Australian billionaire takes off the gloves in Victoria’s Secret brawl

Australia’s lowest-profile and publicity-shy billionaire Brett Blundy doesn’t relish being centre stage. But he has just supercharged a battle with one of the world’s most renowned brands, Victoria’s Secret, into a very public war.

It is becoming increasingly vicious and personal as the Australian investor and rag trader, who lives in Monaco, has removed the gloves and taken his fight into the public arena.

Blundy, who over the years has been behind brands such as Bras N Things, Adairs, Best and Less and Lovisa, has been one of our most successful investors in, and founders of, retail brands. For three years, he has been building a stake in Victoria’s Secret, which is the largest intimate apparel company in the world made famous by push-up bras and Brazilian knickers. He appears to have been motivated by its candidacy as a turnaround opportunity.

The Victoria’s Secret brand, known for its sexy supermodels boldly marketing intimate apparel, has suffered lacklustre financial performance in recent years – which has been reflected in its share price that has fallen more than 12 per cent this year.

This governance brawl is now every bit as tantalising as a Victoria’s Secret catwalk show.

Blundy has declared his plans to jettison the Victoria’s Secret chair and dispatch other board members after a year of unsuccessfully attempting to be appointed as a director.

Both sides have been at pains to declare they have sought to have attempted a collaborative relationship with each other, but the evidence suggests otherwise.

In response to earlier failed behind-the-scene approaches by Blundy to join the Victoria’s Secret board, in May this year the company introduced what is called a poison pill to curb any move by Blundy to increase his stake from the current 13 per cent to beyond 15 per cent.

“In light of the circumstances and consistent with its fiduciary duties, the board determined it was necessary to adopt a rights plan to protect the long-term interests of all Victoria’s Secret shareholders and guard against tactics to gain control of the company without paying all shareholders an appropriate premium for that control,” said chair Donna James in a statement.

Victoria’s Secret has also outlined the “potential for reputational and legal risk” of appointing Blundy to its board “arising from past conduct-related issues at affiliates owned or controlled by (Bundy’s private company) BBRC”.

Victoria’s Secret this year accused Blundy’s company of acquiring shares without filing the required forms, in violation of US antitrust law. Blundy’s company has made corrective filings.

The company’s personal attack on Blundy is pretty rich coming from a company that has had its own fair share of controversy thanks to its former chief executive Lex Wexner receiving scrutiny for his ties with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Blundy has reportedly said previously that Victoria’s Secret has suffered from “continued mismanagement” and “disastrous board-level decisions”.

But in a letter from Blundy to the board, he says his company is not an activist shareholder but rather a long-term investor that believes the company has assets and resources that have tremendous intrinsic value that has not been fully realised.

″We are seeking common-sense governance changes: the removal of an extremely long-tenured Board Chair who has presided over numerous issues and the appointment of a stockholder representative to restore confidence in the Board”, the letter stated.

But the Victoria’s Secret board appears to be displaying a bout of modesty at the intrusion of Blundy, who has not only has a track record in retailing intimate apparel but has recently launched a new brand in the same space, Leays.

Victoria’s Secret wants to be the author of its own revival.

During the first half of 2025, comparable store sales were up 1 per cent, compared with a 4 per cent decline during the same period a year earlier, following the appointment of a new chief executive Hillary Super in August last year.

The annual Victoria’s Secret fashion show is back on the agenda after being cancelled in 2019, and its return is thanks to Super, who said she isn’t shying away from sex appeal this year. She told The Wall Street Journal that the brand became “watered down” by trying not to offend anyone.

You would have to think that Blundy’s invitation might get lost in the mail.

The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning.