Victoria’s Secret investor urges ouster of – Business News
A serious investor in Victoria’s Secret urged the flailing lingerie maker in a letter Tuesday to shake up its board – attacking the present chair as “over-tenured” with a “stale perspective.”
BBRC International – which owns a practically 13% stake in Victoria’s Secret, making it the second-largest shareholder – is asking for longtime Chair Donna James to be fired and asking for a board seat for its founder, Australian billionaire Brett Blundy.
The personal equity firm began building its stake in 2022 and has been privately pushing for modifications since final yr, in line with the letter despatched Tuesday to members of the board.
Models stroll the runway during the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show on Oct. 15, 2025. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
“Absent the board re-evaluating its posture and demonstrating a genuine willingness to engage in good faith, BBRC intends to replace directors at next year’s annual meeting of stockholders – if not sooner,” Blundy wrote within the letter.
“By any measure, she [James] is an ‘over-tenured’ director with a ‘stale perspective’ that lacks objectivity regarding the company’s operations,” he added.
Victoria’s Secret, in the meantime, mentioned that Blundy’s letter was “circulated to the media before it was even sent to the Board, an action that we believe demonstrates a lack of interest in a constructive approach.”
“The Board has engaged extensively with BBRC and is conducting a thorough review of Mr. Blundy in response to his demand for a Board seat and other changes,” the company mentioned in a assertion.
Victoria’s Secret claimed it has been prepared to have interaction with BBRC over the previous few months, however Blundy has refused to answer follow-up questions that his counsel demanded the company ship.
The company’s earlier proprietor, L Brands, modified its title to Bath & Body Works in 2021 and spun off Victoria’s Secret.
Donna James, chair of the Victoria’s Secret board. Victoria’s Secret
Since then, Victoria’s Secret has seen its stock plunge about 15% and its market capitalization sink beneath $3 billion.
Its rebrand away from attractive bras to cozy choices failed with clients, and it has struggled to keep up with intense competitors from rivals like Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty and Kim Kardashian’s Skims.
Earlier this yr, it additionally suffered a three-day web site outage attributable to a cyberattack.
In June, activist investor Barington Capital Group introduced it had constructed up a stake within the company and was pushing for a board shake-up.
Victoria’s Secret has seen its stock plunge about 15% since its 2021 initial public offering. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP
But Tuesday’s letter is a first for Blundy’s firm, which has by no means earlier than led an activist marketing campaign.
Shares within the company dipped 0.4% Tuesday.
BBRC has $3 billion invested in retailers worldwide, identified for working with manufacturers like high-end lingerie maker Honey Birdette and Australian ladies’s clothes label DISSH.
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Victoria’s Secret has accused BBRC of building up its stake within the company with out making the correct antitrust filings.
It adopted a shareholder-rights plan earlier this yr in an effort to dam any takeover attempt.
Meanwhile, Hillary Super joined Victoria’s Secret as its new CEO final fall after briefly main Savage X Fenty and Anthropologie, which has the identical guardian company as Urban Outfitters.
Brett Blundy (heart) is the founder of BBRC International. WireImage
Super has been targeted on revamping the notoriously skimpy Victoria’s Secret fashion reveals and including new merchandise to carry attractive back to the model, like double-push up bras and a new underwire bra lined in cloth to make it more snug.
Her predecessor, Martin Waters, had tamed down the model’s intercourse appeal in 2019 amid requires physique variety and positivity.
He canceled the fashion show and launched new merchandise that prioritized consolation, like bralettes – which initially boosted gross sales, however in the end stalled out.
“Decisions were made out of fear,” Super advised the Wall Street Journal final month, calling the transfer a mistake.
James, the company’s chair, beforehand served as a board member for L Brands for practically 20 years.
