Another flop for inclusive advertising: lessons from Witchery and Victoria’s Secret’s brand re-launch blunders
Inclusive advertising aims to embrace diversity but can sometimes fall flat, as seen in recent brand re-launches by Witchery and Victoria's Secret. Erin Morris, founder and director at Young Folks, offers insights into how these campaigns missed the mark and why real inclusivity is a continuous journey.
Last week was a wild ride for inclusivity in advertising, with campaigns from Witchery and Victoria’s Secret catching social media heat — for opposing reasons.
Witchery’s bold awakening campaign missed the mark by failing to include larger sizes, alienating a significant portion of its audience. On the flip side, Victoria’s Secret’s return to the runway with size-inclusive ‘Angels’ aimed to signal a new era of inclusivity, but it ended up facing criticism from fans nostalgic for the brand’s previous image.
These recent blunders highlight the pitfalls of tokenistic and performative inclusivity in advertising and marketing. So, what went wrong and how can brands get inclusivity right?
Witchery’s fashion faux pas
The hype surrounding Witchery’s relaunch was palpable after the brand wiped its Instagram and TikTok content. However, criticism erupted on social media as shoppers pointed out the lack of larger sizes in the new collection despite models of various sizes featuring in the campaign — a big gap between Witchery’s message and its execution.
The main issue? Witchery’s new design direction included the quiet removal of size 20 and above, completely neglecting a substantial portion of their customer base. That and, if you’ve been paying attention on TikTok, a handful of millennials took issue with the inclusion of a bubble skirt.
Responding to the backlash, a Witchery spokesperson said that sizes 10 and up are now a more relaxed fit, with the new size 18 fitting closely to the previous size 20. But shoppers weren’t buying it, taking to TikTok to vent their frustrations when fits did not match up in-store.
By reducing their size range, Witchery alienated a portion of their customer base and missed an opportunity to set a positive example in the industry. Instead of advancing inclusivity, they’ve gone backwards. This move shows that when brands fail to accommodate their customers, the backlash can be swift and severe.
Victoria’s Secret’s tokenism
Meanwhile, Victoria’s Secret, a brand built on unrealistic (patriarchal) beauty standards, announced its size-inclusive return to the runway. They brought back their iconic ‘Angels’ with a new twist, featuring models of various sizes. However, the effort backfired as social media exploded with toxic comments from their traditional fan base like ‘bring back skinny models’ and ‘make VS models skinny again’.
The problem wasn’t just the backlash itself, but how Victoria’s Secret handled it — or rather, how they didn’t. The brand failed to manage the flood of negative comments, leaving them unaddressed. True inclusivity requires more than just showcasing diverse models; it demands active engagement and defence of the principles the brand claims to uphold. Silence can be interpreted as indifference or, worse, complicity.
Victoria’s Secret’s lack of community management signalled the absence of genuine commitment to their new, more inclusive image. Instead of using the backlash as an opportunity to affirm their stance and engage constructively with their audience, they let the negative comments dominate the narrative. In turn, they missed an opportunity to stand by their inclusive values and support the very communities they sought to represent.
Beyond performative inclusivity
When brands represent diverse bodies and voices in their campaigns, they need to follow through with meaningful action. The cases of Witchery and Victoria’s Secret underscore a broader issue in the industry: the difference between performative and practical inclusivity.
So, what can brands do to get inclusivity right? First of all, inclusivity starts with your product.
For those in fashion, make sure you’re designing for diverse bodies and that all advertised sizes are available, both online and in-store to avoid disappointing your customers.
Then, when it comes to campaign planning and execution, bring diverse voices to the table to weed out unconscious bias and ensure your campaigns resonate with a broader audience.
Develop a robust community management strategy to engage with your audience, handle feedback, and show genuine care for inclusivity. And when backlash inevitably hits, don’t leave the communities you represent hanging — actively support and defend them, and don’t shy away from having tough conversations.
Finally, remember that the nature of progress means you never stop, so commit to ongoing learning and iterative improvement.
Because real inclusivity isn’t a one-time effort — it’s a continuous journey.
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It’s not just the size exclusivity, it’s the styling… crop tops, bubble skirts, high necks and mini skirts alienate anyone with curves… it’s clearly saying only under 25 models welcome! I was a gold customer and witchery made up 80% of my wardrobe… I could even find one suitable outfit from this new collection
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