Victoria’s Secret received backlash from the LGBTQIA community because of what Ed Razek, an executive from Victoria’s Secret’s parent company, L Brands, said.

“Shouldn’t [we] have transsexuals in the show? No. No, I don’t think we should. Well, why not? Because this show is a fantasy. It’s a 42-minute entertainment special,” Razek stated in an interview with Vouge.

Victoria’s Secret’s fashion show receives a significant number of viewers a year. This year, only 3.3 million people watched the show, which is many fewer than last year, at 5 million viewers. He had also stated the show would not allow plus-sized models either.

Halsey, professional singer, posted a message on Instagram saying, “If you are a trans person reading this, and these comments have made you feel alienated or invalidated, please know that you have allies.”
Bella Hadid, a model who walked in past Victorias’s Secret fashion shows, reposted Halsey’s message on her own Instagram page.

ThirdLove, a Victoria’s Secret’s competitor which is known for body-positive branding, made an ad saying, “Your show may be a fantasy, but we live in reality.”

Sale rates plummeted for the company, losing them to body-positive companies, like Aerie and ThirdLove. CEO, Jan Singer, stepped down from her position at Victoria’s Secret and will be replaced by John Mehas, who is the current president of Tory Burch.