Why the business of sexy is changing in the era of #MeToo

Few in the lingerie world were surprised when Victoria's Secret cancelled its iconic, glitzy fashion show this year.

But for some Canadian fashion insiders, the waning influence of the 42-year-old brand also signals a welcoming change in the marketing of "sexy."

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"It wasn't a big shock to me," said Joanna Griffiths, founder and CEO of Knix, an intimate apparel company based in Toronto.

"The bigger shock for me was last year was when they [Victoria's Secret] announced the casting and yet again chose not to include even body-diverse models," she said.

"That was a bigger shock to me — that they didn't evolve." 

The bulk of the [lingerie] industry was run by men … that's why I think we're so slow to evolve.- Joanna Griffiths, founder and CEO of Knix

In 2018, Victoria's Secret issued an apology after its brand executive made controversial remarks about why its annual televised show didn't cast transgender and plus-size models.

At the time, Ed Razek told Vogue it's "because the show is a fantasy" and that "no one had any interest" in plus-size lingerie. 

The company is struggling financially due to slumping sales and its flagship runway show has suffered years of  declining viewership. Earlier this year, Victoria's Secret announced the closure of dozens of stores. 

According to Griffiths, who said her company channels what she called an "anti-Victoria's Secret" style of marketing, it's the price you pay for not getting on with the times. 

"The intimate apparel and lingerie industry is so interesting because for a very, very long time, even though they were all products being sold to women, the bulk of the industry was run by men,"  said Griffiths.

"That's why I think we're so slow to evolve."

"I think there is still so much market share left to be won," said Griffiths. "I think there's still a tremendous, tremendous opportunity within the size-inclusivity area in particular."

Marketing sexy in the #MeToo era

Success stories like Knix are part of a larger trend in marketing that's redefining what "sexy" means, according to Canadian creative director Alison Scorgie, who's led various female empowerment-themed advertisement campaigns for Dove, Adidas, Chanel and others.

Scorgie, who has lived in both Calgary and Montreal, cited Rihanna's lingerie line Savage X Fenty as another example of a product that speaks to women.

"Right now people are desperate to break the stereotypes, almost like rewrite the narratives," she said. "Lingerie at the end of the day — as Rihanna says — should be worn for women, by women, for ourselves."

In the #MeToo era, Scorgie thinks most companies have come to realize the male gaze is no longer the sole arbiter of beauty. 

"You know what is sexy? Confidence is sexy," she said. "Confidence in whoever you are, however you look."

There are multiple examples of new advertising styles. Pantene launched a multimedia campaign to celebrate grey hair, MAC Cosmetics signed trans artist Vivek Shraya as a spokeswoman and Dove began a cheeky #girlgaze hashtag.

These are all examples of companies embracing "unconventional" standards of beauty, according to Scorgie.

"I think the reason why it's happening so rapidly in fashion and beauty is because these products are simply worn on your body, on your person," said Scorgie. "They're the closest thing to your identity or your physical person."

More work for plus-size models

For models who aren't slender or possess the classic catwalk look, it's an exciting time to work in the fashion industry, according to a Canadian plus-size model.

Karyn Inder, 30, grew up in Newfoundland idolizing Victoria's Secret "angels." As a child, she said she considered walking on the annual fashion show the pinnacle of achievement.

"I just found out that as I grew and got older my body changed," said the Newfoundland native.

"Their stuff didn't fit me and it just sucked because I idolized them so much and aspired to be an angel."

But a surprising thing happened when Inder started modelling in 2013. 

"I went to my agency and the exact words out of my mouth were, 'I know I'm bigger but I will do whatever it takes to be able to work in this industry. I will not eat, I will lose inches,'" Inder recalled.

"The agent I was meeting with stopped me right away and was like, 'No, no, no, no don't you change one thing. You are perfect right now.' And that shook me to my core."

But Inder said there's still a lot of room for improvement when it comes to representation in the fashion business.

"We still need representation of disabilities, we still need diversity in race and skin tone," she said. 

Written by Falice Chin.