Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2025: Pregnant Angels, Athlete Debuts & A New Era of Fantasy

Victoria’s Secret staged its long-awaited return to New York, transforming Steiner Studios into a dreamscape of lace, light, and legacy. But this wasn’t the glossy, unattainable spectacle of years past. Instead, it was a new Victoria’s Secret, one that dared to blur fantasy with reality, perfection with imperfection, and sex appeal with stories of resilience.

Victoria’s Secret - 2025 Fashion Show

A Pregnant Angel Opens the Show

The opening moment belonged to Jasmine Tookes and her baby bump. In a sparkling gold netted gown with shell-inspired wings, Tookes’s slow, deliberate walk was less about seduction and more about presence. As she cradled her bump mid-runway, the message was clear: beauty and motherhood are not opposites, they can be one and the same.

It was a historic departure from Victoria’s Secret’s once-rigid ideals. For years, the show celebrated impossible standards of “angelic” beauty. Tookes shattered that ceiling in one walk, making pregnancy not only visible but radiant, central, and celebrated.
(People, Harper’s Bazaar)

When Athletes Become Angels

If Tookes opened with vulnerability, Angel Reese followed with power. The WNBA star became the first professional athlete ever to walk the Victoria’s Secret runway, a moment that was both fashion fantasy and cultural statement.

In two pink looks, one delicate lace with a shawl, the other bold with cut-outs and dramatic wings, Reese embodied both athleticism and glamour. “This is destiny,” she told Vogue backstage, her walk marking a fusion of sport and style that Victoria’s Secret has never seen before.
(AP News, People)

Resilience Behind the Glamour

Not every angel’s wings were effortless. Barbara Palvin walked despite a fractured foot, a quiet testament to the physical strain behind the spectacle. The show’s history of rigorous training and extreme preparation has long been whispered about backstage; Palvin’s determination brought it into the spotlight.

Her walk became a metaphor for Victoria’s Secret itself: still limping, still beautiful, still determined to prove it belongs.

A Cast of Legacy and New Voices

The 2025 roster was designed for balance. Adriana Lima, Lily Aldridge, Gigi and Bella Hadid, Joan Smalls, and Candice Swanepoel embodied continuity, while new faces like Precious Lee, Barbie Ferreira, Iris Law, Yumi Nu, and Quenlin Blackwell embodied evolution.

The question wasn’t who wore the wings best, but what each body, each identity brought to the stage. Inclusion wasn’t just about ticking boxes, it was about broadening the definition of fantasy itself.

Soundtrack to a Reset

The music told its own story. Missy Elliott brought fierce nostalgia, Karol G added Latin vibrancy, Madison Beer delivered pop sensibility, and TWICE ignited the K-pop fandom. The lineup reflected a more global, youth-driven brand strategy, acknowledging that Victoria’s Secret now sells not just lingerie but cultural capital.

From Fantasy to Future

Victoria’s Secret knows it cannot rely on nostalgia alone. The six-year hiatus followed years of backlash, criticism of outdated beauty ideals, corporate scandal, and declining relevance. The 2025 show is an attempt to repair its narrative.

But here’s the tea: is this true reinvention, or carefully packaged optics?

• Casting a pregnant model and a pro athlete could be read as progressive, or as tokenistic gestures if not followed by systemic change.

• The brand still leaned heavily on legacy Angels does this suggest hesitancy to fully evolve?

• Spectacle remains central but is inclusivity now spectacle, or substance?

The Verdict

Victoria’s Secret 2025 was a question mark. It delivered wings, glitter, and grandeur, but also cracks of reality, pregnancies, injuries, athletic grit. In doing so, it reminded us that the fantasy of lingerie can coexist with the complexity of real life.

The brand’s future will depend on whether this inclusivity was a one-night narrative or the blueprint for a new era.

One thing is certain: for the first time in years, the world is talking about Victoria’s Secret again.

Tom Ford Fall/Winter 2025: Haider Ackermann’s Quietly Powerful Debut

When the lights dimmed at Paris Fashion Week, anticipation buzzed through the audience. This wasn’t just another Tom Ford show, it was Haider Ackermann’s debut as creative director, and with it came the task of reimagining one of fashion’s most glamorous houses. What he delivered was a refreshing, pared-back vision of sensuality and strength.

A Softer Kind of Seduction

Gone were the overtly provocative silhouettes and unapologetic glitz long associated with Tom Ford. In their place: sleek monochromes and sculptural tailoring that whispered confidence.

The opening looks set the tone: a white wool wrap jacket, cinched and paired with fluid trousers, exuded quiet authority. Elsewhere, black knits were styled with oversized coats, offering texture without excess. The effect was a wardrobe of modern-day armour for women who don’t need to shout to be heard.

The Art Of Tailoring

Ackermann’s mastery of tailoring was unmistakable. A sharp double-breasted pinstripe suit, styled with leather gloves, felt as commanding as it was timeless. Meanwhile, strapless tuxedo gowns and sleeveless tailored coats transformed menswear codes into eveningwear statements.

This wasn’t tailoring as we know it. It was tailoring as seduction, cut to flatter but never flaunt. It’s the kind of power dressing that nods to the Tom Ford legacy, while rewriting it for a new generation.

Colour With Purpose

For a collection rooted in black and white, Ackermann knew exactly when to break the rhythm.

• A powder blue shirt, loosely tucked into high-waist trousers, offered crisp freshness.

• A lilac trouser suit brought softness to the runway, with clean lines and an icy, almost futuristic appeal.

• A single emerald satin gown stole the spotlight — simple, fluid, and devastatingly elegant.

These jolts of colour weren’t decorative; they were precision accents, chosen to highlight the collection’s minimalism.

Fabric As Statement

Deep Red Leather Trench

The true drama came not from embellishment but from texture. A deep red embossed leather trench, cinched at the waist, felt like armour — a bold contrast to the softness of wool tailoring. Evening gowns shimmered in silver-grey ruching, their surfaces catching light with every movement.

Ackermann reminded us that fabric can be as commanding as silhouette — luxury woven into structure and presence.

The Tom Ford Woman in 2025

This debut collection marked a distinct shift. Ackermann’s Tom Ford is less about show, more about substance. It’s designed for women who already know their worth, who dress not for attention but for affirmation.

The message was clear: Tom Ford’s house codes of glamour and sensuality remain, but they’ve been translated into a language of longevity and confidence.

As the final emerald gown closed the show, it felt clear: this wasn’t just a new Tom Ford collection. It was the start of a new chapter in luxury fashion, where elegance is power, and subtlety speaks volumes.