# Business

Source 经济学人

Listening

Vectoria’s Secret gets ready for a makeover

Summary

Victoria’s Secret gets ready for a makeover

维多利亚的秘密：改造准备就绪

• make over 外表的改观；组织进行的改造和革新

  You need a makeover.

Sex sells, and it sells few things better than lingerie. Nowhere is that more evident than the Victoria’s Secret fashion show. Befeathered models, known as “angels”, shimmy down a runway to promote America’s biggest underwear retailer. In 2011 more than 10m people watched it on television. But on December 2nd just 3.3m viewers tuned in.

性激发人们购买的欲望。在它的刺激下，没有几样东西比女性内衣卖得更好。对于这一点，维多利亚的秘密（维密）时尚大秀是最好的证明。背着羽毛翅膀的模特被人们称为“天使”，她们在 T 台上走着猫步，宣传着美国最大的内衣零售商。2011 年，有超过 1000 万人在电视上观看了维密时尚大秀。然而，今年 12 月 2 日，只有 330 万人收看了这个节目。

• sell v. to make people want to buy sth

• lingerie /ˌlɑːndʒəˈreɪ/  n. 女性的内衣或者睡衣

• That is more evident nowhere than the v’s s fashion show.

• shimmy /ˈʃɪmi/ v.优雅的移动

• runway n.模特走秀的舞台

  catwalk n. T台

• retailer n. 零售商

Once its chief asset, the brand’s sexiness now looks like a liability. “The way people dress has changed,” says Serena Rees, a stalwart of the industry whose most recent project is a brand of unisexunderwear. “People don’t want boobs up under their chin or things pressed or pushed in.”

性感，这个公司曾经的主要品牌优势，如今看起来却像一种负担。 “人们着装的方式发生了变化。”赛琳娜·里斯说道，她在内衣行业工作多年，并在最近创建了一个男女都能穿的内衣品牌。“人们并不想让自己的乳房被挤到下巴下面，也不想往内衣里塞东西。”

• Once the brand’s sexiness was chief asset，…

• asset n.品质，优点

  As a teacher, patience is an indispensable asset.

• liability /ˌlaɪəˈbɪləti/ n. 负担，累赘

  Since his injury, Jones has become more of a liability than an asset to the team.

• stalwart of ˈstɔːlwərt/ n.一个团队坚定的支持者或者忠诚的员工

  He is a stalwart of the Chinese football team.

• uni 词缀，一个或者单一的

  unisex adj.不分男女的，男女通用的

• boob n.乳房

• chin n.下巴

A slew of competitors, promoting comfort and inclusivity, have taken that message to heart. Michelle Cordeiro Grant left Victoria’s Secret, where she was a senior merchant, and went on to found LIVELY, an online underwear brand. She argues that what makes women sexy is confidence, meaning an emphasis on comfort: 70% of the bras sold by LIVELY are wireless.

许多宣扬舒适和包容的竞争品牌，已经把这个信息牢记在心里。米歇尔·科代罗·格兰特曾经在维密担任商业高层，如今离职并创办了一家线上内衣品牌 LIVELY。她认为是自信使女人性感。这就意味着内衣应该强调舒适：LIVELY 销售的 70% 的胸罩都是无钢圈的。

• A slew of = a lot of 不太正式的美式表达

• take sth to heart 把什么事牢牢记着

• inclusivity n. 包容

• found v. 创建

• put / place / lay an emphasis on sth 对…的强调

  They placed great emphasis on the individual’s freedom.

• wireless adj.无线的

They are eager to emphasise inclusivity, too. According to Mintel, a research firm, over half of consumers in Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain reckon fashion retailers should use more realistic models.

竞争品牌们还迫切地强调着内衣行业的包容性。根据市场研究公司英敏特的数据，在英国、法国、德国、意大利和西班牙，有一半以上的消费者认为时尚零售商应该使用更接地气的模特。

• emphasis /ˈemfəsɪs/  n. 强调

  emphasise v. 强调

• reckon v.认为

• realistic = practical adj.现实的，可行的

Victoria’s Secret is not about to go bust. The firm’s scale is such that with the right rebranding, it could bounce back. In November it replaced its chief executive, Jan Singer, with John Mehas, formerly of Tory Burch, a fashion retailer. Following that rejig Victoria’s Secret has held off on big announcements.

维多利亚的秘密并没有面临破产的危机。 该公司的规模庞大，以至于通过正确的品牌重塑，它可以卷土重来。 今年 11 月，公司首席执行官发生了变动，之前供职于时尚品牌托里·伯奇的约翰·梅哈斯接替了简·辛格。 这次调整之后，维密公司推迟了其他重大决定的公布。

• be about to do sth 将要做某事
• go bust = go bankrupt 破产 (bust含有乳房的意思，因此这里是个双关，暗示性感不再是卖点)
• bounce back 卷土重来
• replace A with B 用A替换B
• rejig /ˌriːˈdʒɪɡ/ v.重新组织，调整，主要指内在的变动
• hold off on sth. 推迟