'Victoria’s Secret: Angels And Demons' charts the meteoric rise of a multibillion dollar lingerie empire, and illuminates the many problems that underpinned, even fuelled, that success along the way. Photo: Filepic
In recent years, several popular apparel brands have made news for troubling reasons.
Most often, they have been accused of corporate greed, having predatory practices that exploit young women, and propagating abusive systems at all levels of production, promotion and distribution.
These headlines have, in turn, inspired a string of documentaries, docuseries and podcasts.
Here are four picks that explore the stories of such companies, all of which have been marred by corrupt leadership or sudden tragedy.
'Brandy Hellville & The Cult Of Fast Fashion'
Having barely heard of the Brandy Melville brand, I wasn’t particularly eager to watch this documentary that was released in April on Max. But as it turns out, that is kind of the point.
This film from director Eva Orner not only is a searing examination of the toxic culture at this Gen Z-targeted, social media-fuelled label, but it also manages to expose the many unethical systems endemic to the global fast-fashion industry.
Footage from Ghana, where mountains of clothing waste from the US blanket towns and shorelines, chilled me to the bone.
As for Brandy Melville itself – maybe most famous for selling only tiny clothing with disingenuous “one size fits most” labels – the film highlights many of the takeaways from journalist Kate Taylor’s Business Insider investigation, including scores of allegations of racism and of widespread predatory practices by the brand’s shadowy leaders, Silvio and Stephan Marsan.
It all becomes that much more grim with a rape allegation against a manager by an employee.
Read more: Is the latest season of TV series 'Emily In Paris' just a fashion billboard?
'Victoria’s Secret: Angels And Demons'
Over three episodes, this 2022 docuseries on Hulu charts the meteoric rise of the multibillion dollar lingerie empire Victoria’s Secret, and illuminates the many problems that underpinned, even fuelled, that success along the way, each revelation more stomach-turning than the last.
It all begins and, in many ways, ends with a trio of elusive business leaders: Leslie Wexner, the company’s former longtime CEO; Ed Razek, a former top executive at L Brands, the parent company of Victoria’s Secret, who was repeatedly accused of inappropriate conduct, like trying to kiss models; and most notoriously, Jeffrey Epstein, the wealthy financier with whom Wexner had a close and mysterious decadeslong relationship.
But it wasn’t until after the 2019 arrest of Epstein on sex trafficking charges – he was already a convicted sex offender – that revelations about his outsize control over the brand’s hundreds of millions of dollars started to come to light, as well as how he may have leveraged his connections to Victoria’s Secret to pose as a recruiter and lure young women.
Wexner declined to be interviewed for the series, so some questions go unanswered.
But witnessing the making of the brand – from its heyday of supermodel “angels” to its expansion to attract tween girls – through the lens of exploitation is a crucial reset.
'The Curse Of Von Dutch: A Brand To Die For'
For those who came of age in the Y2K era, Von Dutch most likely conjures up images of celebrities like Paris Hilton, Jay-Z, Britney Spears and Ashton Kutcher sporting trucker hats adorned with the brand name in hot-rod typography.
The craze might have seemed innocent enough but, as we learn in this three-part 2021 Hulu docuseries, the apparel brand has had a turbulent, circuitous history rife with sabotage, greed, backstabbing and shady practices, as well as a charge of first-degree murder.
Behind the behemoth – at its peak in the mid-2000s, Von Dutch was doubling its profits monthly – was a bevy of characters, including three men, all interviewed for the Hulu series, who claim that they created Von Dutch.
They include Ed Boswell, a Los Angeles art collector; Michael Cassel, a former drug dealer who pivoted to fashion; and Cassel’s mentee Robert Vaughn.
“Fashion’s the easiest to launder money,” Vaughn says.
Though the men waxing poetic about the so-called good old days can wear thin over the episodes, their recollections bring to life the distinct tone of the era.
Read more: Pharrell Williams pressured to 'stop supporting killing animals for fashion'
'Morbid: The Lululemon Murder'
This story differs from the others in that it’s not a takedown of a company, its leaders or its practices.
Instead, it’s about a horrendously brutal attack that took place on March 11, 2011, at a Lululemon store in Bethesda, Maryland, that left Jayna Murray, a store worker, dead.
When her body was discovered, so was that of another store worker, Brittany Norwood, who was zip-tied and bleeding but alive. The details of what transpired are bizarre to start, but the twist at the end is practically incomprehensible.
The conversational tone of this two-parter from Wondery’s prolific "Morbid" podcast – hosted by Alaina Urquhart, an autopsy technician who has degrees in criminal justice, psychology and biology; and Ash Kelley, who brings the true-crime fan-girl energy – might be off-putting to some, but the duo do their research.
Pulling from news reports and the book The Yoga Store Murder, by Dan Morse, they present the details concisely and clearly, and with some discretion. – The New York Times
