(Photo Source: YouTube)

Brazilian Model Makes History As First Trans VS Angel

Times are a-changin’, especially at Victoria’s Secret, who just hired its first transgender model, a year after the company said it would not consider doing so.

Valentina Sampaio, a Brazilian model, was born a biological male but now lives as a woman. Sampaio recently shared a photo of herself backstage at Victoria’s Secret show, with the hashtag “diversity.”

Just last year, Victoria’s Secret spokesperson told Vogue that the company would not hire transgender or plus-size models because it would ruin the “fantasy” Victoria’s Secret offers to customers.

“I don’t think we can be all things to all customers. It is a specialty business; it isn’t a department store,” Ed Razek, Victoria’s Secret’s marketing director, told Vogue. A few days later, he walked back that statement.

“To be clear, we absolutely would cast a transgender model in our show. We’ve had transgender models come to castings…and like many others, they didn’t make it,” Razek said. “But it was never about gender. I admire and respect their journey to embrace who they really are.”

But Victoria’s Secret recently announced it was canceling its popular annual fashion show in 2019, prompting speculation that the company is re-branding itself.

“We are taking a fresh look at every aspect of our business – from merchandising, marketing and brand positioning, to our real estate portfolio, digital business and cost structure … literally everything,” the company said in a press release.