Victoria’s Secret

Victoria’s Secret & Co. is a U.S.-based specialty retailer focused on women’s lingerie, intimate apparel, sleepwear, loungewear, activewear, swim, and beauty products. The business centers on the Victoria’s Secret and PINK brands and serves customers through a large network of brick‑and‑mortar stores supported by a scaled e‑commerce platform. As of February 2024, the company operated about 1,350 Victoria’s Secret, PINK, and Victoria’s Secret Beauty stores worldwide, with most locations in the United States and Canada and additional stores in more than 70 countries through a mix of company‑operated units, joint ventures, and franchise or wholesale partners.

The brand began in 1977, when founder Roy Raymond opened the first Victoria’s Secret store in Palo Alto, California. His original concept was to create a more approachable setting for purchasing lingerie, which helped the brand stand out in a fragmented category. In 1982, The Limited acquired Victoria’s Secret and used its mall platform to scale the concept nationally through the 1980s and 1990s, turning the chain into a fixture in regional shopping centers. The company gained global visibility in the 1990s and 2000s through its catalogs, fashion shows, and growing store base, and introduced PINK as a dedicated line and store concept aimed at younger customers.

A key milestone for the real estate and investment community came in 2021, when Victoria’s Secret & Co. separated from L Brands and became an independent, publicly traded company. The company is headquartered in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, near Columbus, and reports more than 30,000 employees across its corporate offices, distribution network, and stores. For the fiscal year ended February 3, 2024, Victoria’s Secret & Co. generated approximately $6.2 billion in net sales across Victoria’s Secret, PINK, and Victoria’s Secret Beauty, reinforcing its position as a large, established specialty soft-goods tenant.

Over roughly the last five years, the company has shifted from rapid mall-based expansion to a more deliberate, performance-driven approach to its store fleet. Management describes an ongoing effort to optimize North American stores by remodeling, right‑sizing, and relocating units, while exiting underperforming locations. This has included a greater emphasis on formats that combine Victoria’s Secret and PINK into a single store, as well as beauty-focused concepts that can fit a range of footprints and merchandising plans. The legacy focus on enclosed regional malls has broadened to include more open‑air lifestyle centers, selected off‑mall sites, and outlets, often in strong fashion and beauty environments where the brand can act as a traffic driver.

Internationally, Victoria’s Secret & Co. has leaned into an asset-light expansion model. The company works with franchise, joint venture, and wholesale partners across more than 70 countries, with new openings and conversions targeted in markets such as the Middle East, Latin America, and parts of Asia. This approach allows the brand to extend its reach in key global shopping destinations while limiting direct capital outlay. In Europe, Canada, and selected other regions, the company continues to refine its mix of company‑operated and partner-led locations.

For landlords, brokers, and developers, Victoria’s Secret today represents a recognizable, fashion-forward anchor for the intimates and beauty categories, with a range of formats that can adapt to different center types and unit sizes. The chain’s current strategy favors higher-productivity layouts, established centers, and complementary fashion and beauty co‑tenancy rather than large-scale new domestic builds, while still pursuing selective growth in off‑mall and outlet settings and pursuing partner-led expansion abroad.