Study | Victoria's Secret Brand Affects On College Age Women

A Fall 2010 study about Victoria’s Secret shopping bags suggests that at least some college-age women feel better about themselves carrying a Victoria’s Secret shopping bag in the shopping mall, even if it’s empty.

University of Minnesota researchers Deborah Roedder John and Ji Kyung Park gave 85 students a shopping bag to carry around a mall for an hour before asking them to assess their personalities.

Half the group got a Victoria’s Secret shopping bag and the other half a generic pink bag. The Victoria’s Secret bag ladies rated themselves as being more feminine, more glamorous and better looking.

In language that may seem counterintuitive, the brand effects varied, depending on whether the women saw themselves as being ‘entity theorists’, meaning their personalities and capabilities were fixed, or whether they are ‘incremental theorists’ —  (such BIG words here) — meaning they see themselves as fluid and more engaged with new possibilities.

In my vocabulary the ‘entity theorist’ has Modern values and the ‘incremental theorist’ is a Cultural Creative.  The Smart Sensuality woman we keep talking about is a CC who loves style, but she is not defined by it.

Consumers most affected by their experience with Victoria’s Secret held certain beliefs about their personalities. They believe their personal qualities are fixed and cannot be improved by their own efforts at self-improvement. Therefore, they look for ways to signal their positive qualities through other means, such as brands.

The growing challenge to Victoria’s Secret is that globally and in America, more women — including young women — are becoming Cultural Creatives, suggesting that they won’t look to their lingerie brand bag for identity broadcasting.

When the VS brand first began rolling it didn’t project an identity to only Modern women. In fact, CCs loved it. The development of the Angels is strictly a Modern values proposition. At the time, VS rolled with the Angels, Modern values prevailed, but the CCs have grown much faster, especially in women.

Everything we know about more affluent young American women today suggests that they are focused on nurturing education and careers in a tough economy and that they are much more independent-minded. That makes them CCs.

With America’s economic hardships perhaps getting worse, I see the VS shopping bag becoming even more relevant to many young women as a sign of prosperity, along with the other traints expressed in the U of M survey.

The question is: will lower class women in America’s growing two-class society still buy VS, or will they treasure the shopping bag? Stay tuned. Anne

See also: Consumers seeking luxury items and discount stores 3/9/2011 CNN

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