The mind of every human is made in a way that every time an aspect of our life, present, past, or imaginary, is mentioned, colorful pictures – associations – are built in it. It the era of technological advance and all-absorbing shopping, the associations we get are usually connected with particular brands, or the names of the stores. It may be said that today we live in the time of brand recognition, being as loyal of costumers as it is possible to be. When talking about promptitude, elegancy and high class, one imagines Ferrari, Lamborghini, or Bentley. When mentioning ostentatious smartness, the richness of color and scent one may think about Chanel perfumes or Armani suits. But without a shadow of doubt, when talking about glamour, sex appeal and style, especially using it in the context of lingerie, one straight off thinks about…Now try to think…Frederick’s of Hollywood? Palmers? Wolford? No… Victoria’s Secret.

Yes, Victoria’s Secret is definitely glamorous, alluring, sexy and innovative. Moreover, containing the word “secret” in its name adds the spirit of delightful obscurity to the brand. In reality, the origin of a company name is often unknown. The Victoria of Victoria’s Secret probably is a referral to the British Queen Victoria. So edubirdie review may presume that there was some kind of a “secret” concerning Queen Victoria. Or the concept of a “secret” is just a mere part of a branding strategy. However, having a background with aura of Anglicism, Victoria’s Secret was started in San Francisco in 1977 by Stanford Graduate School of Business alumnus Roy Raymond.

Roy felt embarrassed trying to purchase lingerie for his wife in public. The environment of the malls of that time was awkward and not encouraging for the buyer to buy. So Roy decided to change it. He opened the first store at Stanford Shopping Center, and quickly continued on his business with a mail order catalogue and 3 other stores. His main purpose was to establish a comfortable, pleasing, and relaxing atmosphere similar to that of a Victorian boudoir. Raymond’s stored were very different from their counterparts, instead of racks of bras and underwear in every size, there were several styles displayed on the walls. Men and women chose the style they liked and then asked the staff worker for help in picking out the right size.

The response to the Victoria’s Secret catalogues and newly opened stores was immediate and spectacular. From day to day “Raymond’s business mushroomed in size” yet he had problems meeting demand and “running the mail order business”. So under those circumstances in 1982, Raymond sold the company, which at that time consisted of six stores and couple of catalogues. The price was $4 million that the purchaser, Leslie Wexner, the founder of the Limited women’s apparel firm, was happy to pay.

From that time Wexner took the “reigns of government” into his hands and the company started growing at amazing speed. In 1991 Victoria’s Secret put out swimwear, which was a triumph. Two years later, in 1993 V.S. began selling cotton panties and a year later, in 1994, launched bath and body line and introduced Miracle Bra, asking for a potent on it. In 1995 the first runway show was held and the same year was marked by the spun off by The Limited. In 1996 they introduced such an innovation as seamless bras. And in 1998, having advanced with seven-league strides Victoria’s Secret went online with firm website. The company chose to move online as aggressively as it had always chosen to when building the brand. Soon Victoria’s Secret became a leader in online innovation as well as one of the top most-visited websites.