When Victoria’s Secret Pink rolled out its nationwide collegiate collection in June, featuring the names and logos of some 33 universities on sweats, hoodies, football tees, and totes, the promotion didn’t include any historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). This fall, the brand plans to include five HBCUs in the second phase of its collegiate collection.
Pink, a collection of loungewear geared toward young, college-aged women, first appeared in Victoria’s Secret stores in 2004. The first HBCU schools that will roll off the Pink line will be Howard University, Florida A&M University, Hampton University, North Carolina A&T University, and Southern University.
“Black consumers are loyal to those companies and brands that are loyal to them,” says McGhee Williams Osse, co-CEO of Burrell Communications. “African American consumers want to be recognized and respected by corporations where we spend money, and those corporations [must remember] that they are competing for our dollars.”
“From a trend standpoint, I would say [black schools are] a very viable audience for Victoria’s Secret,” Osse says. “It is the type of retail operation that young, socially active, fashion-involved, African American women would be attracted to."
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