October 14, 2005, - 2:06 pm

Victoria’s Secret’s Strange New “Positions” for Mannequins and Cross-dressing “Men”

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I’m no prude, but you don’t have to be one to find two “news” stories about Victoria’s Secret, disturbing:
* Cross-Dressing/Transsexual Customers now welcome at Victoria’s Secret: The “customer” trying on lace bras and panties in the next dressing room at VS may not be a female. Or a male. He/she may be an “it.” Yes, as Detroit Free Press writer John Smyntek reports, male cross-dressers and transsexuals are now welcome at VS. Sounds like the chain is pretty desperate.
The new welcome mat to “non-traditional” women’s undergarment customers began Sunday Night with HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” on which nebbish Larry David was invited to try on bras by a VS saleswoman. VS gave its seal of approval to–and willingly participated in–the episode. These customers, which the store chain calls “male clients” are allowed to use dressing rooms.


Of Mannequins and “Men”: Not just for Female Silicone Valleys anymore

Hmmm . . . Maybe Elton John can buy his boyfriend this year’s VS diamond-studded, platinum bra, for the holidays.
* Victoria’s Secret’s Mannequins’ “Positions”: VS has decided to pose mannequins in windows in explicit positions. Even if it’s not a real human, it’s just a tad inappropriate to see a thonged, kneeling mannequin facing you on all fours on a bed, butt-end forward–right in the store window for all to see. We all know the various purposes of lingerie, but the thing that best sells it is mystery, not obscenity. That only buys the sexy underwear protests and boycotts from rightfully angry parents. Abercrombie & Fitch discovered that eventually. Time for VS to, also.
Ditto for the whips-and-chains on some VS mannequins. VS doesn’t sell those items, so its not even truth in advertising. Besides, if the chain wants to be as sleazy as Fredericks of Hollywood, they might as well go out of business–as FoH might, if its profits keep sinking.




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15 Responses

Just another good reason to buy pre-packaged underwear. Bad enough not to know who previously had your panties on but now we have to be concerned about Ms Jim trying on thongs and putting them back on the rack? Nasty. Costco, here I come ..

Kemaste on October 14, 2005 at 3:17 pm

No pre-pakaged for me. I get it custom made and don’t have to share any dressing room space with any trannys. Not all men are created equal. 😉
http://www.customcreations4men.com/

Yiddish Steel on October 14, 2005 at 3:46 pm

wow, are we a bit Homo phobic ?

danny on October 15, 2005 at 5:58 pm

While I do appreciate the charms of VS merchandise, this is a real turn-off.

Scott S on October 15, 2005 at 9:01 pm

Woooo! I love your new pic, Debbie.
You’re looking good as a brunette and working for Victoria’s Secret, but I still think you looked hotter as a blonde.

Jeff_W on October 17, 2005 at 12:35 am

you should be ashamed of how you are talking about this…

you dont want to be prude ? guess what you are….

people like u are responsible that transsexual person are not acceptet in oure society !

how can you …. say that VS is desprate becuase they accept transsexuals, how dare …

julia on January 25, 2012 at 12:21 am

Discriminate ( word for a female dog )

Debbie Shulz on March 6, 2012 at 3:15 pm

I’m assuming that you take for granted the rights you now have as a woman, correct? Transwomen, crossdressers, and other transfemenine people still have to fight for their rights. Show some respect, you transphobic bigots.

Liam Alexander on April 12, 2013 at 12:17 am

Gees, I am a transsexual and shop at VS. I am not ugly, or do not look bad in a thong. I have wide hips and look feminine. I am very clean and look like the next girl. I love shopping for cool styles . Probably more clean then most girls out there. I don’t try on clothes at the store. But can’t believe how much hate u have for people like me.

Jessie on April 12, 2013 at 2:54 am

Wow. You are extremely hateful, judgmental, and close-minded. I’m glad you use your privilege to degrade other human beings. You’re responsible for trans women being murdered at a rate 30x higher than the rest of society, and trans women committing suicide at rates a few hundred times higher than the rest of the general population. You are disgusting.

Barbara on April 16, 2013 at 9:35 am

You should be ashamed of yourself for degrading other human beings. You’re obviously insecure with yourself and lack the self confidence to be a decent human being. You feel that by shaming other women and attacking them that you’ll somehow feel better about yourself and how ugly you are, inside and out.

Heater on April 16, 2013 at 1:28 pm

Ugh, too many woman’s blogs are dominated by the puritan ramblings you display here.

First, the article about “sexually explicit” mannequins explains how VS (which btw, extensively market tests their advertisements and just about everything so that it’s appealing to the broad base of woman) is making sure the mannequins ARE NOT posed explicitly.

In fact your whole post is misleading. For one, they’re not “on all fours,” like you say. VS is NOT posing them explicitly, they’re actually toning it down and you must not have read carefully because it was Diesel with the whips/chains. It’s hilarious that YOU of all people are claiming VS is misleading in advertising when your whole post is the same old trite moral outrage false-characterization that is so common towards this company.

This company, VS, which happens to be the most successful and largest womans underwear/lingerie store in the US by far. Prudes like you have been railing against VS from the start and yet they’ve only continued to grow enormously. Maybe you should get out of your bubble and realize you DO NOT speak for women.

God forbid some women actually want to look or feel sexy. Spend less time judging others and look for ways to improve yourself. It’s just underwear, you really think they’re half as bad as the incredibly popular American Apparel and their soft-core porn ads? No, they’re just a flashy target for out-of-touch middle age women who think every woman and girl should suffer the same body-image issues you have and slut-shame anyone who doesn’t convert to your Wahhabist-like social impulses.

Grow up.

K on July 27, 2014 at 2:52 am

I am transgendered . I have been diagnosed with gid . I Dress conservatively , I happen to like cute clothes just like any other girl . It is hard enough Being in the wrong body Without such horrible comments. We are not dangerous or perverted, We’re just trying to live comfortably in our own skin the Way we can. Please stop memorizing us and helping getting us beat and or killed.

Angela on December 5, 2016 at 9:19 pm

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