Victoria's Secret Show, which lasted for 24 years, canceled Victoria's Secret How to change the "typhoon" of Victoria's Secret - China Business Network | China Business Daily Society 0
Recently, the world's well-known underwear brand Victoria's Secret (hereinafter referred to as Victoria's Secret) announced the cancellation of this year's Victoria's Secret show, and the future publicity model will be replaced with other forms. Why is the Victoria's Secret show that has lasted for 24 years cancelled, and how should the Victoria's Secret "typhoon" change?
It is reported that since 1995, the Victoria's Secret show has been around for 24 years. The outside world speculates that the reason for the suspension is mostly related to the decline in ratings. Relevant data shows that the ratings of Victoria's Secret Show have exceeded 10 million viewers many times, but in the past two years, it has dropped to 5 million viewers. Last year, it even handed in the worst report card - 3.27 million viewers.
Many viewers who have watched the Victoria's Secret show said in an interview with China Business Daily that although the Victoria's Secret show has done a good job in marketing in recent years, from the perspective of the Victoria's Secret show itself, the content lacks innovation.
In this regard, Stuart Burgdoerfer, chief financial officer and vice president of Victoria's Secret parent company L Brands, said that the company believes that it is important to change Victoria's Secret's marketing methods, and the company is currently discussing how to upgrade its brand positioning and improve its marketing methods.
retail expert Min Guangya said in an interview with a reporter from China Business Daily that, from external reasons, the sharp decline in the ratings of Victoria's Secret show has made Victoria's Secret's marketing drive to its parent company less and less, and it is reasonable to cancel the Victoria's Secret show. From the perspective of internal development, current Victoria's Secret does need change to grow better.
In fact, the decline in the ratings of the Victoria's Secret show is only a superficial phenomenon, and the decline in the revenue of Victoria's Secret underwear is the most troublesome thing for L Brands at the moment. In fiscal year 2016, the company's sales reached US$7.78 billion; in fiscal year 2017, sales fell 9% year-on-year; sales in fiscal year 2018 continued to fall 0.17% year-on-year to US$7.375 billion, of which Victoria's Secret Underwear contributed only US$512.4 million, a 45% drop from fiscal year 2017.
L Brands' latest financial report shows that in the third quarter ended November 2 this year, the company's sales fell 4% to US$2.677 billion, with a net loss of US$252 million. Among them, Victoria's Secret sales continued to fall 2% to US$1.412 billion, and same-store sales decreased by 2%, which has declined for six consecutive quarters.
At the same time, Victoria's Secret has closed its stores last year. Data shows that Victoria's Secret closed 30 stores last year. L Brands said it will close 53 stores this year, and it is very likely that it will continue to close stores in the future.
In addition, the scandal of senior executives of Victoria's Secret parent company has also greatly reduced the brand image. It is reported that in July this year, Leslie Wexner, CEO and founder of Victoria's Secret's parent company, was involved in a sexual scandal of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse of minors. Although Leslie Wexner said he was unaware and L Brands announced that he would hire a lawyer to thoroughly investigate the matter, the scandal had a great impact on the company.
Some consumers told China Business Daily that the scandal of Victoria's Secret parent company has cast a shadow on its brands. Currently, there are many domestic underwear brands, and Victoria's Secret is no longer its first choice.
Min Guangya told China Business Daily reporters that in fact, Victoria's Secret's brand influence has always been overestimated, resulting in the company's indifference to product quality and consumer experience. It is reported that as early as 2008, some consumers sued the brand in court due to allergic reactions after wearing Victoria's Secret underwear. In 2017, the Shanghai Entry and Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau concentrated on destroying a large number of imported clothing, and Victoria's Secret underwear was on the list because of its formaldehyde exceeding the standard.
However, the cancellation of the Victoria's Secret show does not only have negative impacts. Min Guangya said that Victoria's Secret has reached an urgent period of change. If the company can focus on underwear management in the future, face up to and meet consumers' needs more, the brand may rise again. The problems facing Victoria's Secret are also a wake-up call for the entire underwear industry: underwear companies need to focus more on the product itself and launch more pure marketing methods.
Editor: Wang Hui
