Victoria’s Secret Closing Over 200 Stores | Bath & Body Works Closing 50 Stores

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Victoria's Secret store front

Victoria’s Secret has announced that it is planning to permanently close 250 stores in the US and Canada this year, and financial experts worry that this is just the beginning for the struggling lingerie retailer.

L Brands, the parent company which also owns Bath & Body Works, made the announcement yesterday along with disappointing first-quarter results.


Victoria's Secret bag

Victoria’s Secret currently has over 1,000 locations (including PINK stores) in North America and the majority of these locations have remained closed since the coronavirus pandemic hit the US in March.

After years of disappointing sales, coronavirus-related store closures and missed rent payments during the pandemic are being cited as the final blow that led to this decision.


Bath and Body Works display of new items for Spring 2020

Despite Bath & Body Works faring somewhat better (thanks in part to a surge in demand for soap and hand sanitizer), the fragrance retailer is expected to close around 50 of its locations too.

Moving forward, L Brands hopes to insulate Bath & Body Works from some of the struggles experienced by Victoria’s Secret by having it become a “pure-play public company.” Victoria’s Secret will operate as a separate stand-alone business.

There’s no news on which locations will be closing yet, but we will continue to provide updates on this story as new details are released!


Keep up with all the latest news from the world of retail!

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Comments 62

  1. Kavita Naik

    😭

    • runnergirl838

      I can’t believe BBW!!

  2. MrsG

    This may be unpopular opinion, but Victoria’s Secret appeals to a VERY small demographic. Nothing for plus size. Nothing for larger breasts. Nothing for pregnancy or nursing. Nothing for mastectomy or anything comfortable enough to wear after a breast reduction. Everything is ultra sexy. Sizes run small. Quality has gone down in recent years…

    • Stacy

      I absolutely agree! I haven’t shopped there in years for this reason. Not comfortable, poor quality and overpriced!

      • Julien

        I too have to agree. Their wedgie inducing undies Make me sad 😢

      • Cherryluva

        Same here. After these pregnancy changes to the body, it has been a no go here.

    • Seesweet

      This is spot on. They carry low quality ill-fitting garments. Had they tried to expand their demographic they could’ve tried to survive but this was a long time coming.

    • Emily

      Totally agree. Victoria’s Secret totally missed the mark with inclusion.

    • jen

      Not unpopular & although I feel for the employees losing jobs, this company did NOTHING to rally sales. No online sales promotions, no free shipping offers, no coupons mailed/ emailed out, no curbside pickup offered.

      • Natasha-ai

        To be fair, they have emailed sales and offers (my inbox is proof). For me, coupled with the products, those sales and offers weren’t worth the purchase.

    • RVAteacher

      I can’t agree more.

    • berrylandnow

      Agree. Shopped there when I was younger. Undergarments lasted. Now they fall apart after 1 wash.

      • Cherryluva

        I wholeheartedly agree. I would buy bras and panties here that would last YEARS! after carrying children and my body not being the same, I could no longer purchase. I still like their scents though, bit its a shame they only catered to those sizes.

    • Sylvie

      Agree the sizes fit women size 0 to 4 not quite the demographic

    • DebJ

      My daughters are size medium and they never had a problem fitting into the clothes. Last I knew they offered S through XL.

      • Jackie

        The average sized woman in the U.S. is between a size 14-16. An XL will definitely not fit everyone and as the largest size they are leaving out a lot of people.

        It’s wonderful that their clothing fits your daughters, they fit me as well – but that doesn’t mean I don’t recognize the need for larger and more inclusive sizing.

        • DebJ

          How much larger are companies expected to go? How about women taking better care of themselves and being able to fit in normal size clothing? Yes, there is such a thing as ‘normal’. Society will say otherwise, but normal does exist.

          • MrsG

            People can be very healthy and not help the fact that they have large breasts.

          • Jackie

            A company’s goal is to make money. The more people your product can reach, the more money you make. VS is not making money because they aren’t willing to reach out and create clothing that fits more people. It’s a bad business decision, regardless of your concept of “normal”. People should be able to buy clothing that fits them comfortably, period. If a company doesn’t understand that, they won’t survive – which is what is happening to VS.

          • reds9i20

            No as the other person said normal is 14-16 and they do not cater to that size….

            • Love

              I’m a size 12/14 and fit VS large. They make clothes to fit average women and smaller

          • Michelle

            I think the point is they are not doing well because the average woman doesn’t fit and/or mostly sexy type that is not appealing to everyone. Again, maybe if they were more inclusive they would be doing better. While it would be nice if women, including myself as a size 16 (who does fit into xl Victoria Secret underwear), would take better care of themselves but quite frankly a specific underwear store not having what I want or closing isn’t going to be what motivates me to do so.

          • MrsG

            Also debj people can take VERY good care of themselves and still be considered plus size. Weight is not an accurate measure of health in most cases. That was incredibly narrow minded.

          • Angie M.

            I totally agree with you. We can’t get mad at the stores for us not taking better care of ourselves. I also have a daughter and we both fit perfectly into medium and if had taken better care of myself, I’d be in small like I was 2 years ago. We can’t blame pregnancy or after weight, I have 3 kids. Also I have large breast and have been able to find lingerie fine.

            • Alli8

              You and Debj should hang out. You can make fun of “ugly people” together and talk about how much better you are than everyone else.

            • aquatichipsand

              Agree. I’m average size and do not have a problem fitting in their items – I’m a medium.

          • Alli8

            All bodies are normal. Your attitude is gross. No matter how attractive you think you are, I guarantee your personality sucks.

            • MamaV

              No one called anyone else ugly. I think people are getting triggered, and you can’t blame someone else if you don’t take care of your own self. 🤷‍♀️ Breast size aside, a body size of XXL and up isn’t the norm in the world. The US is largely obese – that’s a fact. We DO need to take better care of ourselves. Making that truthful statement doesn’t give someone a sorry attitude.

              • Alli8

                Taking care of yourself does not always equal skinny. You don’t have a clue.

      • Sue

        VS clothes seemed to run slimmer and tighter than other brands. I wear a L/XL and their XL was always tighter.

    • Julie T

      Spot on. When I was in college, I liked them. None of their bras fit me anymore. They run much smaller than bras of the same size at other places. Prices are too high for what you get, too. And their styles just don’t see to be in tune with most anyone over 30. It’s not like 20-year-olds have mass quantities of money to blow at VS.

    • Katrina

      I can here to say the same thing. I’m actually an average size woman, maybe even a bit smaller than average and I’m sizing out of their merchandise. Their undies fall apart, and their bras don’t even come in my size, in most cases. Over it. Good riddance!

    • Mandy

      This may be an unpopular opinion, and I’ll preface it with saying I don’t buy VS because it’s overpriced in my opinion, but… Clearly VS targets a specific demographic with their sizes and styles. Why is that frowned upon? Aren’t there several other lingerie/undergarmet companies that cater to other body types? Again, I’m not a big advocate of VS, but I do love that there are diverse businesses, some big some small businesses, can operate because VS only caters to a small demographic. Just something to think about when people are upset that they only have select styles and sizes. Because they only have those sizes, other businesses and individuals get to thrive providing the services/products to meet other women’s needs. It’s a win win for diversity and small business 🙂

      • coupongirl1210

        I don’t think they were necessarily saying it’s wrong to focus on a particular demographic. More that if they had taken time to expand that demographic as more retailers came along selling to the same demographic they might have been able to weather this & past declining years more easily. If your market share is being eaten up by others, maybe it’s time to look at expanding who you’re targeting.

        • Seesweet

          This exactly. If you don’t change your business model when sales are going down you won’t survive. I don’t care who they cater to but their demographic wasn’t even buying so they needed to pivot and they didn’t.

          And for bras you really need to be more inclusive because there are SO MANY sizes. There are tons of people that don’t shop at VS and would if they carried bras that fit them.

        • MrsG

          Thank you. That’s exactly what I was saying. It’s basic economics- supply and demand. If you aren’t changing with what is needed/wanted, don’t be surprised when you are belly up. And for the record I am an average size (medium/10, 34D bra). VS is not inclusive, low quality, and not targeted well. 🤷🏼‍♀️

    • SamShops

      I agree! The quality has been really bad.

  3. Nat

    I wouldn’t be heartbroken if BBW closed. They have been charging crazy shipping charges since the shutdowns began. Most companies offered free shipping.

    • RVAteacher

      Again, I cannot agree more. They seem to be making money hand over fist with their crazy shipping rates and hand sanitizer “deals”.

  4. frugal-fit-sexy

    I hope online survives, only undies I wear are Vs very sexy vstrings. I guess I should stock up.

  5. xoch

    I hope vs doesn’t close completely or at least sells online. It is very hard to find my bra size. I wear 34dd or 32ddd. I have tried other stores and either they don’t have my size or they fit funny. Yes i feel like their undies quality has gone down but i still feel like my bras have lasted me a long time. I either shop there or american eagle. I understand when people say they don’t have a bigger range. But I also can’t find my size in a lot of other stores so its sort of the same in a way.

    • Heather

      I wear your same size and Nordstrom carries it! You pay the price, but the Wacoal bras are the best most comfortable and long lasting bras I’ve ever owned

      • xoch

        I will have to check them out. I have tried different stores but dnt like the way they fit. I know vs sizing is different so i have tried other sizes but i guess i have always just used vs because i liked how they fit the best for me. My vs bras have lasted me a long time.

    • Seesweet

      You should look into a bra calculator because there are hundreds of stores with bras in your size but you need to know your actual (Universal) size and not your VS size. DD is equivalent to E and DD is equivalent to F, so right there that opens up a ton of options.

      Once I knew my actual size it changed my life. If I can find bras in 34HH, I promise you that there are tons of bras in your size!

      • xoch

        I have seen in other stores but they are way more expensive and not as comfortable. I have had vs bras for years and have last me. To me vs ones are very comfortable.

    • Melissa

      Have you tried Soma? I’ve recently converted and love them. Prices are very comparable to VS.

  6. shop4mybabies

    used to solely buy victoria’s secret 100% cotton underwear for my girls. had their credit card. they also sold beautiful sweaters and swimsuits. the past five years their quality has gone down hill and their selection is much smaller. i saw this coming. sad for employees

    • Alli8

      The quality used to be awesome!! I used to buy all kinds of clothes and even formal dresses from there in high school. Now it’s absolute junk. I got a hole in a pair of yoga pants i ordered after 3 wears and they wouldn’t even respond to my email. Good riddance to their crap!!

  7. shop4mybabies

    wow. thank you. i didn’t know the connection

  8. lightup

    How is Victoria Secret closing when they always had over 30 people in line at the register?! And most their sales are online.

  9. Tina B

    I won’t care about Victoria Secret stores closings. The t shirts I used to buy for yoga class and working out used to fit tighter. Now they fit like any other Hanes t shirt with all kinds of bling. Too long–I’m 5’2″ not tucking those shirts in.
    B&BW’s I will miss them. I picked up a lot of stuff from them. I am still upset about D.L. & Co store closures. Thorn apple scent was my favorite. I bought it every fall. House of Harlow’s Midnight Moon you can’t get anymore either. I guess we have to adapt with B&BW too.

  10. Teeblee

    The only time I go into Victoria’s Secret is when they send me promotion coupons, which is rarely. I can only use them on accessories then, as my size 16 body cannot fit into anything comfortably 🙁

  11. kiera

    Both charge way too much for shipping on top of everything else everyone said. The only times I shop them are the semi-annual sales for the most part… Not surprised they’re losing sales. Maybe offer free shipping or better coupons for BBW and for VS, they need a focus group to find out what real women want

  12. Anne

    So glad I ordered my UGGs boots. Had a $200 g c I never shopped there. So when their financial s looked so bad in Jan. I went on and ordered a pair. I hope they are able to transform. Quality was really bad on their undies and bras.

  13. Pb

    I thought it was a big mistake not having the traditional Victoria’s Secret Christmas pjs last year. It’s the only pjs they have that look good on a “mom bod”, so I bought nothing from them at Christmas.

  14. Nbrooks

    Victoria’s Secret actually carries bras in 44 band sizes and goes all the way up to a G cup! I think they should have added these sizes a long time ago!

  15. Renee

    Goodbye VS! The quality of your merchandise has gone nothing but downhill and way over priced! L Brands, close VS and focus on BBW!!

  16. riss

    I rarely shop there, and bought some bras on sale last year. Makes my boobs bogger, which I like (I’m so flat-chested) but not comfortable at all 🙁 I wore them for a few hours and cannot wait to take them off.
    But BBW? I thought they were doing well. I read an article that while most stores are going down, BBW was actually doing well. Pretry sure that was before the lockdown. VS brought them down.

    • riss

      ** bigger, not bogger 😂🤯 (whatever bogger means)

  17. Debra

    There are plus sized stores. Should they be more inclusive and carry clothes in size 8 for me? Of course not. I’m not their demographic. I’m not offended.

    • Seesweet

      You missed the point. It’s not about people complaining that V.S. don’t carry their size. It’s about them closing because they didn’t appeal to a broader market. They, possibly, could’ve survived had they changed their demographic. Nobody is offended, Debra.

  18. MM

    I feel like one of the biggest problems, for several years, has been their branding. VS and BBW used to exude a more adult/mature persona. Now it’s very immature and childish. They’ve catered more and more to a younger demographic, 12 year olds are not going to make them the money. I’m personally tired of the kitty cats, donuts, ice cream cones and the like printed on everything. VS used to be for grown women and PINK was strictly for the younger demo., with the intent that eventually you’d grow into the adult brand. Now if your over the age of 24 you feel out of place.

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