The real secret of Victoria.

People get enraged fast and seem to forget what they were enraged about just as quickly.

It’s been less than a year since the shocking revelations from the Epstein files were released, and I believe they’re still publicly available. There was so much collective anger about it all that it felt as though we’d reached a breakthrough, an awakening of sorts. Most of it played out online, of course. My social media feeds were flooded with the outrage, and nothing short of revolution was going to make up for that degree of disillusionment with the establishment.

In the months that followed, there were considerably fewer voices speaking out, and those who continued to do so were pointing to the lack of arrests of powerful individuals linked to the files. I don’t believe this was entirely true, as, from what I remember, a few countries started investigating their own citizens with links to Epstein. But, of course, those at the very top remained untouchable, and the public got distracted once more by yet another military escalation. I’m not big on politics, though, so forgive me if I’m mistaken about this part of the story.

However, I’ve been active in the modelling world for long enough to be aware of the existence of predators within it. And so, the revelations regarding the relationship between Victoria’s Secret boss Les Wexner and Jeffrey Epstein weren’t all that surprising to me. Nor was the idea that the very beauty standards around thin female bodies had been promoted by men who were attracted to underage girls. I also wrote an article back then sharing my deeper thoughts on the subject of paedophilia, linked below.

Fast forward to October this year, and people were discussing the latest VS show as if nothing had happened.

The Angels are undoubtedly beautiful, and my favourite model Doutzen Kroes is one of them. So, despite this year’s bizarre and, dare I say, unethical marketing decision to have Kylie wear a diamond bra, placing someone who has undergone extensive plastic surgery at the centre of the show and sending a potentially damaging message to young girls, there was still plenty of beauty on stage.

But that’s just one part of the story. The bigger picture, the real secret of Victoria, is conveniently ignored.

Surely, the connection between the brand and Epstein was publicised enough? Or am I simply more aware of it because I’ve spent decades in this industry and am naturally more attuned to its power dynamics, abusive scenarios, and the darker realities that can exist behind the carefully curated images of beauty and glamour?

The thing is - Les Wexner’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein wasn’t some brief encounter, or simply a party picture taken together. It was a decades-long financial and personal connection that has created quite a stir in the society at a time. I don’t see how it can suddenly be forgotten or cease to be relevant in the conversations about the brand.

Perhaps it’s a lot easier to compartmentalise these things when you’re looking at them from the outside. And the stunning show, the spectacle, is compelling enough to make everything else fade into the background. The show must go on, as they say, and the entertainment is definitely a powerful, as well as pleasant, distraction. Or maybe we’re simply so accustomed to the cycle of scandal, outrage, and distraction that we’ve become desensitised to the point where even the most disturbing revelations struggle to leave a lasting enough imprint for change to take place.

Either way, the speed with which collective outrage can turn into collective amnesia is truly remarkable, and quite surreal to witness.