Underwear: The next big thing in smalls

August 30, 2012 by admin
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Once through the glass doors, however, the sense of feminine sensuality is ramped up over four vast floors topped by a penthouse of private fitting rooms for VIP customers. Throughout the 40,386 square foot space elaborate design elements – Murano glass chandeliers, a spiral staircase backlit by a two-storey high video screen playing footage from the brand’s fashion shows – create a high-end experience for a high-street brand, with many styles costing less than £40.

As well as more permutations of brassieres than it is possible to imagine – lace, padded, wireless, plunge to name just four, plus matching knickers – the store will also sell fragrances and cosmetics, while the lower ground floor is dedicated to the Pink line. Pitched as a collegiate casuals range in the US, the heavily branded and embellished clothes are sure to be a hit with brand-savvy tweens and teens (with the help of their parents’ hard-earned cash).

“Victoria’s Secret nicely bridges the gap between the Marks Spencer and the premium end of the market including the likes of Agent Provocateur and Rigby Peller,” says Victoria Gallagher, senior reporter for the fashion-business magazine Drapers. “Retailers at both ends of the lingerie market could be set to miss out on shoppers as Victoria’s Secret offers UK consumers something we haven’t seen much of on the high street: affordable luxury.”

Originally devised in 1977 by Roy Raymond as an antidote to the intimidation and hostility he thought men experienced when buying underwear for their wives, by the Eighties Victoria’s Secret was the biggest lingerie retailer in the United States. Today the brand has 1,000 stores in the US and delivers to homes one million copies of its mail-order catalogue eight times a year – that’s a lot of undies. In 1995 the now-annual Victoria’s Secret Angel fashion show was born, in which supermodels – past Angels include Giselle, Heidi Klum, Alessandra Ambrosio and Miranda Kerr – walk the catwalk in rhinestone and diamond-laden designs, paired with huge angel wings. A marketing tour de force, the pre-Christmas event is screened on American television before being uploaded to YouTube for worldwide fans (not all of them women, obvs) of the brand to salivate over. More than just a lingerie show, the 2011 spectacle cost a reported £7.5million to stage, including performances by Jay-Z and Kanye West, and has so far racked up nearly four million views on YouTube.

“Although the retailer has never graced our shores the scantily clad models are well known throughout the UK,” says Gallagher. “For the first month or two Victoria’s Secret is sure to enjoy a glut of custom as UK shoppers find out what it’s all about, despite prices being higher. The real test will be early next year – when the mystery has been unveiled, I question whether UK consumers will continue to shop at the pricey American chain or trudge back for their MS cotton staples.”

Only time will tell, although the brand reports that business is booming at the Westfield Stratford store it opened to coincide with the Olympics.

Oh, and about that secret… there is no Victoria. Reports vary, but the namesake is said to be Queen Victoria for her prudish attitude although this legacy obviously doesn’t extend to the designer’s workshop.

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Wannabee Christian Grey’s turn 50 shades of red in the lingerie department as …

August 30, 2012 by admin
Filed under Latest Lingerie News

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By
Bianca London

PUBLISHED:

04:22 EST, 30 August 2012

|

UPDATED:

04:22 EST, 30 August 2012

He is the billionaire bondage fanatic fanning the flames of lust in women across the globe.

And
it’s not just women that E.L. James’ novel may be supercharging the
sex-drives of as men trying to emulate Christian Grey are attempting to take control of their partner’s underwear purchases.

However, they are not quite as smooth as the erotic novel’s hero, with lingerie stores reporting that men are turning 50 shades of red when browsing the latest laces.

Men trying to emulate Christian Grey are still slightly baffled when it comes to choosing the perfect set of underwear for their partner

Unlike the male protagonist in the hit novel, few men have an assistant they can send out to buy saucy smalls for their partners, instead real life romeos are hitting high street department stores themselves and buying underwear for their partners.

Men are investing in items traditionally reserved for Christmas gifts such as lacy bra and knicker sets in red, black and purple, which Debenhams have noted are up 63%.

While babydoll nighties have seen a 105% increase in sales over the last month.

Debenhams Head of Lingerie, Sharon Webb said: ‘We’ve seen a huge increase in male customers visiting our lingerie departments, over the last fortnight.

‘Usually we never see so many men until the week before Christmas when there is a mad rush. They’ve been spotted nervously loitering, their faces 50 shades of red as they try to find the perfect gift for their other halves.’

Not every man is as lucky as Christian Grey who has an assistant to help pick our the perfect underwear

Although these embarrassed husbands and boyfriends have taken the first steps into the underwear section they end up baffled and confused when confronted with the vast array of styles and sizes on offer.

‘Fortunately our staff are well versed at discreetly coming to the rescue of red-faced Romeos struggling with the huge range of lingerie available in store,’ added Webb.

‘Since the 50 shades phenomenon men are purchasing more daring pieces. Traditional knicker sales have been surprisingly low, but we have seen a big increase in sales of babydoll negligees, silky underwear sets, thongs, stockings and suspenders.’