Victoria's Secret

Victoria’s Secret was founded in San Francisco in 1977 by Roy Raymond, who had the initial concept of creating a lingerie boutique with the aesthetic of an English haberdashery rather than the department store intimates floor. The name referenced the Victorian era’s connotations of romance and elegance. Raymond sold the concept to Les Wexner and Limited Brands in 1982, and the brand’s expansion under Wexner’s retail management over the subsequent decades produced the dominant American lingerie brand.

The Georgetown store at 1220 Wisconsin Avenue NW is on the lower stretch of Wisconsin above M Street, in the section that has a mix of national chain retail and the more independent boutiques that characterize the upper Wisconsin corridor. The store format carries the full Victoria’s Secret product range: bras in the brand’s proprietary fitting system, underwear in the full spectrum from the basic to the fashion, the lounge and sleep categories that have grown significantly as the brand has expanded beyond its original lingerie focus, and the fragrance line that generates consistent repeat business from loyal customers.

The bra fitting service, which the brand has maintained since the early years of the Victoria’s Secret expansion, is the practical offering that generates in-store visits from customers who want to be professionally fitted rather than guessing their own size. The brand’s fitting approach has its proponents and critics in the lingerie community, where independent lingerie boutiques have argued for years that the Victoria’s Secret sizing system underestimates the cup size and overestimates the band size of most customers; the continuing debate about bra fitting has been part of the public conversation about the brand’s market position.

The fragrance collection, which includes the Bombshell, Very Sexy, and other scents that the brand has marketed successfully since the 1990s, is among the more consistent aspects of the Georgetown store’s business. The body mist and lotion formats in the fragrance collection produce accessible price points that drive gift purchase.

Hours run from 10am Monday through Saturday and 11am Sunday, with Friday and Saturday closing at 8pm. The Pink sub-brand, which the company has maintained as a distinct line aimed at college students and younger customers, is part of the Georgetown Wisconsin Avenue store’s selection alongside the core Victoria’s Secret range. The Georgetown University student population a few blocks up Wisconsin provides the demographic that the Pink line primarily addresses. The semi-annual sale events, which produce significant customer traffic at Victoria’s Secret stores nationwide, are among the most anticipated sale events in the accessible lingerie market for loyal customers. The Wisconsin Avenue address at 1220 is accessible from the Georgetown Circulator and from the lower Wisconsin commercial strip parking. Hours run from 10am Monday through Saturday and 11am Sunday.