The XX Factor: What women really think.

I once walked into a Victoria's Secret when they were running some campaign or another, and a saleswoman waltzed right over to me and purred: "Hi there. Can I help you find some sexy little things?" I was tempted to tell her that what I would like were some frumpy big things, but instead I just said no and walked out. It was my fault, after all, for having entered in the first place. I've since avoided Victoria's Secret like the plague. When I took my 13-year-old sister shopping for a new bra a few weeks ago, she pouted when I refused to set foot inside.

That my sister, who is barely high-school aged, considered Victoria's Secret a prime shopping destination speaks to the company's marketing strategy. In 2004, Victoria's Secret launched its PINK line, which is marketed directly to tweens and teenage girls. PINK is that brand that makes those icky sweatpants with giant lettering that hordes of teenyboppers slum around in, as they bare their bellies and panties. PINK also appeals to this younger crowd by offering too-cute hoodies, fake college logos on their clothing, and free stuffed animals with purchases. To me, this is an obvious ploy to get young shoppers interested in the even raunchier stuff in the store sooner. Growing up Victoria, or something. Certainly a company has a right to push its clients into push-ups, but the approach strikes me as a little trashy.

Before I'm dubbed completely puritanical, none of this is to say I object to "sexy little things." I just take issue with a company whose chief mission is to sexify its shoppers, no matter their ages. Amaka exercised restraint when she neglected to mention the Very Sexy ® Bra's tagline: "The classic seduction begins with lingerie. Behind every very sexy woman is a Very Sexy ® Bra." I've done some seducing in my day, and I'm pleased to report that such a garment is not a necessity.