Victoria's Secret 'bodyshamers'

A campaign launched by American lingerie label Victoria's Secret to promote its latest bra range named "Body" has caused a storm on social media with over 4,100 disgruntled customers having signed a change.org petition, urging the firm to change its slogan which appears to advertise "The perfect 'body.'"

The latest promotional campaign was first brought to the attention of the social media sphere after three British university students created a petition on change.org, calling for an apology from Victoria's Secret "for the unhealthy and damaging message that their 'Perfect Body' campaign is sending out about women's bodies and how they should be judged."

The underwear campaign, which has been facing a backlash on Twitter through the hash tag "#iamperfect," features three slim Victoria's Secret models sporting the company's latest "Body" bra with the slogan "The perfect 'body'" emblazoned over them.

'Bodyshaming'

Despite the subtle quotation marks around the word 'body,' in a nod to the name of the new underwear range, petition organizers Frances Black, Gabriella Kountourides and Laura Ferris have condemned Victoria's Secret for "bodyshaming" young women.

The petition, which demands Victoria's Secret "apologize for, and amend the irresponsible marketing of your new bra range 'Body,'" argues that the advertising campaign, "promotes low self-esteem among women who are made to feel that their bodies are inadequate and unattractive because they do not fit into this narrow standard of beauty."

In an interview with Deutsche Welle, Black said she was initially "very taken aback" by the advert.

"A campaign like this makes women feel inadequate about their bodies, by telling them that only one body is perfect," she said. "Those models are heavily airbrushed. As such, this ‘perfect body’ is a complete illusion, an unattainable fantasy," Frances added.

'Narrow standard of beauty'

The English and Philosophy student of the University of Leeds in northern England said the advertising campaign also had negative effects on the relationship between men and women.

"It tells men to strongly judge women by their looks, which damages their ability to form healthy relationships and encourages bullying of women who don’t fit into this narrow standard of beauty."

Black, however, believes that the "main problem" is the wording of the campaign. "If it was in front of women who possessed a wide-range of body types, then the wording could have had a positive meaning," she told Deutsche Welle.

According to the 22-year-old, it isn't just women who are bombarded with images to achieve "the perfect body."

"Men are also bombarded with very unhealthy images in the media. Many suffer from negative body image and resulting low self-esteem.

Different shapes and sizes

Alongside their virtual signatures, protesters have also been keen to express their anger and dismay at the company's marketing strategy.

"It's just not fair to keep doing this to young women…With a mix of women of different shapes and sizes, this could have been a charming, human campaign," one protester, Emma Huismans from Surrey in southern England wrote.

The campaign has continued to gain momentum over the past week with online signatures also appearing from the US, Italy and Germany.

'Early sexualization'

The latest petition isn't the first occasion that the global lingerie giant has come under fire for its controversial marketing campaigns. Just last year, its "Bright Young Things" underwear line, which featured "sexually suggestive" messages, had parents up in arms over the "early sexualization of kids" and lead to a change.org petition winning more than 24,000 signatures. The label's "Go East" range, which included the "Sexy Little Geisha" outfit, was also criticized in light of the complicated history surrounding Japanese Geisha culture.

Asked what can be done to avoid the controversy in the future, Black said that retailers need to take their social responsibility seriously. "They need to prioritize the wellbeing of their customers over capitalist gain," she said.

Deutsche Welle is still awaiting a comment from Victoria's Secret regarding the controversy surrounding its latest "Body" advertising campaign.