Victoria's Secret "The Perfect 'Body'" campaign sparks #iamperfect Twitter hashtag backlash

[cyberswede]

Victoria's Secret is facing mounting criticism in the U.K. due to advertisements for a line of bras that promise 'The Perfect 'Body'". The images are appearing in British stores and on the company's U.S. website.
The word "body" is in quotation marks to illustrate the pun as it is the name of the new bra line, but some customers are angry that the phrase is used against the backdrop of women who fit (some of society's) expectations of perfection.
I am going to go out on a limb here and say that we (the general, lingerie-buying public) are smart enough to understand that Victoria's Secret is selling a fantasy.

I don't expect to suddenly get a call from serial Victoria's Secret model-dater Leonardo DiCaprio or transform into Giselle Bündchen by purchasing a padded bra (I wish it were that easy.)

http://www.cbc.ca/newsblogs/yourcommunity/2014/10/victorias-secret-the-perfect-body-campaign-sparks-iamperfect-twitter-hashtag-backlash.html

https://twitter.com/hashtag/iamperfect?src=hash

[blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"]This is not a perfect message to send to girls or boys about what it means to be a woman. #adfail #iamperfect [a href="http://t.co/GglZlmUOHZ"]http://t.co/GglZlmUOHZ[/a] — Cindy Gauthier (@elightkeeper) October 30, 2014

[blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"]@VictoriasSecret, your delusional ads continue to disrespect real women everywhere. #iamperfect #marketingfail — Rebecca Halton (@Rebecca_Halton) October 30, 2014

[seabeyond]

1. i use to buy their product for the every day, fun. they embraced womens sexuality, empowered. then,

they shifted to the product for men, handing womens sexuality to man to have power and control, and was no longer about us women, in our own empowerment of our sexuality.

it was about presenting ourselves to da man.

fuck 'em

they havent gotten a penny since the 90's. i wish all women would turn their back on this company. plenty of other places to get our products.

[ismnotwasm]

3. I never bought that overpriced shit.

Tons of other ways to be sexy, included being naked and a soft, soft blanket.


VS is like a coach bag-- status

[seabeyond]

5. they had high quality, every day bra and undies. employees sized correctly.

then there was also fun.

[ismnotwasm]

6. Well, I wear shelf camisoles

If I have too. Hate bras Bottom line-- always out of my price range and not my style

[elehhhhna]

8. i like their clothes

Catalogue only

They make the best swimwear imo, and pants w 36 inch inseams

[ismnotwasm]

2. Besides what is perfection anyway?

And in whose eyes?

[riqster]

4. My wife and daughters buy the odd bit or bob from Vicky's, if it is on sale.

They each have one or another Vicky bra that fits better than competitors' offerings, but the prices are so outrageous they almost never buy one unless the discount is huge.

I gotta admit, as a male, VS ads seem over-the-top, exploitive, and I dunno why anybody shops there. But then, I used to work in strip clubs, so most of that type of promo just bounced off me, so I expect I'm not the target audience.

[ismnotwasm]

7. That's just some of the things I hated about stripping

You HAD to outfit yourself correctly, or you didn't make money. They'd have venders come in.---Or have a gimmick. First place I saw twerking come to think of it and that was a long time ago. Now it's pole dancing-- although you'd have to be a good athlete to master that.

[riqster]

9. I played backup. Back when the joints still hired musicians.

Learned all the wallet-emptying tricks the staff used on the fish. Only places better at fleecing the gullible, IMNSHO, are casinos and Disney theme parks.

Walk into any of the three types of establishments, and you are a chicken about to be plucked. Thank the gods, I always left with more money than I walked in with. (Except when I took the kids to see
Mickey, of course).

If you had to strip, I salute you. That is hard work. My gig was a lot easier.

[ismnotwasm]

10. Didn't last long

But it is a huge scam. whats weird Is how quickly you get "regulars" it's like they want to save you or own you. This was a long time ago-- I decided it was easier and more lucrative to sell illegal substances. Thank God all that mess is behind me.

I'm all legal and almost middleclass now. Funny some of the people who went down that road and survived are kind of conservative, when the reasonable psychological response-- to me-- is to become a progressive.

[riqster]

11. I'm with you, especially on that last bit.

I think the difference comes from whether one deals with stress via fight or flight.

Fighters go the progressive route, because we want to actively deal with whatever is hurting/scaring/starving/scaring us.

"Flighters" go conservative, because they want a big strong authority figure to protect them.

I'm sure that is not what a sociologist would say: just my observation.