Lingerie label ThirdLove has made the most of Victoria’s Secret‘s recent travails by placing a full-page New York Times ad in response to a series of controversial comments made by Victoria’s Secret’s parent company L-Brands’ chief marketing officer Ed Razek in a recent Vogue interview.
Among comments about casting decisions, Razek without prompting brought up ThirdLove, dismissing it as a competitive threat. Said Razek, “[Competitors] carp at us because we’re the leader. They don’t talk about each other. I accept that. I actually respect it. Cool. But we’re nobody’s third love. We’re their first love. And Victoria’s Secret has been women’s first love from the beginning.”
Addressing Victoria’s Secret in a letter format, ThirdLove co-CEO Heidi Zak in large part addressed Razek’s comments about choosing not to cast either plus-size or transgender models for Victoria’s Secret’s annual runway show.
Zak wrote, “Haven’t we moved beyond outdated ideas of femininity and gender roles? It’s time to stop telling women what makes them sexy — let us decide. We’re done with pretending certain sizes don’t exist or aren’t important enough to serve. And please stop insisting that inclusivity is a trend.”
Referencing Razek’s comment, she added, “As you said Ed, ‘We’re nobody’s ThirdLove, we’re their first love.’ We are flattered for the mention, but let me be clear: we may not have been a woman’s first love but we will be her last.”
The letter wasn’t the only thing on ThirdLove’s agenda. The brand has amplified a change.org petition created by model Robyn Lawley who is calling for people to boycott Victora’s Secret fashion show in an effort to encourage the brand to take a more inclusive approach to casting.
While much has been made of Victoria’s Secret’s casting decisions, in reality the brand has much bigger problems it needs to address if it wants to get back on a growth path.
Check out ThirdLove’s related social media posts below.
ThirdLove letter to Victoria’s Secret
Co-CEO Heidi Zak explains why she wrote the letter.
