It's finally time for Victoria's Secret to ditch its supermodel-filled fashion show for good

A cast of models and Angels are preparing to walk in this year's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, which takes place in New York City on November 8 and airs December 2 on ABC. Despite being an annual tradition, the show no longer holds the same weight in the lingerie industry as it did when it began in 1995.

In recent years, concerns over the beauty standards promoted by Victoria's Secret models have drastically increased. While some have stated that they feel there's a lack of diversity among the cast, others have called out the brand for its failure to cast models with a variety of body types. Even supermodels have begun to boycott the show.

The brand isn't doing much better as a retailer. As teens have begun abandoning the lingerie chain to shop at stores like Aerie, which has risen to the top of the industry, Victoria's Secret has lost touch with its customers, yet it continues to host an annual fashion show.

linked Victoria's Secret's decreasing sales to a lack of interest in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

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The show is not the only apparent factor in the brand's decline.

In June,

That same month, it was announced that Victoria's Secret would close 20 stores across the nation.

Much like the brand, the Victorias Secret Fashion Show doesnt seem to have changed much since the 90s

When the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show first began in the '90s, it was common for fashion brands to strictly cast thin, and often white, models.

The cast for the 1998 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was comprised mostly of white, slim models.

A photo from the 2017 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show is almost hard to differentiate from a photo taken in 1998. Victoria's Secret has cast more models of color in recent years, but the brand's entire cast still represents just one body type.

Some people are concerned that Victoria's Secret models are too thin.

Recently, multiple people said Bella Hadid looked "unhealthy" and "too skinny" in photos from a Victoria's Secret fitting. After receiving the comments, the model reportedly edited the caption of her Instagram post to say that "all body types are different and react differently to a great workout routine and a healthy diet."

@victoriassecret fittings t... @ bellahadid

While the Victorias Secret Fashion Show gets criticized for showing one body type, it has also faced multiple accusations of cultural appropriation

In 2010, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show featured a section called "Wild Things" during which models wore animal print lingerie and neck rings. As Revelist pointed out, Victoria's Secret seemingly exoticized its models of color by having them walk almost exclusively during this portion of the show.

The brand does not appear to have since learned from its mistakes.

In 2012, Karlie Kloss walked the runway wearing a headdress in attempts to represent indigenous people, which both Kloss and Victoria's Secret apologized for before it was removed from the broadcast.

But once again in 2014, the show featured an "Exotic Travelers" segment during which models walked wearing tribal-print lingerie. Many felt that the section promoted cultural appropriation.

2016's "Road Ahead" portion also led to criticism. Garments worn during the segment appeared to have been inspired by Asian and Chinese cultures, including one that looked like a dragon. Many felt that the outfits mocked cultures that weren't represented by models who walked in the show.

Most recently in 2017, the brand came under fire once again for its "Nomadic Adventures" segment. Models who walked during this portion wore tribal prints and Navajo-style beading. Viewers quickly criticized the brand for taking part in what they felt was cultural appropriation of indigenous people.

Meanwhile, Victorias Secrets competitors are taking steps to

While Victoria's Secret does not appear to have changed its image much in over two decades, other brands have filled the gaps that the store has left behind.

In particular, Aerie has made efforts to make the lingerie market more inclusive.

Not only did the brand promise to stop airbrushing models, but Aerie also vowed to cast more people living with disabilities and illnesses in its advertisements. Aerie's #AerieREAL campaign, which introduced three body-positive programs to stores in August, was another driving force for its success.

And while the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show appears to prefer models with one body type, Rihanna's 2018 Fenty X Savage fashion show in September included people of all different shapes, sizes, and skin colors, as well as pregnant women.

As well as a growing concern with Victorias Secrets image, teens and adults say the stores bras are expensive and dont always fit properly

Another reason why people are losing interest in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, and in shopping at Victoria's Secret, could have to do with the price of the brand's products.

When Business Insider reported that Victoria's Secret fell off a list of teens' favorite stores, a Facebook user wrote in a comment on Business Insider's Facebook page: "."

Customers have also complained about what they have called "shoddily made" lingerie that fell apart after only a few washes. Others, including former employees, have argued that the brand's employees are not properly trained to measure customers for bras.

When INSIDER's Chloe Pantazi hadbra fittings at four separate Victoria's Secret stores, she found the store's sizing and its fitting methods to be inconsistent. But for some people, the problem is less to do with fittings than the bra sizes themselves; when Cosmopolitan sent nine women to three different lingerie stores to get fitted for bras,eight women said they did not fit in their bra size at Victoria's Secret.

Similarly, HelloGiggles spoke to a former Victoria's Secret employee and a Certified Bra Fit Specialist (who has not worked for the brand),both of whom said that Victoria's Secret doesn't stock a large enough range of sizes.

When I visited a Victoria's Secret store in New York City in July, I could see why customers might feel frustrated by the brand.

Not only did most of the flagship location store have a dark and seductive atmosphere, but racy photos of Victoria's Secret models were visible every few feet. While I wasn't bothered by the nature of the photos, I did take issue with how the store's advertisements only represented a very small and specific group of women.

It also seemed to me like there was a sizing issue among the brand's products. While it offered the same sizes as competitors like Aerie, with bras ranging from a size 30 A to 40 DDD , Victoria's Secret lingerie appeared to run much smaller than the size listed on the label.

Overall, Victorias Secret seems to have lost its touch, but it might regain popularity if it overhauled or even ditched its fashion show

Rather than focusing on a fashion show, Victoria's Secret should devote its full attention to progressing its brand. Consumers no longer accept the unattainable beauty standards that Victoria's Secret appears to promote, and customers seem to be as equally intolerant of products that they feel are not worth the price.

Starting with a line of updated lingerie sizes, the brand could make a serious step forward in the right direction.

The same would need to be reflected in the store's advertisements. It's no longer good enough to sell a wide array of sizes but only cast models who wear a size XS.

Instead of keeping with tradition, it's time for the lingerie retailer to step up to the expectations set by its competitors and cast women of all shapes, sizes, and races as models. By doing so, the brand might be able to save itself from declining altogether.

Representatives for Victoria's Secret did not immediately reply to INSIDER's request for comment.

It's finally time for Victoria's Secret to ditch its supermodel-filled fashion show for good

Much like the brand, the Victorias Secret Fashion Show doesnt seem to have changed much since the 90s

While the Victorias Secret Fashion Show gets criticized for showing one body type, it has also faced multiple accusations of cultural appropriation

Meanwhile, Victorias Secrets competitors are taking steps to

As well as a growing concern with Victorias Secrets image, teens and adults say the stores bras are expensive and dont always fit properly

Overall, Victorias Secret seems to have lost its touch, but it might regain popularity if it overhauled or even ditched its fashion show

Enhance Your Pulse News Experience!

JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!

It's finally time for Victoria's Secret to ditch its supermodel-filled fashion show for good

Much like the brand, the Victorias Secret Fashion Show doesnt seem to have changed much since the 90s

While the Victorias Secret Fashion Show gets criticized for showing one body type, it has also faced multiple accusations of cultural appropriation

Meanwhile, Victorias Secrets competitors are taking steps to

As well as a growing concern with Victorias Secrets image, teens and adults say the stores bras are expensive and dont always fit properly

Overall, Victorias Secret seems to have lost its touch, but it might regain popularity if it overhauled or even ditched its fashion show

Enhance Your Pulse News Experience!

JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!

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