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The end of sexy lingerie? Even the French are changing priorities
- No longer treating expensive underwear primarily as a weapon of seduction, the global lingerie industry is shifting its focus to comfort and practicality
- France held out longer than others, but could not ignore the change forever
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It might have a reputation as the birthplace of sexy lingerie, but even in France, titillation is taking second place to comfort and practicality.
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The very word “lingerie” is a French export – used from Japan to Holland to Brazil – but France has been slow to adapt to a changing mood in the global industry, which no longer treats expensive underwear primarily as a weapon of seduction.
The shift has been noticeable in recent years in other Western countries, measured most notably in declining sales at Victoria’s Secret, the US store that brought sexy lingerie to the mass market in the 1970s and then made billions worldwide by promoting images of near impossible physical perfection.
Judging by its typical billboards and shop windows, France held out longer than others, but could not ignore the change forever.
“The priority is no longer seduction, it’s no longer about attracting men’s attention,” said Pascale Renaud, who directed a short film to launch this year’s Promincor-Lingerie expo in France.
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