Lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret featured two trans runway models Tuesday night as its fashion show returned after an absence of six years.
The occasion marked the first walk down the Victoria’s Secret runway for Brazilian model Valentina Sampaio, who had been the first transgender model to represent the brand in 2019, the Daily Mail reports.
Fellow biological male Alex Consani also took to the catwalk.
Valentina Sampaio walks the runway for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2024 on October 15, 2024 in New York City. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Victoria’s Secret)
Alex Consani walks the runway during the 2024 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show at Duggal Greenhouse on October 15, 2024 in Brooklyn, New York. (Photo by Taylor Hill/WireImage)
Ashley Graham walks the runway in a salute to the “body positive” credo embraced during the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2024 at Duggal Greenhouse on October 15, 2024 in Brooklyn, New York. (TheStewartofNY/FilmMagic)
Victoria’s Secret has also seen sales slide, the Mail points out, with critics suggesting moves towards more “inclusivity” in recent years – including using plus-sized models – have failed to appeal to the wider public.
Cher served as last night’s headline performer along with Blackpink alum Lisa and rising star Tyla — making it the show’s first ever all-woman musical line-up.
Not everyone was pleased with the mix as they took to social media to make their thoughts clear before and after the event.
Airing live on Amazon’s Prime Video, the runway show was held at the Victoria’s Secret flagship store in New York City after a six-year hiatus.
The fashion show was an annual mainstay from 1995 to 2018, and featured some of the world’s top models, including Naomi Campbell, Gisele Bündchen, Claudia Schiffer, and Tyra Banks.
However, in 2019, the fashion brand canceled the show after facing a wave of woke critics and left-wing activists, as Breitbart News reported.