Advertising and society, in general, has changed pretty drastically in the last couple of years.

The #MeToo movement opened up a dialogue about women’s bodies, patriarchy and sexual assault that’s forced people to reconsider, amongst other things, how people, and especially women are represented in the media.

Victoria’s Secret didn’t really get that memo.

They developed their advertising strategy in the 90s and they’re sticking to it.

Since 2016, the US label has been on the decline as more people move away from the overtly sexy image of the company towards brands that encourage inclusivity and comfort.

Last year November saw Victoria’s Secret’s fiscal third-quarter operating income tumble 89%. They promised to do something about it, but it’s July 2019 and things aren’t getting better.

Here’s CNN:

Citigroup analyst Paul Lejuez downgraded shares of L Brands (LB) Monday from a “buy” to a “neutral” rating and slashed his price target from $35 a share to $27, citing concerns that management is “slow to implement meaningful change” with “cultural norms shifting away” from the company.

Lejuez said it is time that Victoria’s Secret “adopted a more inclusive approach”, but is also worried that a sudden image change could look contrived, and might be too little too late to save the company.

“It will be a tough balancing act to attract new customers without alienating its existing customer base. While we still think a change toward inclusivity is the right move, a move in that direction might be more difficult to pull off,” Lejuez wrote.

Lejuez isn’t the only one worried that L Brands has lost its way. James Mitarotonda, CEO of activist hedge fund and L Brands investor Barington Capital, urged the company earlier this year to make some big changes.

The consensus from everyone, including L Brands founder and CEO Leslie Wexner, is that Victoria’s Secret needs to communicate a compelling and up-to-date brand image.

Unfortunately for Wexner, he’s just been tied to Jeff Epstein, who stands accused of sex trafficking minors.

Wexner claims to have cut ties with Epstein over a decade ago.

It’s still not a good look for a company running out of time to get with the times.

[source:cnn]