1 00:00:01,168 --> 00:00:04,548 - Everybody knows what the Victoria's Secret brand means. 2 00:00:04,546 --> 00:00:05,756 [laughs] 3 00:00:05,756 --> 00:00:07,046 - It's tits and glitz. 4 00:00:07,049 --> 00:00:08,629 ♪ ♪ 5 00:00:08,634 --> 00:00:11,224 - Les Wexner thought that he was a god. 6 00:00:11,220 --> 00:00:13,180 - Victoria's Secret put girls on the map. 7 00:00:13,180 --> 00:00:15,100 - Every celebrity wanted to be part of that show. 8 00:00:15,098 --> 00:00:16,728 - Business was so good. 9 00:00:16,725 --> 00:00:20,685 MICHAEL GROSS: Victoria's Secret made fortunes on young bodies. 10 00:00:20,687 --> 00:00:22,647 LYNDSEY SCOTT: It wasn't about the clothes. 11 00:00:22,648 --> 00:00:24,398 It was models fulfilling this idea of fantasy. 12 00:00:24,399 --> 00:00:26,649 There was something else going on. 13 00:00:27,361 --> 00:00:29,361 GLORIA ALLRED: There's a number of red flags. 14 00:00:29,363 --> 00:00:32,823 SCOTT: The modeling industry had people who allowed bad things to happen. 15 00:00:32,824 --> 00:00:34,494 - Did Les Wexner know about them? 16 00:00:34,493 --> 00:00:36,793 - And there's this huge mystery. 17 00:00:36,787 --> 00:00:38,907 - People had mentioned this name. 18 00:00:38,914 --> 00:00:41,384 BARRY LEVINE: And part of the mystery was Jeffrey Epstein. 19 00:00:41,375 --> 00:00:43,785 What Wexner did was unthinkable, 20 00:00:43,794 --> 00:00:45,554 giving him power of attorney. 21 00:00:45,546 --> 00:00:47,966 But there's a larger picture here. 22 00:00:47,965 --> 00:00:49,835 VIRGINIA GIUFFRE: Politicians, royalty. 23 00:00:49,842 --> 00:00:51,052 CONCHITA SARNOFF: Intelligence agencies. 24 00:00:51,051 --> 00:00:52,471 Why was Epstein doing this? 25 00:00:52,469 --> 00:00:54,929 Was this about power and blackmail? 26 00:00:54,930 --> 00:00:57,770 - It makes you wonder how many more layers there are to this world. 27 00:00:58,559 --> 00:01:01,689 GROSS: This is all a story that was meant to stay hidden. 28 00:01:01,687 --> 00:01:03,307 ♪ ♪ 29 00:01:09,444 --> 00:01:11,454 ♪ dramatic music playing ♪ 30 00:01:11,446 --> 00:01:14,156 [people chattering] 31 00:01:18,078 --> 00:01:20,708 WOMAN: Okay, got it? Okay, thank you, everybody. PHOTOGRAPHER: Gigi, Gigi. 32 00:01:20,706 --> 00:01:22,706 [people chattering] 33 00:01:26,253 --> 00:01:28,263 WOMAN: Okay, they're done. Thank you, guys. 34 00:01:29,339 --> 00:01:31,339 ♪ 35 00:01:33,093 --> 00:01:36,223 - It's the countdown. Almost ready. Let's go. 36 00:01:36,221 --> 00:01:38,351 WOMAN 2: Let's go. Thank you so much. - Let's go. Thank you. 37 00:01:38,348 --> 00:01:42,138 ANNOUNCER: This is the 45-minute call for hair and makeup. 38 00:01:42,144 --> 00:01:43,774 - Shit. [Announcer speaking] 39 00:01:46,398 --> 00:01:49,228 MAN 1: Gimme a kiss. Thank you, honey. 40 00:01:52,738 --> 00:01:55,238 WOMAN 3: You get it after, so just hold now. 41 00:01:55,240 --> 00:01:57,330 [chattering] You have to get over. 42 00:01:57,326 --> 00:01:59,866 PHOTOGRAPHER: Beautiful. You look nice, guys. Beautiful. 43 00:01:59,870 --> 00:02:00,910 Look here. 44 00:02:00,913 --> 00:02:02,333 Okay, we're going higher, we're going higher-- 45 00:02:02,331 --> 00:02:03,961 MAN 2: Hey, guys, move! 46 00:02:04,374 --> 00:02:07,004 - Ask Bob. Do not tell Bob to move. 47 00:02:09,630 --> 00:02:12,220 REPORTER 1: The lingerie brand held its first fashion show 48 00:02:12,216 --> 00:02:14,966 nearly a quarter century ago, and it's gonna be no more. 49 00:02:14,968 --> 00:02:16,218 The runway is closed. 50 00:02:16,220 --> 00:02:19,390 I'm talking about the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 51 00:02:19,389 --> 00:02:21,429 is now officially canceled. 52 00:02:22,684 --> 00:02:24,104 REPORTER 2: After more than two decades, 53 00:02:24,102 --> 00:02:27,562 the TV special is accused of being out of step with the times. 54 00:02:29,816 --> 00:02:31,606 PERSON 1: So many people do not fit 55 00:02:31,610 --> 00:02:33,240 into that narrow standard of beauty. 56 00:02:34,071 --> 00:02:36,951 PERSON 2: It's very obvious from what's going on in the world today 57 00:02:36,949 --> 00:02:38,909 that women are demanding more. 58 00:02:38,909 --> 00:02:41,039 PERSON 3: It's a company that is not at all, 59 00:02:41,036 --> 00:02:44,866 sort of, surefooted in this new environment. 60 00:02:45,290 --> 00:02:46,540 ♪ 61 00:02:46,542 --> 00:02:49,632 REPORTER 3: It's hard to ignore some difficult questions 62 00:02:49,628 --> 00:02:52,418 about billionaire founder Les Wexner's ties 63 00:02:52,422 --> 00:02:54,632 to the late financier Epstein 64 00:02:54,633 --> 00:02:57,473 who was indicted on sex trafficking charges. 65 00:03:00,222 --> 00:03:03,232 LES WEXNER: I think what I've tried to do is make the world a better place. 66 00:03:04,309 --> 00:03:05,479 I think that's what's really important. 67 00:03:05,477 --> 00:03:09,267 N-Nobody remembers who sold the most togas in Rome. 68 00:03:09,940 --> 00:03:13,360 In terms of legacy, people remember the great villains 69 00:03:13,360 --> 00:03:16,110 more than they remember the great heroes. 70 00:03:16,113 --> 00:03:18,033 And so, I think how you feel about yourself-- 71 00:03:18,031 --> 00:03:21,331 What do you say about yourself when you put your head on the pillow? 72 00:03:23,328 --> 00:03:26,668 Are you really proud of what you're doing and the way you're doing it? 73 00:03:26,665 --> 00:03:29,285 I think it's a really-- a fundamental question. 74 00:03:30,043 --> 00:03:32,053 ♪ 75 00:03:47,644 --> 00:03:50,484 NARRATOR: First, there was the miracle, 76 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:52,480 then came angels. 77 00:03:52,482 --> 00:03:56,572 Now, Victoria's Secret introduces Angels 2000. 78 00:03:57,196 --> 00:03:59,736 - The bra of the future is here today. 79 00:04:01,450 --> 00:04:02,830 - Do you believe? - Do you believe? 80 00:04:02,826 --> 00:04:04,696 - Do you believe? - I believe in miracles. 81 00:04:04,703 --> 00:04:06,123 - I believe. - I believe. 82 00:04:06,121 --> 00:04:08,121 I believe... 83 00:04:12,169 --> 00:04:14,169 ♪ 84 00:04:17,758 --> 00:04:19,758 FREDERIQUE VAN DER WAL: You know, Victoria's Secret, 85 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:21,680 there's a great history to it, 86 00:04:21,678 --> 00:04:25,308 but I think, uh, when we get to the heart of it, 87 00:04:25,307 --> 00:04:28,227 it's mostly an unknown story. 88 00:04:29,978 --> 00:04:32,398 SOPHIE ALEXANDER: A lot of people know what Victoria's Secret is, 89 00:04:32,397 --> 00:04:34,727 and even The Limited. 90 00:04:34,733 --> 00:04:38,613 Fewer people know about Les Wexner, 91 00:04:38,612 --> 00:04:42,122 the discreet billionaire behind those brands. 92 00:04:43,575 --> 00:04:46,865 He was and still is the richest man in Ohio. 93 00:04:47,871 --> 00:04:50,831 But no one really knew who he was. 94 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:53,630 SARA ZOFKO: Les was a genius. 95 00:04:53,627 --> 00:04:56,667 He thinks on a global scale 96 00:04:56,672 --> 00:04:59,882 that very few other entrepreneurs have, 97 00:04:59,883 --> 00:05:01,973 maybe Zuckerberg, you know? 98 00:05:01,969 --> 00:05:03,429 But, like, 99 00:05:03,428 --> 00:05:05,968 Zuckerberg wanted to be a part of everything we do socially. 100 00:05:06,473 --> 00:05:09,233 Les was all about retail dominance. 101 00:05:09,226 --> 00:05:11,226 [excited chatter] 102 00:05:19,695 --> 00:05:24,025 You have to understand that this was an era where fashion influenced people, 103 00:05:24,032 --> 00:05:25,162 not the other way around. 104 00:05:25,409 --> 00:05:29,199 - Oh my god! Oh my god! 105 00:05:29,705 --> 00:05:35,335 - Victoria's Secret grew to a $7.5 billion 106 00:05:35,335 --> 00:05:38,375 enterprise worldwide. 107 00:05:38,380 --> 00:05:42,840 It became a very, very powerful brand, 108 00:05:42,843 --> 00:05:45,933 maybe the greatest in all of retailing. 109 00:05:45,929 --> 00:05:48,219 ♪ 110 00:05:50,517 --> 00:05:56,517 People used to say that working at Victoria's Secret was a cult. 111 00:05:56,523 --> 00:05:59,993 Um, I think that's a bit of an exaggeration. 112 00:06:01,904 --> 00:06:05,534 But I'll tell you, at those annual meetings, 113 00:06:05,532 --> 00:06:07,872 you really felt the spirit. 114 00:06:07,868 --> 00:06:09,868 [all cheering] 115 00:06:14,499 --> 00:06:17,959 There was this tremendous adoration. 116 00:06:18,545 --> 00:06:23,715 The founder, the leader of us all 117 00:06:24,510 --> 00:06:26,260 was speaking. 118 00:06:26,261 --> 00:06:28,261 [crowd cheering, applauding] 119 00:06:29,431 --> 00:06:33,061 So... did I drink the Kool-Aid? 120 00:06:33,977 --> 00:06:37,187 And I think the answer is... I did. 121 00:06:37,981 --> 00:06:39,981 [crowd cheering, applauding] 122 00:06:42,361 --> 00:06:45,161 LYNDSEY SCOTT: Growing up, Victoria's Secret would be 123 00:06:45,155 --> 00:06:47,275 a model's dream to be included, 124 00:06:47,282 --> 00:06:49,872 and that was 125 00:06:49,868 --> 00:06:53,328 like, um... a teenage fantasy. 126 00:06:55,082 --> 00:06:59,172 But I realized later that there are people 127 00:06:59,169 --> 00:07:01,049 who allowed a lot of bad things to happen. 128 00:07:06,134 --> 00:07:08,144 MICHAEL GROSS: Fashion is essentially amoral. 129 00:07:08,136 --> 00:07:10,006 It doesn't care about good or bad. 130 00:07:10,556 --> 00:07:12,426 It has no ethics. 131 00:07:12,432 --> 00:07:13,852 It has one rule: 132 00:07:14,726 --> 00:07:15,936 sell the frock. 133 00:07:17,896 --> 00:07:20,516 No matter the collateral damage. 134 00:07:22,192 --> 00:07:25,032 So, it never really surprised me 135 00:07:25,028 --> 00:07:29,488 as the Jeffrey Epstein onion was unpeeled. 136 00:07:29,491 --> 00:07:32,371 What face was on the next layer of the onion? 137 00:07:32,369 --> 00:07:35,119 Oh, here's Les Wexner right at the top. 138 00:07:35,122 --> 00:07:37,122 ♪ 139 00:07:42,796 --> 00:07:44,006 LES: The funny story I like telling, 140 00:07:44,006 --> 00:07:45,716 I, I was driving to Dayton 141 00:07:45,716 --> 00:07:49,006 and I was thinking about what other businesses I could start. 142 00:07:49,011 --> 00:07:53,181 And I remember saying every-- all the women I know wear underwear 143 00:07:53,182 --> 00:07:54,562 most of the time, 144 00:07:54,558 --> 00:07:59,058 all of the women I know would like to wear lingerie all of the time. 145 00:07:59,062 --> 00:08:03,442 And I'm just driving, driving down the highway, laughing my butt off, 146 00:08:03,442 --> 00:08:05,862 and thinking what a funny thought that is. 147 00:08:07,029 --> 00:08:09,659 And so, I said, "I wonder why no one's done that." 148 00:08:11,283 --> 00:08:12,703 REPORTER: Victoria's Secret, 149 00:08:12,701 --> 00:08:16,661 a company started by Roy Raymond because he was embarrassed in stores 150 00:08:16,663 --> 00:08:18,713 buying lingerie for his wife, 151 00:08:18,707 --> 00:08:22,337 thought other men feeling the same would rather buy by catalog, 152 00:08:22,336 --> 00:08:27,336 so panties, bras, camisoles, and corsets in fine French silk. 153 00:08:28,884 --> 00:08:31,894 GAYE RAYMOND Victoria's Secret did start with just the two of us. 154 00:08:31,887 --> 00:08:35,847 And I don't know if people would be surprised by the fact 155 00:08:35,849 --> 00:08:38,689 that I was the inspiration for starting it. 156 00:08:41,230 --> 00:08:46,110 Les Wexner had contacted Roy over the years a couple of times 157 00:08:46,109 --> 00:08:51,159 because Les had always been interested in the lingerie concept. 158 00:08:52,950 --> 00:08:54,660 CINDY FEDUS-FIELDS: Victoria's Secret business, 159 00:08:54,660 --> 00:08:59,120 when Roy Raymond sold it to Les Wexner, 160 00:08:59,122 --> 00:09:00,962 was basically on its last legs. 161 00:09:00,958 --> 00:09:02,998 He was facing bankruptcy. 162 00:09:03,544 --> 00:09:06,804 LES: It was, uh, kind of, Victorian velvet sofas 163 00:09:06,797 --> 00:09:09,547 and Tiffany lampshades kind of a place. 164 00:09:11,343 --> 00:09:15,563 GAYE: So, in 1982, Roy and I flew to Columbus on their jet. 165 00:09:16,181 --> 00:09:20,191 Les Wexner was initially a little hard to read. 166 00:09:21,687 --> 00:09:25,817 A-- I mean, he had an interesting group of men around him. 167 00:09:25,816 --> 00:09:28,066 Everybody around him was a man. 168 00:09:29,278 --> 00:09:32,488 LES: The notion of Victoria should be a ladies' paradise. 169 00:09:32,489 --> 00:09:35,699 If men like Victoria's Secret, that's kind of a bonus, 170 00:09:35,701 --> 00:09:37,331 but in my imagination, 171 00:09:37,327 --> 00:09:40,497 they should feel in-- uncomfortable when they're in the store. 172 00:09:41,331 --> 00:09:43,381 That thinking goes into the design of the store, 173 00:09:43,375 --> 00:09:45,915 the fitting rooms, the fabric, the display. 174 00:09:45,919 --> 00:09:49,549 It's all from the ladies' point of view. It's nothing to do with men. 175 00:09:51,717 --> 00:09:54,297 GAYE: After the sale of Victoria's Secret, 176 00:09:54,303 --> 00:09:55,933 it became very different. 177 00:09:57,389 --> 00:10:00,429 CINDY: Les had a very powerful vision 178 00:10:00,434 --> 00:10:02,564 for how that business could be grown, 179 00:10:02,561 --> 00:10:06,611 could become very dominant in the marketplace. 180 00:10:07,566 --> 00:10:11,986 His idea was to take an everyday commodity, 181 00:10:11,987 --> 00:10:13,987 like milk or bread, 182 00:10:13,989 --> 00:10:17,529 and romanticize it, fantasize it, 183 00:10:17,534 --> 00:10:20,164 make it something bigger than it was. 184 00:10:27,753 --> 00:10:31,263 Les had read a book written by 185 00:10:31,256 --> 00:10:36,506 the famous director Sidney Lumet called Making Movies, 186 00:10:36,512 --> 00:10:39,062 and said, "This is what you need to do. 187 00:10:39,056 --> 00:10:43,766 "You need to have a story about your brand 188 00:10:43,769 --> 00:10:48,399 "that you use as your, not only inspirational mechanism, 189 00:10:48,398 --> 00:10:50,568 but also, as your control mechanism." 190 00:10:52,778 --> 00:10:56,948 So, he invented a story 191 00:10:56,949 --> 00:11:00,989 about the mythical founder of the brand, 192 00:11:00,994 --> 00:11:04,124 and her name was, of course, Victoria. 193 00:11:07,376 --> 00:11:11,376 She was refined, aspirational, 194 00:11:11,380 --> 00:11:13,470 and English. 195 00:11:13,465 --> 00:11:15,215 ♪ classical music plays ♪ 196 00:11:15,217 --> 00:11:17,797 VICTORIA: I am Victoria Stewart White. 197 00:11:17,803 --> 00:11:20,813 This spring, I shall turn 36 years old. 198 00:11:21,431 --> 00:11:23,601 Father taught me about business, 199 00:11:23,600 --> 00:11:26,270 but mother was determined that I develop 200 00:11:26,270 --> 00:11:30,650 my soul, my passion, and my femininity. 201 00:11:30,649 --> 00:11:32,939 Mother was passionate, 202 00:11:32,943 --> 00:11:35,323 a fiery French woman with a quick temper 203 00:11:35,320 --> 00:11:39,450 and a healthy disrespect for the English and their stodgy ways. 204 00:11:39,449 --> 00:11:42,489 She used to tease Father about everything. 205 00:11:42,494 --> 00:11:46,464 CINDY: Victoria's this smart, savvy woman, 206 00:11:46,456 --> 00:11:48,456 lived in London, 207 00:11:48,458 --> 00:11:50,838 her husband was a barrister. 208 00:11:52,546 --> 00:11:56,716 It was a fantastic story, and it was a very powerful tool. 209 00:11:56,717 --> 00:11:59,967 We're always running around, asking ourselves, 210 00:11:59,970 --> 00:12:02,470 "Would Victoria do this?" 211 00:12:02,472 --> 00:12:04,062 That was the touchstone. 212 00:12:05,517 --> 00:12:09,187 A new young assistant buyer joined the team, 213 00:12:09,188 --> 00:12:13,148 and she said, "Cindy, when do we get to meet Victoria?" 214 00:12:15,402 --> 00:12:19,622 That's how real and powerful the story was. 215 00:12:19,615 --> 00:12:20,775 [camera clicks] - Beautiful. 216 00:12:20,782 --> 00:12:24,242 NARRATOR: Victoria's Secret is extremely protective of its image. 217 00:12:24,244 --> 00:12:26,464 It doesn't want to be mentioned in the same breath 218 00:12:26,455 --> 00:12:31,165 as Frederick's of Hollywood, or any, say, Trashy Lingerie store. 219 00:12:32,836 --> 00:12:35,586 Top models join the catalog's creative team 220 00:12:35,589 --> 00:12:38,219 in beautiful homes all around the country. 221 00:12:40,010 --> 00:12:43,560 But even in this spectacular Santa Barbara mansion, 222 00:12:43,555 --> 00:12:45,635 elaborate sets are erected 223 00:12:45,641 --> 00:12:48,811 to enhance every outfit that's about to be photographed. 224 00:12:48,810 --> 00:12:52,110 LAURA BERKMAN: We like our pictures to be sensual, elegant, 225 00:12:52,105 --> 00:12:54,725 to be slightly more editorial than what most people 226 00:12:54,733 --> 00:12:56,903 perceive catalog photos to be. 227 00:12:56,902 --> 00:12:58,902 PHOTOGRAPHER: Yeah, right there. [camera clicks] 228 00:12:58,904 --> 00:13:00,914 Keep your head down like that and just look up here. 229 00:13:01,907 --> 00:13:03,327 Great. 230 00:13:03,325 --> 00:13:06,195 NARRATOR: The catalog taps into America's fantasies, 231 00:13:06,203 --> 00:13:07,833 a gorgeous setting, 232 00:13:07,829 --> 00:13:11,629 a place every woman would dream of having her morning coffee. 233 00:13:14,962 --> 00:13:17,262 FREDERIQUE: We shot every other week almost, 234 00:13:17,256 --> 00:13:22,466 and we went to, uh, fantastic places around the world. 235 00:13:22,469 --> 00:13:26,559 And Victoria's Secret became this home brand, 236 00:13:26,557 --> 00:13:29,767 the catalog came into the mail every week. 237 00:13:30,269 --> 00:13:32,099 - The catalog, in particular this year, 238 00:13:32,104 --> 00:13:35,114 is going to pick up close to double last year's business. 239 00:13:37,860 --> 00:13:41,150 The minute we shifted to the English image, 240 00:13:41,154 --> 00:13:43,784 the response rates rocketed up. 241 00:13:45,075 --> 00:13:49,075 The volume of the business then was around three million, 242 00:13:49,079 --> 00:13:52,419 and when I left in 2000, 243 00:13:52,416 --> 00:13:54,586 it was just shy of a billion. 244 00:13:56,044 --> 00:13:58,174 FREDERIQUE: The way that they presented 245 00:13:58,172 --> 00:14:00,052 the photography with the catalog, 246 00:14:00,048 --> 00:14:03,338 with the-- with all the great girls, um, 247 00:14:03,969 --> 00:14:05,049 it was chic, 248 00:14:05,053 --> 00:14:09,353 and we actually empowered women to own their bodies. 249 00:14:11,185 --> 00:14:14,935 - They made it acceptable for mainstream women 250 00:14:14,938 --> 00:14:18,938 to want to buy and covet underwear. 251 00:14:19,776 --> 00:14:23,606 They were givin' women permission to, to treat themselves. 252 00:14:25,699 --> 00:14:29,699 CINDY: The catalog was being mailed aggressively, 253 00:14:29,703 --> 00:14:33,083 going directly into consumers' homes 254 00:14:33,081 --> 00:14:37,711 and acting as an advertising vehicle that made money. 255 00:14:38,170 --> 00:14:41,010 REPORTER: The catalogs are certainly really, you know, 256 00:14:41,006 --> 00:14:42,876 provocative, and fun, and great... - Yeah. 257 00:14:42,883 --> 00:14:44,763 - ...and men like to read them, too. - Yes. 258 00:14:44,760 --> 00:14:46,800 - Um, has that been really a big part of the marketing 259 00:14:46,803 --> 00:14:49,063 of this company and the success? - No question, no question. 260 00:14:49,056 --> 00:14:53,976 Uh, the, the catalog, I think, is, is the best advertising for the business. 261 00:14:54,561 --> 00:14:57,401 HEIDI ZAK: I will say, you know, the free underwear card, 262 00:14:57,397 --> 00:14:59,437 which was in every catalog, 263 00:14:59,441 --> 00:15:02,071 "Bring this into the store and get a free pair of underwear," 264 00:15:02,069 --> 00:15:04,069 I succumbed to that almost every time. 265 00:15:06,323 --> 00:15:07,953 I brought that card into the store, 266 00:15:07,950 --> 00:15:09,330 I'd buy a few bras, 267 00:15:09,326 --> 00:15:11,286 I did what that company wanted me to do. 268 00:15:14,289 --> 00:15:16,709 CINDY: Spinning a fantasy, 269 00:15:16,708 --> 00:15:18,498 telling a story, 270 00:15:18,502 --> 00:15:20,922 is that really different 271 00:15:20,921 --> 00:15:24,381 from the retail shopping experience? 272 00:15:24,383 --> 00:15:28,353 When people bought the lingerie, 273 00:15:28,345 --> 00:15:30,845 whether they knew it or not, 274 00:15:30,848 --> 00:15:34,098 they were buying into that fantasy. 275 00:15:35,435 --> 00:15:37,185 LES: Our mental model in building 276 00:15:37,187 --> 00:15:40,567 the Victoria's Secret brand is Ralph Lauren. 277 00:15:40,566 --> 00:15:44,106 Today, if you talk about Ralph Lauren to men or to women, 278 00:15:44,111 --> 00:15:47,661 virtually of any age, everybody knows what that brand means. 279 00:15:47,656 --> 00:15:50,866 I, I would venture to say all of us in the room 280 00:15:50,868 --> 00:15:54,118 have a very clear sense of the personality of that brand. 281 00:15:54,121 --> 00:15:56,121 It's vivid in your mind. 282 00:15:57,207 --> 00:16:02,377 CINDY: Les was always a strong admirer 283 00:16:02,379 --> 00:16:04,549 of Ralph Lauren, 284 00:16:04,548 --> 00:16:09,508 and what Ralph Lauren, Ralph Lifshitz from the Bronx, 285 00:16:10,053 --> 00:16:15,523 was able to achieve in terms of his own personal lifestyle 286 00:16:15,517 --> 00:16:18,147 and the brand he built. 287 00:16:19,313 --> 00:16:24,403 To a generation of American Jews, like Les Wexners, 288 00:16:24,401 --> 00:16:28,531 Ralph Lauren was a story of, you know, remaking oneself 289 00:16:28,530 --> 00:16:30,990 into the kinds of people who belonged to golf clubs, 290 00:16:30,991 --> 00:16:35,451 you know, these other, sorts of, ritzy places where Jews in America, 291 00:16:35,454 --> 00:16:37,584 once upon a time, were barred from. 292 00:16:38,040 --> 00:16:41,710 - I don't know whether... I was an upper lower class, 293 00:16:41,710 --> 00:16:44,250 or a lower middle class kind of kid growing up, 294 00:16:44,254 --> 00:16:46,764 but, uh, parents were working. 295 00:16:46,757 --> 00:16:49,047 Uh, most of the houses we lived in were rented 296 00:16:49,051 --> 00:16:50,971 because we couldn't afford-- 297 00:16:50,969 --> 00:16:52,969 parents couldn't afford to buy a house. 298 00:16:54,848 --> 00:16:59,478 CINDY: Les wanted an aspirational lifestyle, 299 00:17:00,187 --> 00:17:03,187 something different than how he grew up. 300 00:17:04,191 --> 00:17:06,191 ♪ 301 00:17:06,193 --> 00:17:09,863 NARRATOR: Columbus, Ohio, test city, USA. 302 00:17:09,863 --> 00:17:12,703 For the past two decades, American business has tested 303 00:17:12,699 --> 00:17:14,989 more of its products in Columbus 304 00:17:14,993 --> 00:17:18,003 than in any other major American community. 305 00:17:20,332 --> 00:17:22,752 HARVEY WASSERMAN: Columbus was very clean-cut, 306 00:17:22,751 --> 00:17:24,961 very Republican, 307 00:17:25,504 --> 00:17:30,634 and was a bastion of WASP conservatism. 308 00:17:31,051 --> 00:17:34,471 You know, there was an undercurrent of antisemitism. 309 00:17:35,430 --> 00:17:40,640 TIM FERAN: Les had a sense of a little bit of inferiority. 310 00:17:41,061 --> 00:17:44,311 That's part of this whole psychology 311 00:17:44,314 --> 00:17:47,114 where Les really feels like, 312 00:17:48,026 --> 00:17:49,566 "I'm gonna show them." 313 00:17:54,408 --> 00:17:57,158 LES: When I was about 13 or 14 years old, 314 00:17:57,160 --> 00:17:58,790 my dad got fired. 315 00:17:59,580 --> 00:18:02,540 And I can remember so vividly, 316 00:18:02,541 --> 00:18:04,711 say, "This is never gonna happen to me. 317 00:18:04,710 --> 00:18:07,340 "When I grow up, I'm not gonna get fired. 318 00:18:08,297 --> 00:18:10,127 I'm not gonna fail." 319 00:18:12,009 --> 00:18:15,259 TIM: After Les's father, Harry, was fired, 320 00:18:15,262 --> 00:18:19,522 he opened a full-service women's dress shop 321 00:18:19,516 --> 00:18:22,016 named after Les, Leslie's. 322 00:18:23,312 --> 00:18:25,862 NARRATOR: After a few years working with his parents, 323 00:18:25,856 --> 00:18:28,146 Wexner came to his father with an idea. 324 00:18:28,150 --> 00:18:32,780 Why not focus on women's sportswear, the store's best-selling item? 325 00:18:32,779 --> 00:18:36,199 His dad's response? "You'll never be a merchant." 326 00:18:37,576 --> 00:18:40,866 MICHAEL CURTIN: Les wasn't shy about telling audiences 327 00:18:40,871 --> 00:18:44,831 that his dad challenged him, and basically, said to him, 328 00:18:44,833 --> 00:18:46,713 "You will not be a success." 329 00:18:47,961 --> 00:18:52,011 Uh, that's quite a, uh... stringent comment coming from a dad. 330 00:18:52,007 --> 00:18:55,887 - It got so intense that my dad and I didn't talk for a whole year. 331 00:18:55,886 --> 00:18:57,466 And, uh, my dad had a... 332 00:18:57,471 --> 00:19:01,141 SARAH ELLISON: Wexner borrows $5,000 from his Aunt Ida 333 00:19:01,141 --> 00:19:05,151 to set out on his own, and he opens his own store. 334 00:19:06,104 --> 00:19:10,114 TIM: And he called it, because of the limited selection, 335 00:19:10,108 --> 00:19:12,028 The Limited. 336 00:19:14,655 --> 00:19:16,525 NARRATOR: Wexner's gamble paid off 337 00:19:16,532 --> 00:19:19,542 with profits that exceeded his expectations. 338 00:19:19,535 --> 00:19:21,405 And just three years later, 339 00:19:21,411 --> 00:19:24,501 his parents closed their shop and joined their son. 340 00:19:24,498 --> 00:19:29,288 By 1982, The Limited was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. 341 00:19:29,294 --> 00:19:30,804 LES: Store was successful. 342 00:19:30,796 --> 00:19:33,796 And by the time I was 30 years old, 343 00:19:34,550 --> 00:19:36,760 I was several times a millionaire. 344 00:19:37,302 --> 00:19:38,932 And it kept expanding. 345 00:19:40,180 --> 00:19:42,470 [indistinct chatter] 346 00:19:45,018 --> 00:19:49,148 CINDY: Les started with one little store in Columbus, Ohio, 347 00:19:49,147 --> 00:19:51,977 and grew that business into 348 00:19:51,984 --> 00:19:56,114 12 or 14 brands that dominated 349 00:19:56,113 --> 00:19:58,533 the malls of America. 350 00:20:01,994 --> 00:20:06,044 - There was this great expression in the '80s fashion business. 351 00:20:06,039 --> 00:20:11,459 "If you sell to the classes, you go to work with the masses." 352 00:20:11,461 --> 00:20:12,881 If you sell to rich people, 353 00:20:12,880 --> 00:20:15,510 you're gonna take the subway to your office. 354 00:20:15,507 --> 00:20:17,217 But if you sell to the masses, 355 00:20:17,217 --> 00:20:19,507 then you travel with the classes. 356 00:20:19,511 --> 00:20:22,681 If you were a mall retailer, like Les Wexner, 357 00:20:22,681 --> 00:20:26,441 you were gonna get incredibly rich if you had a knack for it, 358 00:20:26,435 --> 00:20:28,805 which, clearly, the guy did. 359 00:20:30,731 --> 00:20:35,361 - He created clothes for every demographic from cradle to grave. 360 00:20:36,153 --> 00:20:38,163 [crowd cheering] 361 00:20:40,282 --> 00:20:42,742 And the thing that Wexner figured out was, 362 00:20:42,743 --> 00:20:46,253 is that women were shopping in the mall two and three times a week. 363 00:20:46,246 --> 00:20:49,416 He wanted to make certain that every time they came in that store, 364 00:20:49,416 --> 00:20:51,036 they were gonna see some novelty, 365 00:20:51,043 --> 00:20:53,343 where the store felt like it was brand new and fresh. 366 00:20:58,175 --> 00:21:00,545 Les Wexner invented fast fashion. 367 00:21:01,803 --> 00:21:06,483 He is the guy who figured out how to make Americans 368 00:21:06,475 --> 00:21:08,055 shop, shop, shop, shop, shop. 369 00:21:08,852 --> 00:21:14,362 - Just the same way Jeff Bezos has revolutionized shopping, 370 00:21:14,358 --> 00:21:17,238 the brands that Wexner started, 371 00:21:17,236 --> 00:21:21,526 Victoria's Secret being one of the most successful, 372 00:21:22,115 --> 00:21:24,865 revolutionized those malls. 373 00:21:27,996 --> 00:21:30,826 ASHLEY MEARS: In the '80s, it was all status-driven, 374 00:21:30,832 --> 00:21:32,962 going into the mall. 375 00:21:32,960 --> 00:21:36,760 And today, what people are doing on social media is very similar. 376 00:21:36,755 --> 00:21:38,295 It taps into that impulse. 377 00:21:40,050 --> 00:21:42,680 The mall is like Instagram 1.0 378 00:21:42,678 --> 00:21:45,808 in the sense that it's where people go to show off 379 00:21:45,806 --> 00:21:49,176 and display themselves, and that's a pursuit of status. 380 00:21:53,981 --> 00:21:59,071 - Les always said that the world designs for us, 381 00:21:59,653 --> 00:22:04,493 and it was the merchant's job to edit from all the stuff that was in the world 382 00:22:04,491 --> 00:22:06,951 for the customer that we were targeting. 383 00:22:08,787 --> 00:22:11,787 So, the way we would accomplish this 384 00:22:11,790 --> 00:22:16,300 is by shopping various fashion meccas frequently. 385 00:22:17,504 --> 00:22:20,674 We were always shopping London and Paris, obviously, 386 00:22:21,425 --> 00:22:22,965 also Rome, 387 00:22:23,969 --> 00:22:25,299 Milan. 388 00:22:25,304 --> 00:22:27,434 Oh, and I can't forget, 389 00:22:27,431 --> 00:22:30,141 we also shopped the south of France in the summer. 390 00:22:30,142 --> 00:22:33,442 Nice, Cannes, Saint-Tropez, oh gosh. 391 00:22:34,771 --> 00:22:37,771 And the way we were able to do this, 392 00:22:37,774 --> 00:22:42,074 there was a fleet, small fleet, of private jets. 393 00:22:42,070 --> 00:22:45,780 You cannot imagine how much time that saved us. 394 00:22:48,076 --> 00:22:52,286 - Typically, other competitors would go twice a year, 395 00:22:52,289 --> 00:22:54,539 but we went more often. 396 00:22:54,541 --> 00:22:57,211 At least six times a year, you would go. 397 00:22:58,212 --> 00:23:00,552 MICHAEL GROSS: It's called shopping the stores. 398 00:23:00,923 --> 00:23:04,343 Shopping the stores is going to look for shit that you can copy. 399 00:23:05,469 --> 00:23:09,429 LINDSEY CASELLA: All employees were taught the L Brand's way, 400 00:23:09,431 --> 00:23:13,691 the core ideals and beliefs of our founder, Les Wexner, 401 00:23:13,685 --> 00:23:17,015 that amateurs borrow and professionals steal. 402 00:23:18,232 --> 00:23:21,902 MICHAEL GROSS: Taking something that's popular in Europe, 403 00:23:21,902 --> 00:23:25,282 make a tiny little change here, a tiny little change there. 404 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:29,200 If originally it was in cashmere, you sell it in acrylic. 405 00:23:29,201 --> 00:23:32,541 If originally it was $800, you sell it for $35, 406 00:23:32,538 --> 00:23:36,168 and boom, you know, any girl who can afford a fashion magazine 407 00:23:36,166 --> 00:23:38,836 can now afford the most fashionable sweater of the season. 408 00:23:41,547 --> 00:23:43,007 And in their brilliance, 409 00:23:43,006 --> 00:23:47,006 The Limited even created a label for their knockoffs. 410 00:23:47,010 --> 00:23:51,430 They made it sound as if it was an Italian designer named Forenza. 411 00:23:52,140 --> 00:23:54,140 ♪ 412 00:24:01,483 --> 00:24:06,493 NICOLE PHELPS: The Forenza sweater was the aspirational sweater 413 00:24:06,488 --> 00:24:11,538 for my seventh and eighth grade years in the, in the mid-'80s. 414 00:24:11,535 --> 00:24:15,115 All the cool girls, the popular girls, wore their Forenza sweaters. 415 00:24:15,914 --> 00:24:19,174 NARRATOR: Over three million sweaters were sold, 416 00:24:19,168 --> 00:24:23,338 making it the most successful sweater to ever hit America. 417 00:24:25,465 --> 00:24:28,795 - It's all of a piece with what turns into the cerulean blue sweater 418 00:24:28,802 --> 00:24:32,012 that Miranda Priestly berates her assistant over 419 00:24:32,014 --> 00:24:33,644 in The Devil Wears Prada. 420 00:24:34,141 --> 00:24:37,021 - What you don't know is that that sweater is not just blue. 421 00:24:37,019 --> 00:24:39,769 It's not turquoise. It's not lapis. 422 00:24:39,771 --> 00:24:41,981 It's actually cerulean. 423 00:24:41,982 --> 00:24:45,782 And you're also blithely unaware of the fact that... in 2002, 424 00:24:45,777 --> 00:24:48,527 Oscar de la Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns. 425 00:24:48,530 --> 00:24:50,280 And then I think it was Yves Saint Laurent, wasn't it, 426 00:24:50,282 --> 00:24:53,042 who showed cerulean military jackets? 427 00:24:53,035 --> 00:24:56,575 And then it, uh, filtered down through the department stores 428 00:24:56,580 --> 00:24:59,790 and then trickled on down into some tragic Casual Corner 429 00:24:59,791 --> 00:25:03,671 where you no doubt fished it out of some clearance bin. 430 00:25:03,670 --> 00:25:07,260 TIM: It's the sweater that built the empire 431 00:25:07,257 --> 00:25:11,717 is how it's been described and very, very accurately. 432 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:13,720 ♪ 433 00:25:18,977 --> 00:25:23,437 - Les knew that inventories had to be refreshed quickly. 434 00:25:24,691 --> 00:25:30,361 And the quickest way to do that was through sourcing that he controlled, 435 00:25:30,364 --> 00:25:33,534 would put him ahead of the other retailers. 436 00:25:34,618 --> 00:25:38,658 TIM: Les became aware that if he wanted to make 437 00:25:38,664 --> 00:25:41,174 really huge profit margins, 438 00:25:41,166 --> 00:25:44,996 he was going to have to have merchandise 439 00:25:45,003 --> 00:25:50,473 manufactured in places where... wages were considerably lower. 440 00:25:51,426 --> 00:25:53,176 LES: We were the first American company 441 00:25:53,178 --> 00:25:55,258 to do business in the PRC, 442 00:25:55,264 --> 00:25:59,274 before the United States government had consular relations with China. 443 00:26:04,064 --> 00:26:06,534 MICHAEL GROSS: A lot of the business was based in Hong Kong, 444 00:26:06,525 --> 00:26:09,025 and then they would cross the border 445 00:26:09,027 --> 00:26:11,567 where the factories were with the poorer people 446 00:26:11,572 --> 00:26:14,322 making, you know, probably 15 cents an hour, 447 00:26:14,324 --> 00:26:15,534 making these sweaters, 448 00:26:15,534 --> 00:26:18,374 which is how you could afford to sell them for 35. 449 00:26:19,454 --> 00:26:21,424 TERI AGINS: They could control everything-- 450 00:26:21,415 --> 00:26:23,455 manufacturing, prices. 451 00:26:23,458 --> 00:26:24,538 They created this. 452 00:26:24,543 --> 00:26:27,003 They did it on a grand scale, 453 00:26:27,004 --> 00:26:28,714 created this great empire. 454 00:26:28,714 --> 00:26:31,474 TOM PETERS: The magic of The Limited and Victoria's Secret 455 00:26:31,466 --> 00:26:36,966 is that you've got a $3 billion, 2,500-store operation 456 00:26:36,972 --> 00:26:39,062 that can literally do in four weeks 457 00:26:39,057 --> 00:26:42,477 what it takes most of their big competitors nine months to do. 458 00:26:46,273 --> 00:26:49,903 CINDY: I remember Les was taking some criticism 459 00:26:49,902 --> 00:26:53,742 for doing so much of his sourcing overseas, 460 00:26:53,739 --> 00:26:57,329 and so, he was putting forward a concept, "Make it in America." 461 00:26:57,826 --> 00:27:02,246 And at the kickoff meeting, an older woman shouted out, 462 00:27:02,247 --> 00:27:04,287 "It'll never work!" 463 00:27:04,791 --> 00:27:06,841 And I was shocked. 464 00:27:07,377 --> 00:27:10,377 It was Bella, his mother. 465 00:27:13,342 --> 00:27:17,182 - I think it takes it a, a very unusual... parent 466 00:27:17,179 --> 00:27:20,179 to encourage a kid to start his own business, 467 00:27:20,182 --> 00:27:21,182 and to keep saying, you know, 468 00:27:21,183 --> 00:27:23,313 "You can do it, you can do it, you can do it." 469 00:27:23,310 --> 00:27:24,520 - He liked it. 470 00:27:25,020 --> 00:27:26,860 He liked the rag business, 471 00:27:26,855 --> 00:27:30,315 used to go with Daddy to, uh, unpack the shipments on Sunday 472 00:27:30,317 --> 00:27:31,937 and hand him the hangers. 473 00:27:32,778 --> 00:27:34,448 SARAH: Les and his mother, Bella, 474 00:27:34,446 --> 00:27:36,776 were very, very close for years. 475 00:27:36,782 --> 00:27:38,742 A longtime executive told us that 476 00:27:38,742 --> 00:27:41,372 they were basically married to one another. 477 00:27:42,162 --> 00:27:44,002 TIM: As the years transpired, 478 00:27:43,997 --> 00:27:48,287 Les kept Harry and Bella close to him, 479 00:27:48,293 --> 00:27:53,383 and they both were on the board of The Limited. 480 00:27:53,382 --> 00:27:59,142 And famously, Bella's office was right across the hall from Les's. 481 00:28:02,391 --> 00:28:04,691 BELLA WEXNER: You felt that there was a foundation there 482 00:28:05,185 --> 00:28:08,185 that you could build on, and that's what you did. 483 00:28:09,857 --> 00:28:12,027 That's just, just, just what happened. 484 00:28:12,025 --> 00:28:15,695 And that, that confidence, I think that you inherit that 485 00:28:15,696 --> 00:28:17,606 s-somewhere in the genes, 486 00:28:17,614 --> 00:28:20,084 [Les laughs] that you inherit those qua-- You do. 487 00:28:20,075 --> 00:28:22,155 I think the important thing, the message is, 488 00:28:22,160 --> 00:28:26,580 is you must have confidence in yourself that you can do it. 489 00:28:26,582 --> 00:28:29,082 I can do it, and I will do it. 490 00:28:33,338 --> 00:28:34,628 ♪ 491 00:28:34,631 --> 00:28:39,391 - When I reflect back on my 13 years at Victoria's Secret, 492 00:28:39,386 --> 00:28:41,806 I always tell people that I felt like I went 493 00:28:41,805 --> 00:28:44,135 to the Ivy League school of retailing. 494 00:28:47,603 --> 00:28:51,233 Everything about how Les approached the business 495 00:28:51,231 --> 00:28:55,321 from ideations around innovation, and new materials, 496 00:28:55,319 --> 00:28:57,319 and product categories, 497 00:28:58,071 --> 00:28:59,911 that was Les's vision. 498 00:29:01,783 --> 00:29:03,993 SARA: I loved how overly thought-out it was. 499 00:29:03,994 --> 00:29:05,834 It was like, here's the plan, 500 00:29:05,829 --> 00:29:07,159 here's the pathway, 501 00:29:07,164 --> 00:29:09,294 here's how we're gonna convert clients. 502 00:29:09,291 --> 00:29:10,711 We're gonna get them in the fitting room. 503 00:29:10,709 --> 00:29:12,589 Once they're in the fitting room, they're ours. 504 00:29:13,795 --> 00:29:17,375 So, throw as much at them to expand that sale. 505 00:29:18,926 --> 00:29:20,716 I obviously drunk the Kool-Aid and I loved it. 506 00:29:20,719 --> 00:29:22,719 ♪ 507 00:29:27,309 --> 00:29:30,809 TERI: Initially, Victoria's Secret did no, you know, 508 00:29:30,812 --> 00:29:32,402 traditional advertising. 509 00:29:32,397 --> 00:29:34,817 In fact, Les Wexner did not believe in advertising 510 00:29:34,816 --> 00:29:38,986 because his attitude was, you've got a showcase in the mall 511 00:29:38,987 --> 00:29:40,777 with all these great windows 512 00:29:40,781 --> 00:29:42,991 and you really didn't need to advertise. 513 00:29:43,534 --> 00:29:45,954 It was Ed Razek who started that system, 514 00:29:45,953 --> 00:29:50,043 and he got that working like a fine-tuned modern marketing machine. 515 00:29:50,040 --> 00:29:54,090 He was, like, number two to Les Wexner, and they kinda worked hand-in-glove. 516 00:29:54,753 --> 00:29:57,053 ED RAZEK: In a matter of months, we went from the idea of, 517 00:29:57,047 --> 00:29:59,677 could we get on a radio program in a local market 518 00:29:59,675 --> 00:30:03,675 to being on every national entertainment news program. 519 00:30:03,679 --> 00:30:06,059 And I think that in the future, you're gonna have a combination of media 520 00:30:06,056 --> 00:30:09,306 that includes every sophisticated 521 00:30:09,309 --> 00:30:11,809 kind of extension that a brand can have, 522 00:30:11,812 --> 00:30:14,362 and if you don't use 'em, it'll-- it will be at your peril. 523 00:30:14,356 --> 00:30:16,356 You really have to have all the components. 524 00:30:19,903 --> 00:30:21,913 ♪ 525 00:30:22,447 --> 00:30:25,117 JAMES SCULLY: At the time, even though Victoria's Secret 526 00:30:25,117 --> 00:30:28,537 was a very respectable company throughout the country, 527 00:30:28,537 --> 00:30:29,997 and had a great image, 528 00:30:29,997 --> 00:30:33,077 if you worked in fashion as a model, 529 00:30:33,083 --> 00:30:35,213 um, it is not the booking you wanted. 530 00:30:37,004 --> 00:30:40,014 If you were a Victoria's Secret contract girl, that basically meant 531 00:30:40,007 --> 00:30:42,427 [chuckles] your Vogue days were over, 532 00:30:42,426 --> 00:30:43,756 your high-fashion career was over. 533 00:30:43,760 --> 00:30:47,350 It was basically where models went to die, but make a ton of money. 534 00:30:47,347 --> 00:30:48,767 ALL: Hi, Santa. 535 00:30:48,765 --> 00:30:49,885 - Can you blame me? 536 00:30:49,892 --> 00:30:51,562 CINDY: In the earlier years, 537 00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:53,940 it was kinda tough to get models 538 00:30:53,937 --> 00:30:56,477 who were willing to model lingerie. 539 00:30:56,481 --> 00:30:58,651 It wasn't easy, but we did it. 540 00:30:59,234 --> 00:31:01,534 ED: Stephanie Seymour, who is now and was then 541 00:31:01,528 --> 00:31:03,948 a very major international model, 542 00:31:03,947 --> 00:31:06,657 started... working with Victoria's Secret. 543 00:31:06,658 --> 00:31:11,208 I think that legitimized our, um, our brand and our business, 544 00:31:11,205 --> 00:31:14,625 and allowed other girls to get into the business. 545 00:31:16,168 --> 00:31:18,998 CINDY: The models were lending 546 00:31:19,004 --> 00:31:23,134 their status to our brand. 547 00:31:23,133 --> 00:31:25,893 - You know, it has helped me enormous. It has helped them. 548 00:31:25,886 --> 00:31:29,176 I've been, uh, a good spokesperson for them and vice versa. 549 00:31:29,181 --> 00:31:32,641 So, it's been a good-- It is very good team. 550 00:31:34,478 --> 00:31:39,648 The '80s, and really, the mid-'90s, was a time when models had a name. 551 00:31:39,650 --> 00:31:43,490 We were suddenly-- We were Frederique. We were Stephanie. 552 00:31:43,487 --> 00:31:45,237 We were these supermodels, 553 00:31:45,239 --> 00:31:48,869 and Victoria's Secret was very early on in saying, 554 00:31:48,867 --> 00:31:52,497 "We're... stepping on this bandwagon." 555 00:31:53,455 --> 00:31:58,245 NICOLE: Co-opting the formula from designer fashion 556 00:31:58,252 --> 00:32:00,962 was... pretty brilliant 557 00:32:00,963 --> 00:32:03,553 because it equated 558 00:32:03,549 --> 00:32:07,179 panties and bras with high fashion, 559 00:32:07,177 --> 00:32:11,307 and it does slowly serve to 560 00:32:11,306 --> 00:32:13,726 raise Victoria's Secret profile. 561 00:32:15,143 --> 00:32:16,693 GRACE NICHOLS: A couple of years ago, 562 00:32:16,687 --> 00:32:19,187 Les presented the idea to all the CEOs 563 00:32:19,189 --> 00:32:21,529 about considering a fashion show 564 00:32:21,525 --> 00:32:26,695 as a part of the general business strategy and several of the brand personalities. 565 00:32:27,197 --> 00:32:30,617 It really seemed that it was right for Victoria's Secret. 566 00:32:30,617 --> 00:32:32,407 JAMES: What a phenomenon Victoria's Secret is 567 00:32:32,411 --> 00:32:34,831 and how this catalog's become the thing 568 00:32:34,830 --> 00:32:37,580 that either every man is dying to see on his coffee table, 569 00:32:37,583 --> 00:32:40,463 or every woman, sort of, aspires to, you know, look that way, 570 00:32:40,460 --> 00:32:42,130 or be, sort of, a Victoria's Secret woman. 571 00:32:42,129 --> 00:32:43,709 And I think it'll be really interesting tonight 572 00:32:43,714 --> 00:32:46,344 to see the actual catalog come to life. 573 00:32:48,010 --> 00:32:51,930 I cast the very first Victoria's Secret fashion show, 574 00:32:51,930 --> 00:32:55,430 and it was a totally bold idea to have a show for a lingerie brand 575 00:32:55,434 --> 00:32:59,694 because there was nothing else like that at the time. 576 00:32:59,688 --> 00:33:01,728 They saw it as a marketing tool because they thought 577 00:33:01,732 --> 00:33:04,822 this is how we can get the face of our brand out there. 578 00:33:04,818 --> 00:33:09,028 - Maybe 15 years ago, if a woman had a half a dozen bras 579 00:33:09,031 --> 00:33:10,911 and a half a dozen pairs of panties, 580 00:33:10,908 --> 00:33:12,278 she thought she was covered. 581 00:33:12,284 --> 00:33:15,544 It was, it was basically the man's approach to underwear. 582 00:33:15,537 --> 00:33:17,707 And, uh, and point of fact, that's not true anymore. 583 00:33:17,706 --> 00:33:20,536 It's a very different business than it was just a few years ago. 584 00:33:22,419 --> 00:33:24,459 MAN: I'm about to rehearse Beverly Peele, 585 00:33:24,963 --> 00:33:26,973 which is a very exciting moment in my life. 586 00:33:28,008 --> 00:33:30,548 [person laughs] She could probably rehearse me. 587 00:33:30,552 --> 00:33:33,562 - You knew this is gonna be on Times Square? - Yeah, I just heard that. 588 00:33:33,555 --> 00:33:35,095 - I didn't know that-- - What time are we on Times Square? 589 00:33:35,098 --> 00:33:37,018 We're gonna be on Times Square, oh my god! 590 00:33:37,434 --> 00:33:39,944 - How do y-- How do you feel, Ingrid? 591 00:33:39,937 --> 00:33:41,557 How do you feel? You feel great? 592 00:33:43,857 --> 00:33:45,477 VICTORIA BARTLETT: Back in 1995, 593 00:33:45,484 --> 00:33:50,034 I was hired to do the first show for Victoria's Secret. 594 00:33:51,031 --> 00:33:54,281 In the '90s, I was one of the top stylists. 595 00:33:54,284 --> 00:33:56,294 I was working with Miu Miu, 596 00:33:56,787 --> 00:33:58,907 I was working with Versace. 597 00:33:58,914 --> 00:34:00,674 Victoria's Secret, for me, was this, 598 00:34:00,666 --> 00:34:03,666 sort of, patriarchal company in the mass market. 599 00:34:03,669 --> 00:34:05,419 I thought it was almost a paradox 600 00:34:05,420 --> 00:34:09,880 that they asked me to come and style for it. 601 00:34:10,425 --> 00:34:13,005 ED: Everything we said, it was a mantra. 602 00:34:13,011 --> 00:34:16,061 This is a fashion business, a fashion brand, 603 00:34:16,056 --> 00:34:19,686 and this is a fashion show to show our latest fashion. 604 00:34:20,102 --> 00:34:21,692 [indistinct chatter] 605 00:34:21,687 --> 00:34:23,267 ♪ 606 00:34:24,773 --> 00:34:26,153 TERI: One thing that was really important 607 00:34:26,149 --> 00:34:27,779 at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 608 00:34:27,776 --> 00:34:31,776 is that there were a lotta guys there because this was tits and glitz. 609 00:34:31,780 --> 00:34:35,160 REPORTER: Okay, what brought you here? - What brought me here to this show 610 00:34:35,158 --> 00:34:38,698 is the exact same thing that brought this guy here. 611 00:34:38,704 --> 00:34:39,964 - Are you hosting the show? 612 00:34:39,955 --> 00:34:42,875 - Lookin' forward to it, uh, since the moment I heard about it. 613 00:34:42,875 --> 00:34:44,915 - And your intentions are purely innocent? 614 00:34:44,918 --> 00:34:48,128 - Of course, I'm really here just for the cultural enrichment of it all. 615 00:34:48,630 --> 00:34:50,630 REPORTER: Are you a fan of Victoria's Secret? 616 00:34:50,632 --> 00:34:53,012 - Isn't every red-blooded man a fan of Victoria's Secret? 617 00:34:53,010 --> 00:34:54,430 REPORTER: So many men. 618 00:34:54,428 --> 00:34:56,678 I've never seen so many men at a fashion show. 619 00:34:57,306 --> 00:34:58,596 ROBIN LEACH: I guess every person, 620 00:34:58,599 --> 00:35:01,389 they, they dress their woman in Victoria's Secret 621 00:35:02,769 --> 00:35:05,809 that they believe that their woman winds up looking like Frederique. 622 00:35:06,899 --> 00:35:09,569 - The fashion show was very unique 623 00:35:09,568 --> 00:35:13,318 because it wasn't a show where you're showing to buyers. 624 00:35:13,322 --> 00:35:14,952 [indistinct] 625 00:35:17,618 --> 00:35:19,578 ♪ 626 00:35:23,582 --> 00:35:26,002 FREDERIQUE: If you use all the right elements, 627 00:35:26,710 --> 00:35:30,920 what you get is a sensation, and that's what they did. 628 00:35:32,216 --> 00:35:37,676 Victoria's Secret became itself something to know. 629 00:35:42,100 --> 00:35:44,230 I think it was brilliant, 630 00:35:44,228 --> 00:35:47,648 but it was definitely, for me personally, 631 00:35:47,648 --> 00:35:49,608 quite exposing. 632 00:35:52,194 --> 00:35:56,954 I was happy to leave, go home, and cry in a bathtub. [laughs] 633 00:35:56,949 --> 00:35:58,869 And say, "God, I got that over with." 634 00:35:58,867 --> 00:36:00,867 ♪ 635 00:36:12,381 --> 00:36:14,381 ♪ 636 00:36:14,383 --> 00:36:17,593 BARRY LEVINE: Despite Les Wexner's incredible wealth 637 00:36:17,594 --> 00:36:19,474 and incredible success, 638 00:36:19,471 --> 00:36:23,851 Wexner was an individual running his huge company 639 00:36:23,851 --> 00:36:27,101 out of the middle of Ohio. 640 00:36:27,104 --> 00:36:31,154 This was far away from the movers and the shakers 641 00:36:31,149 --> 00:36:33,779 and the social scene of New York. 642 00:36:34,903 --> 00:36:37,993 MICHAEL GROSS: Back in the '80s, it was a great moment 643 00:36:37,990 --> 00:36:41,740 for what was the tippy-top of American fashion. 644 00:36:41,743 --> 00:36:43,503 And at the same time, 645 00:36:43,495 --> 00:36:48,375 you had the arrival of an entire new billionaire class. 646 00:36:49,793 --> 00:36:52,803 So, you could be a thug, like a Trump, 647 00:36:53,630 --> 00:36:56,720 but you still, because of your money and your spending, 648 00:36:56,717 --> 00:36:59,337 you could be part of nouvelle society. 649 00:37:00,679 --> 00:37:02,679 ♪ 650 00:37:04,766 --> 00:37:10,016 Wexner had the advantage of coming to New York astonishingly rich, 651 00:37:10,022 --> 00:37:12,942 and almost immediately thereafter, 652 00:37:12,941 --> 00:37:16,491 Wexner ends up buying Henri Bendel's. 653 00:37:17,946 --> 00:37:19,566 SHARLEEN ERNSTER: I worked at Henri Bendel 654 00:37:19,573 --> 00:37:22,413 in this jewel box lingerie section 655 00:37:22,409 --> 00:37:26,329 where the most influential women in the world shop. 656 00:37:27,706 --> 00:37:30,626 The announcement that we had been purchased 657 00:37:30,626 --> 00:37:34,626 by The Limited Inc. was shocking. 658 00:37:35,964 --> 00:37:38,224 - He wanted that New York cache, 659 00:37:38,217 --> 00:37:40,677 and that was a way to buy into it. 660 00:37:44,890 --> 00:37:49,140 - The city was, kind of, "Huh?" They were aghast. 661 00:37:55,859 --> 00:38:01,489 - He invited Jackie Onassis to the christening of the store. 662 00:38:03,784 --> 00:38:05,084 All the photographers were there. 663 00:38:05,077 --> 00:38:07,617 This was a big paparazzi moment 664 00:38:07,621 --> 00:38:11,331 because he wanted that respect 665 00:38:11,333 --> 00:38:16,343 with New York society and high-fashion New York. 666 00:38:16,338 --> 00:38:18,798 This was something that, obviously, was really important to him. 667 00:38:23,136 --> 00:38:25,886 Anytime, when you see a socialite like that 668 00:38:25,889 --> 00:38:28,429 paired with a retailer like Les Wexner, 669 00:38:28,433 --> 00:38:31,353 it's understood that someone has written out 670 00:38:31,353 --> 00:38:34,363 a very big check to their favorite charity. 671 00:38:36,650 --> 00:38:38,650 ♪ 672 00:38:41,405 --> 00:38:44,155 SARAH: Wexner is coming in from the Midwest 673 00:38:44,741 --> 00:38:47,871 and he's intimidated by this New York society 674 00:38:47,870 --> 00:38:51,460 that he can't quite dominate the way he can in Columbus. 675 00:38:51,456 --> 00:38:56,246 And you can see how he might benefit from a translator, 676 00:38:56,253 --> 00:38:58,013 or someone who can, kind of, 677 00:38:58,005 --> 00:39:01,545 take his elbow and lead him into the right rooms, 678 00:39:01,550 --> 00:39:04,180 and the right charities, and the right parties. 679 00:39:09,057 --> 00:39:13,687 - This was about the time Jeffrey Epstein came into Wexner's life. 680 00:39:18,233 --> 00:39:20,073 MICHAEL GROSS: Jeffrey Epstein was a college dropout 681 00:39:20,068 --> 00:39:22,068 who somehow managed to get a job teaching 682 00:39:22,070 --> 00:39:25,280 at the very prestigious prep school Dalton in New York, 683 00:39:25,282 --> 00:39:27,372 hired by Donald Barr, 684 00:39:27,367 --> 00:39:29,117 whose son was William Barr, 685 00:39:29,119 --> 00:39:31,709 the Trump administration's Attorney General. 686 00:39:31,705 --> 00:39:34,995 It was at Dalton that Epstein met Ace Greenberg, 687 00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:36,210 who was a parent there. 688 00:39:36,210 --> 00:39:39,130 Greenberg ran Bear Stearns, an investment bank, 689 00:39:39,129 --> 00:39:42,339 and that was Epstein's next job, working for Bear Stearns. 690 00:39:44,635 --> 00:39:48,385 Bear Stearns wasn't one of those white shoe Wall Street firms. 691 00:39:48,388 --> 00:39:51,388 It was a rough-and-tumble streetwise place run by Jewish guys. 692 00:39:51,767 --> 00:39:56,267 And it was at Bear that Epstein manifested a trait 693 00:39:56,271 --> 00:39:59,071 that would be part of his career thereafter, 694 00:39:59,066 --> 00:40:01,486 which was worming his way into the lives 695 00:40:01,485 --> 00:40:04,985 of older, successful, influential Jewish men. 696 00:40:06,323 --> 00:40:08,743 STEVEN J. HOFFENBERG: Epstein was, uh, 697 00:40:08,742 --> 00:40:12,202 extraordinarily mesmerizing 698 00:40:12,204 --> 00:40:17,174 and... could convince anything of anybody, 699 00:40:17,167 --> 00:40:19,417 the master manipulator. 700 00:40:21,547 --> 00:40:23,917 SARAH: After a time, Epstein develops 701 00:40:23,924 --> 00:40:27,054 this cloud of suspicion about various misdeeds 702 00:40:27,052 --> 00:40:29,262 around him at Bear Stearns, 703 00:40:29,263 --> 00:40:33,483 and he's eventually forced out in 1981. 704 00:40:33,475 --> 00:40:36,895 But importantly, Ace Greenberg opens the door 705 00:40:36,895 --> 00:40:39,855 for Epstein to this world, 706 00:40:39,857 --> 00:40:44,277 and that is... what really seals the deal for him. 707 00:40:46,697 --> 00:40:50,617 BARRY: Jeffrey Epstein would eventually take on 708 00:40:50,617 --> 00:40:53,827 as his key client Leslie Wexner. 709 00:40:54,913 --> 00:40:57,253 When Les Wexner met Jeffrey Epstein, 710 00:40:57,249 --> 00:41:01,709 he apparently remarked that Jeffrey Epstein was so exciting, 711 00:41:01,712 --> 00:41:05,132 that Epstein was everything 712 00:41:05,132 --> 00:41:10,392 that Les Wexner thought was lacking in... Ohio. 713 00:41:11,680 --> 00:41:17,690 - Both Epstein, apparently, and Wexner, definitely, 714 00:41:18,312 --> 00:41:20,652 were very smart men. 715 00:41:20,647 --> 00:41:25,987 And each one must have fulfilled the need of the other. 716 00:41:25,986 --> 00:41:31,526 Wexner had the money that Epstein was seeking, 717 00:41:31,533 --> 00:41:35,873 and Wexner got from Epstein 718 00:41:35,871 --> 00:41:39,751 the glamour and smoothness 719 00:41:39,750 --> 00:41:42,130 that he was seeking. 720 00:41:42,127 --> 00:41:47,007 And I'm not at all inferring it was a sexual need, 721 00:41:47,674 --> 00:41:49,684 but there is something there. 722 00:41:52,346 --> 00:41:57,346 - Wexner bought this fabulous townhouse, the biggest private house in Manhattan. 723 00:41:58,852 --> 00:42:01,102 SARAH: It being the largest house in the city 724 00:42:01,104 --> 00:42:05,114 strikes me as a, sort of, desperate move 725 00:42:05,108 --> 00:42:09,068 because the biggest house is also a little gauche in some ways. 726 00:42:10,531 --> 00:42:12,491 MICHAEL GROSS: Even with Epstein's help, 727 00:42:12,491 --> 00:42:14,911 Wexner stayed an outsider in New York City. 728 00:42:15,452 --> 00:42:19,412 He never became part of the cultural New York world, 729 00:42:19,414 --> 00:42:21,424 or the fashion New York world. 730 00:42:23,001 --> 00:42:24,881 This has happened time immemorial, 731 00:42:24,878 --> 00:42:29,628 you know, the Midwest king of the hill comes to New York and discovers 732 00:42:29,633 --> 00:42:32,473 that he's really just a pimple on New York's backside. 733 00:42:34,763 --> 00:42:36,523 BARRY: So, at that point, 734 00:42:36,515 --> 00:42:38,885 Jeffrey Epstein eyed that townhouse 735 00:42:38,892 --> 00:42:44,232 and maneuvered to acquire it from Les Wexner. 736 00:42:44,231 --> 00:42:47,111 - Wexner eventually sold it to Epstein, 737 00:42:47,109 --> 00:42:52,069 and it wasn't until years later that there was a transfer of real estate deed. 738 00:42:53,991 --> 00:42:59,041 - Epstein paid upwards of $20 million, uh, for the townhouse, 739 00:42:59,037 --> 00:43:02,997 but there's no question that the property 740 00:43:03,000 --> 00:43:05,920 ended up being worth so much more than he paid for it. 741 00:43:18,265 --> 00:43:20,475 SARAH: After Epstein had managed to 742 00:43:20,475 --> 00:43:23,895 navigate his way into Wexner's life, 743 00:43:23,896 --> 00:43:27,976 Wexner did something that I've never seen in all of my years of reporting. 744 00:43:27,983 --> 00:43:30,743 He granted full power of attorney to Epstein 745 00:43:30,736 --> 00:43:36,656 and gave him unmitigated control over all of his assets, 746 00:43:36,658 --> 00:43:38,948 20 of Wexner's companies, 747 00:43:38,952 --> 00:43:42,212 19 trusts and different charitable foundations. 748 00:43:42,206 --> 00:43:44,786 He was able to manage his real estate. 749 00:43:44,791 --> 00:43:48,501 He managed his investments. He managed his businesses. 750 00:43:48,504 --> 00:43:53,514 There wasn't a part of Wexner's empire that Epstein didn't have access to 751 00:43:53,509 --> 00:43:56,719 and, and didn't have some ability to control. 752 00:43:57,554 --> 00:44:00,474 And so, to give carte blanche to someone 753 00:44:00,474 --> 00:44:03,894 the way he did with Epstein, is such a puzzle. 754 00:44:03,894 --> 00:44:05,904 ♪ tense music playing ♪ 755 00:44:19,034 --> 00:44:23,664 BARRY: Here was Jeffrey Epstein, who was obviously a conman 756 00:44:23,664 --> 00:44:26,714 to anyone paying any attention. 757 00:44:26,708 --> 00:44:28,958 I think the million-dollar question 758 00:44:28,961 --> 00:44:32,301 is why a gentleman as brilliant as Leslie Wexner 759 00:44:32,297 --> 00:44:35,507 could allow this guy into his life? 760 00:44:37,010 --> 00:44:40,430 CINDY: Years later, when I heard 761 00:44:40,430 --> 00:44:43,140 Epstein was involved in the business, 762 00:44:43,141 --> 00:44:44,851 it struck me as odd 763 00:44:46,311 --> 00:44:50,191 because Les was a micromanager 764 00:44:50,190 --> 00:44:56,070 and someone who was involved in every aspect of the business. 765 00:44:56,488 --> 00:45:02,408 I couldn't believe... that Les would let that happen. 766 00:45:04,872 --> 00:45:06,872 Something was amiss. 767 00:45:09,960 --> 00:45:14,590 SARAH: Epstein was at the first-ever fashion show, 768 00:45:14,590 --> 00:45:17,890 and he even eventually found himself sitting near Wexner 769 00:45:17,885 --> 00:45:20,675 at one of the later fashion shows. 770 00:45:20,679 --> 00:45:24,599 It was something that he was able to use much to his advantage, 771 00:45:24,600 --> 00:45:27,350 certainly, in his early years of predation 772 00:45:27,352 --> 00:45:30,022 as a kind of calling card 773 00:45:30,022 --> 00:45:32,942 that got him introductions where he wanted. 774 00:45:37,696 --> 00:45:41,406 - I think retailing has a great future as, as long as you see it as entertainment. 775 00:45:42,284 --> 00:45:45,374 And the internet is an important part of retailing, 776 00:45:45,370 --> 00:45:49,000 an important part of the marketing, an important part of advertising. 777 00:45:50,834 --> 00:45:53,634 - We tried to get onto your site a number of times today 778 00:45:53,629 --> 00:45:56,219 and found that it was just an overwhelming experience, 779 00:45:56,215 --> 00:45:58,835 not to watch the models, mind you, but to get to it. 780 00:45:58,842 --> 00:46:02,222 - We've been handling very nicely the daily demand, 781 00:46:02,221 --> 00:46:04,311 uh, up until the Super Bowl ad, 782 00:46:04,848 --> 00:46:08,058 which generated a surge of a million hits. 783 00:46:09,561 --> 00:46:11,401 ♪ upbeat music playing ♪ 784 00:46:16,777 --> 00:46:19,817 ED: I think that's probably the most successful commercial, 785 00:46:19,821 --> 00:46:21,201 maybe in the history of the Super Bowl. 786 00:46:21,198 --> 00:46:24,158 I can't imagine that happening with anyone else. 787 00:46:24,159 --> 00:46:26,539 I can't remember an incident ever where 788 00:46:26,537 --> 00:46:30,957 a million people left their TVs during the game to go do something else. 789 00:46:31,625 --> 00:46:33,745 MAN: It's all your friend's fault. 790 00:46:33,752 --> 00:46:36,632 NICOLE: The brand really did, sort of, beat fashion to the punch. 791 00:46:36,630 --> 00:46:41,470 Victoria's Secret... really understood 792 00:46:41,468 --> 00:46:45,508 we're very hungry, as a culture, for beauty and beau-beautiful people, 793 00:46:45,514 --> 00:46:48,144 and they just, sort of, fed us what we all wanted. 794 00:46:49,309 --> 00:46:52,439 And so, the beauty pageant of the 1950s 795 00:46:52,437 --> 00:46:56,937 became the Victoria's Secret Show of 1999... and on. 796 00:46:56,942 --> 00:46:59,032 ♪ 797 00:47:03,323 --> 00:47:05,283 MAN: I don't really look at fashion shows. 798 00:47:05,284 --> 00:47:07,044 Just, you know, they're modeling lingerie. 799 00:47:07,035 --> 00:47:09,245 That's why I was interested in it as a fashion show. 800 00:47:10,205 --> 00:47:12,245 CINDY: Everyone tells a joke that 801 00:47:12,249 --> 00:47:16,299 the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show crashed the web. 802 00:47:16,295 --> 00:47:21,545 Uh, we only crashed our site, and we got it up and running very quickly. 803 00:47:23,844 --> 00:47:26,474 MICHAEL GROSS: They used the crash to their advantage. 804 00:47:27,139 --> 00:47:30,679 It was nothing but a stunt. It was a way to get headlines. 805 00:47:31,185 --> 00:47:36,605 This is a problem for any marketer who, who depends upon the press. 806 00:47:37,107 --> 00:47:39,027 You live by the press, you die by the press. 807 00:47:39,026 --> 00:47:40,686 If you don't keep upping the ante, 808 00:47:40,694 --> 00:47:43,164 you're not going to get the attention paid to you. 809 00:47:49,244 --> 00:47:51,254 ♪ 810 00:47:56,668 --> 00:47:59,208 JAMES: With the Angels, Victoria's Secret created 811 00:47:59,213 --> 00:48:02,263 a whole sexier, more playful narrative. 812 00:48:02,257 --> 00:48:04,637 I think people wanted to see something sexy. 813 00:48:04,635 --> 00:48:06,345 And then all of a sudden, 814 00:48:06,345 --> 00:48:09,175 it became, probably, the number-one booking 815 00:48:09,181 --> 00:48:12,811 because you could start a career by being a Victoria's Secret Angel. 816 00:48:15,604 --> 00:48:17,484 MICHAEL GROSS: One of the truisms of show business 817 00:48:17,481 --> 00:48:19,611 is that corny can work. 818 00:48:19,608 --> 00:48:21,358 And the wings were corny. 819 00:48:21,360 --> 00:48:23,200 And yet, the press loved it, 820 00:48:23,195 --> 00:48:25,405 the audience at the shows loved it, 821 00:48:25,405 --> 00:48:27,815 and they worked like crazy. 822 00:48:28,617 --> 00:48:31,157 And not only that, it caught the models' attention 823 00:48:31,161 --> 00:48:36,001 because they competed like mad to wear those wings. 824 00:48:39,503 --> 00:48:43,223 - It would become a huge thing every season about 825 00:48:43,215 --> 00:48:45,545 who would be chosen to wear these. 826 00:48:46,510 --> 00:48:49,640 Or who would get one of the few allotted wings. 827 00:48:50,681 --> 00:48:55,311 - It's amazing for me to be part of the Angels Across America. 828 00:48:55,310 --> 00:48:57,940 - Those wings were so heavy. 829 00:48:57,938 --> 00:49:01,318 I almost gave them to another girl and then saw how good she looked in them. 830 00:49:01,316 --> 00:49:02,776 I was like, "No, no, no." 831 00:49:02,776 --> 00:49:04,566 ED: We're doing the fittings today. 832 00:49:04,570 --> 00:49:06,860 The outfits have been in the works for several months now. 833 00:49:06,864 --> 00:49:08,374 - Hi! 834 00:49:09,449 --> 00:49:13,869 - Giving a girl her first wings is really a special experience. 835 00:49:14,580 --> 00:49:17,080 MODELS: [echoing] Do you believe? 836 00:49:17,082 --> 00:49:19,212 MODELS: [echoing] I believe in miracles. 837 00:49:19,209 --> 00:49:20,839 MODELS: [echoing] I believe, I believe... 838 00:49:24,006 --> 00:49:26,836 TODD THOMAS: The Angels with the wings 839 00:49:26,842 --> 00:49:30,432 became a huge part of the iconography of the show, 840 00:49:30,429 --> 00:49:34,519 and that started with a pretty basic concept. 841 00:49:37,811 --> 00:49:40,651 MARTIN IZQUIERDO: The powers-that-be at Victoria's Secret 842 00:49:40,647 --> 00:49:42,067 came to me for wings 843 00:49:42,065 --> 00:49:46,445 because I think that they all wanted to create something big. 844 00:49:46,820 --> 00:49:50,820 At first, I made preliminary sketches, 845 00:49:50,824 --> 00:49:55,414 and they also saw samples of what the wings were that I had created 846 00:49:55,412 --> 00:49:57,502 for Angels in America. 847 00:49:59,374 --> 00:50:01,134 - Greetings, prophet. 848 00:50:01,627 --> 00:50:04,047 The great work begins. 849 00:50:10,552 --> 00:50:13,892 MARTIN: We had a preliminary conversation 850 00:50:13,889 --> 00:50:18,309 determining the looks or the styles for each segment. 851 00:50:18,977 --> 00:50:22,267 I showed them to Ed Razek, and to the stylists, 852 00:50:22,272 --> 00:50:25,402 and, and ultimately, the models would see them as well. 853 00:50:25,400 --> 00:50:30,780 Heidi always wanted the biggest wings in the history of the show, 854 00:50:30,781 --> 00:50:33,281 and we gave them to her, 855 00:50:34,159 --> 00:50:37,159 ones that were 10-feet, 12-feet tall. 856 00:50:37,788 --> 00:50:43,418 I think, ultimately, I was lucky to be entrusted with this. 857 00:50:44,253 --> 00:50:47,463 But, uh, well, I mean it was 10 years. 858 00:50:51,385 --> 00:50:53,385 ♪ dramatic music playing ♪ 859 00:50:54,429 --> 00:50:56,929 [crowd cheering, applauding] 860 00:51:14,783 --> 00:51:20,083 I was influenced by movies, arts... musicals 861 00:51:20,080 --> 00:51:23,880 from the '20s and the '30s, Busby Berkeley, 862 00:51:25,502 --> 00:51:28,712 Picasso, Seurat, Chagall. 863 00:51:29,631 --> 00:51:32,431 But after a while, the audience doesn't necessarily 864 00:51:32,426 --> 00:51:34,136 want to keep seeing the same thing. 865 00:51:34,136 --> 00:51:35,296 MODEL: Coming! 866 00:51:35,304 --> 00:51:37,314 [indistinct yells, chatter] 867 00:51:38,557 --> 00:51:40,307 - Take it off, take it off. - Take it off. 868 00:51:40,309 --> 00:51:42,349 - Go, go, go, go, go! 869 00:51:42,352 --> 00:51:44,772 - Alessandra! - Alessandra! 870 00:51:46,982 --> 00:51:47,982 - Let's go. 871 00:51:48,734 --> 00:51:50,364 STAGE MANAGER: Girls, we need more energy 872 00:51:50,360 --> 00:51:52,570 and more smiles than that! 873 00:51:52,571 --> 00:51:55,281 - The hat's falling down, guys. The hat is falling down. 874 00:51:55,282 --> 00:51:57,282 No, no, no, she's gotta put it back on. 875 00:51:57,284 --> 00:51:59,124 - Stop by 2:15, the breakdown. 876 00:51:59,119 --> 00:52:01,289 [chatter] 877 00:52:01,288 --> 00:52:05,128 LYNDSEY: Backstage, they did so many adjustments beforehand. 878 00:52:05,125 --> 00:52:06,625 They-- The outfits were ready to go. 879 00:52:06,627 --> 00:52:11,167 I think they faked adjustments on camera for the, uh, for the show. 880 00:52:11,173 --> 00:52:12,973 [laughing] Like, they, they made it seem like 881 00:52:12,966 --> 00:52:15,506 it was more hectic backstage than it actually was. 882 00:52:15,511 --> 00:52:18,511 - Standing by with Behati. - Dangerous music with video. 883 00:52:18,514 --> 00:52:19,434 - Okay! 884 00:52:19,431 --> 00:52:22,731 STAGE MANAGER: In three, two, one. Go! 885 00:52:22,726 --> 00:52:23,726 Go! 886 00:52:25,646 --> 00:52:27,646 DOROTHEA BARTH-JORGENSEN: I thought it was fun to be part of it, 887 00:52:27,648 --> 00:52:30,028 but I... feel like I was playing a game, 888 00:52:30,025 --> 00:52:33,735 or something that wasn't really... real at all, 889 00:52:33,737 --> 00:52:35,987 and wasn't very inspirational. 890 00:52:38,867 --> 00:52:42,577 - We need Candice. - Three, two, one... 891 00:52:42,579 --> 00:52:44,579 ♪ 892 00:53:05,853 --> 00:53:09,443 TODD: The fact that the show made millions of people happy 893 00:53:09,439 --> 00:53:12,649 and tune in is a phenomenon. 894 00:53:14,236 --> 00:53:19,026 And there's another side of that, too, which is that, you know, there were people 895 00:53:19,032 --> 00:53:21,122 that were kinda tortured by it, too, 896 00:53:21,118 --> 00:53:24,408 by, you know, just the desire to participate 897 00:53:24,413 --> 00:53:27,833 and the willingness to... submit 898 00:53:27,833 --> 00:53:30,253 to whatever it took to, like, be a part of it. 899 00:53:30,252 --> 00:53:32,252 ♪ 900 00:53:34,673 --> 00:53:37,933 CINDY: Sometime in the spring or summer of '93, 901 00:53:37,926 --> 00:53:42,056 an executive came into my office quite upset. 902 00:53:42,055 --> 00:53:44,305 She said she had been informed 903 00:53:44,308 --> 00:53:48,978 that a man was in New York portraying himself 904 00:53:49,646 --> 00:53:54,566 as a recruiter for Victoria's Secret catalog models. 905 00:53:55,903 --> 00:53:58,913 And I ask her if she knew his name, 906 00:53:59,656 --> 00:54:02,076 and she said, "Jeffrey Epstein." 907 00:54:03,410 --> 00:54:07,410 It was like, "Oh boy, this is trouble." 908 00:54:10,000 --> 00:54:16,010 So, I asked this executive to call Les directly 909 00:54:16,465 --> 00:54:18,925 and tell him what was happening. 910 00:54:19,301 --> 00:54:23,811 She did... and Les told her 911 00:54:23,805 --> 00:54:26,225 he would put a stop to it. 912 00:54:28,685 --> 00:54:33,355 The point being that inappropriate behavior 913 00:54:33,357 --> 00:54:35,357 was reported to Les 914 00:54:35,359 --> 00:54:38,989 sometime in '93. 915 00:54:39,905 --> 00:54:45,405 - In 1997, I filed a sexual battery report 916 00:54:45,410 --> 00:54:47,040 on Jeffrey Epstein. 917 00:54:49,081 --> 00:54:51,121 He worked for Victoria's Secret. 918 00:54:51,124 --> 00:54:53,254 That's what he told me. 919 00:54:53,252 --> 00:54:55,252 ♪ ominous music playing ♪ 920 00:55:31,623 --> 00:55:33,633 ♪