Wexner would have his chance to mix things up.
Wexner soon found out that by making men more comfortable, women were alienated.
Victoria is imaginary
Wexner’s next move was to put a face to the Victoria name.
Victoria was an English-French model who was sophisticated and sexy.
“It was like the making of a movie or telling a story to children,” Wexner said.
Because Roy tangled his personal finances and business finances, the couple also lost two homes and a car.
“He went through a couple of business failures and I think he suffered depression,“Gaye said.
“He borrowed a lot of money from his mother.
Shortly after getting divorced in 1993, Roy jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge.
He felt he couldn’t go on,” she said.
Roy left behindtwo children.
Despite its monumental success, Roy and Gaye felt the brand had strayed from their original intentions.
“Roy and I used to have our regrets about how much it had changed from our original vision.
Yet they’ve done a great job making it a commercial success.”
It’s still kind of for men.
According to a 2014Business Insiderreport, employees are trained to treat male customers with a little more special attention.
But don’t take it the wrong way, ladies.
According to an anonymous employee, they do this to get men to buy more.
“That means they would spend more money.”
Men would buy a couple of $50 bras without questioning us because they felt awkward.”
“I know I’m a hard grader.
As good as the performance was, I thought Victoria’s Secret was stalling out.”
Instead, the company is shifting focus to lingerie, beauty, and its Pink line.
