Victoria's Secret, the epitome of sexy lingerie
There was a reason for Victoria's Secret crash. Two powerful men have led a deeply ingrained culture of misogyny, bullying and sexual harassment, The New York Times reports. The article was summarized.A recent New York Times report found that lingerie brand Victoria's Secret and parent company L Brands had a rampant culture of misogyny and sexual harassment against employees and models.
Meanwhile, Victoria's Secret has served as a feminity evangelist for countless women. Victoria's Secret's unconventional catalogs and fashion shows were the touchstone of popularity. Also, for models, being a Victoria's Secret 'angel' was nothing less than guaranteeing international fame.
But in all glory there is light and shadow. According to the New York Times interview with more than 30 people, including former and current executives, employees, contractors and models, as well as documents related to the lawsuit, the billionaire Chairman Leslie Wexner, who founded L Brands, two powerful people inside the company, and Victoria's Secret Marketing Director It has been found that Ed Rajek, who served as a member of the government, led a deeply ingrained culture of misogyny, bullying, and sexual harassment.
First, Ed Razek, one of the chief executives of Victoria's Secret parent company L Brands, has been frequently criticized for repeated inappropriate behavior over the decades.
He tried to kiss the models, instructed them to sit on their laps, and even went viral by touching a model's crotch in underwear ahead of the 2018 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.
When executives and staff pointed out to Chairman Leslie H. Wexner of misconduct by his advisor Ed Rajek, it did not improve and immediately faced retaliation.
There was a prevailing atmosphere in which most models had to implicitly accept the decision of their superiors to force themselves to be photographed naked in order not to be penalized. Model Andy Muse revealed that she was excluded from the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show after turning down inappropriate sexual offers from her chief marketing officer, Ed Lazek.
In particular, former and current employees testified that Ed Lazek was recognized as the representative of Chairman Leslie Wexner and gave the impression that he was invincible that no one could stand up to.
Casey Crow Taylor, a former Victoria's Secret public relations employee who witnessed Ed Lajek's inappropriate behavior firsthand, said: "Ed Lajek's inappropriate behavior was ingrained within the company. It was almost like brainwashing and those who protested were eventually punished. received," he added.
The New York Times reported through interviews with models and employees that Victoria's Secret had many problems that were not revealed to the outside.
This was already noticed when L-Brands Leslie Wexner's relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was revealed. Jeffrey Epstein, who managed Leslie Wexner's billion-dollar fortune, allegedly seduced some young women by pretending to be a Victoria's Secret recruiter.
Former chief marketing officer Ed Lajek, who is not free from all kinds of allegations, declined to comment on specific allegations in an email to The New York Times, saying, "The allegations made in the article are clearly not true, have been misinterpreted or out of context."
Meanwhile, Victoria's Secret, which was bought by Chairman Leslie Wexner for $1 million in 1982 and transformed into a lingerie powerhouse, is now in crisis.
Socially, the social norms that define beauty and sexiness have changed over the past few years, placing greater value on different body types, skin colors and gender identities.
However, Victoria's Secret did not keep pace with this trend. Victoria's Secret stores are closing one after another as sales decline. Shares of L Brands are now down more than 75% from their 2015 highs.
Also, the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was kicked off TV after nearly 20 years. Ed Lajek, 71, also left L Brands in August.
Those familiar with the matter said that 82-year-old Leslie Wexner is looking to sell the lingerie company when she retires. As these initiatives progress, the L brand's treatment of women will likely come under even more scrutiny.
In fact, criticism of Victoria's Secret's anachronistic marketing spread rapidly in 2018 when Ed Lajek expressed no interest in casting plus-size and transgender models to a fashion show.
Then last summer, Victoria's Secret's endemic misogyny and sexual harassment of its employees and models escalated into a public crisis when Jeffrey Epstein, the property manager of Victoria's Secret Chairman Leslie Wexwick, was charged with juvenile prostitution.
President Leslie Wexner entrusted the management of his billions of dollars, elevating Jeffrey Epstein's status and providing him with a prosperous life. Chairman Leslie Wexner alleges that he and Epstein broke up in about 2007, the year after Florida prosecutors charged him with sex offenses.
Jeffrey Epstein was found to have attempted to sexually assault young models several times between 1995 and 2006 by lying to them that they would become Victoria's Secret models.
"I spent all my money on Victoria's Secret lingerie to prepare for an audition," a woman known as Jane Doe said in a statement read in federal court over the Jeffrey Epstein case last summer. was,” he said.
Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide in prison in August while awaiting trial on charges of juvenile prostitution in federal court.
Ed Lajek, another culprit in abuse of women, along with Chairman Leslie Wexner, has been instrumental in establishing the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show as the world's largest annual fashion show by giving models huge feathered wings called Victoria's Secret 'Angels'. has been maintained
Cynthia Fedus-Fields, former Victoria's Secret CEO, testified that "Ed Lajek has been focused on Victoria's Secret business and has been strong enough to represent Leslie Wexner since 2000."
According to models and former and current executives, Ed Rajek often reminded models that their careers are in his hands. According to eyewitnesses, while casting, Ed Lajek occasionally asked the models in bras and underwear for their phone numbers and advised them to sit on his lap. The two models revealed that Ed Rajek had asked them to have a private dinner with them. One of them is Andy Moose.
In 2007, in her second year as a Victoria's Secret model, 19-year-old Andy Muse, Ed Lazek, in a private email, offered to live with him at his home in Caikos, Turkey, and asked him to help him find a place to live in the Dominican Republic. He continued to harass relentlessly.
In 2008, after four years of performing on the Victoria's Secret stage, she was eventually eliminated after messing with Ed Rajek's dinner.
Also, in the fitting room ahead of the 2018 fashion show, supermodel Bella Hadid was measuring underwear that met the broadcast standards. Ed Lajek, who sat on the couch watching it, said aloud, "Forget the panties," and mumbled loudly on TV, contemplating whether to let Bella Hadid walk the runway with her breasts exposed, the witness said. told
One employee submitted documents to the Human Resources Department listing more than a dozen allegations of Ed Rajek's derogatory remarks and inappropriate contact with women.
Casey Crowe Taylor, who was in charge of public relations at the time, said, "During a photo shoot in June 2015, while the staff was having a buffet lunch, Ed Lazek snatched her plate and looked up and down and saw dozens of people. While watching, I rebuked her for her weight and told her to stop eating pasta and bread."
Casey Crowe Taylor, who is 177 cm tall and weighs 64 kg, ran to the bathroom and cried. She later complained to the Human Resources department, but nothing happened and she eventually left her company a few weeks later.
Ed Lazek ran the company as an agent for Leslie Wexner, who helped raise a 2013 $1.2 million in Ed Lazek's name at the Ohio State University Cancer Center.
Russell James, one of the Victoria's Secret photographers, was also close to Ed Lazek and frequently photographed nude models.
Although nude photo shoots were not part of the formal contract with Victoria's Secret, Russell James frequently asked for nude photos, and it turns out that the models received no guarantees. Russell James said, "Girls posed for nudes for their books or portrait series."
In 2014, Russell James published a luxurious collector's book, 'Angels', which included some nude photos. According to his lawyer Martin Singer, the models have agreed to include their photos.
The two books are currently on sale on Russell James's website for $1,800 and $3,600. Victoria's Secret hosted the publication of 'Angels' during New York Fashion Week 2014. Attendees included a supermodel and then Victoria's Secret CEO Saren Turney.
Russell James' attorney Martin Singer said: "Russell James did not ask the models to pose for nudes or other photos, and at the request of his agent, he agreed to be photographed nude on Necker Island." In response, Allison Knicks called Martin Singer's remarks "terrible".Alison Nicks recalled that time "with other models, we sailed to Neker Island, where large amounts of alcohol were served, and wealthy men flirted and flirted with us."
"Are we high-class prostitutes or charities? We're asking ourselves, and on our last day on the island we lined up for a nude photo shoot in front of Russell James," she said.
One of two photos of Allison Knicks taken over the weekend was a side view, with her breasts covered but her lower body exposed, and appeared halfway through Russell James' book 'The Angels'. Since then, Allison Knicks has not appeared on the Victoria's Secret stage.
