Victoria’s Secret to Open First Flagship Store in Prague

US lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret is set to open its first flagship store in the Czech market this May. 

The products of the largest American lingerie retailer with more than a thousand stores worldwide could only be purchased in the transit section of Václav Havel Airport.

“The Victoria’s Secret brand has been very successful globally for many reasons, including the fact that it offers sophisticated, constantly innovating, trendy and highly fashionable products at an affordable price. The products are not only beautiful but also functional, making them highly desirable to customers,” says Jan Kotrbáček of Cushman & Wakefield.

In the last decade, several dozen American brands have entered the Czech market, often from the fashion sector.

The most important ones include Gap, Foot Locker, Polo Ralph Lauren, Skechers, Steve Madden, Tiffany & Co., Yankee Candle and Under Armour.

Few American brands have held their own in the Czech market. For example, clothing retailer Forever 21, which ran into financial trouble globally five years ago, closed up to a third of its stores in 40 countries and is now focusing on profitable stores in the US and online sales, has left.

Founded in 1977 by Roy and Gaye Raymond, the company’s five lingerie stores were sold to Leslie Wexner in 1982. Wexner rapidly expanded into American shopping malls, growing the company into 350 stores nationally with sales of $1 billion by the early 1990s when Victoria’s Secret became the largest lingerie retailer in the United States.

Globally, Victoria’s Secret has 1,400 retail stores.