For the love of lingerie: Victoria’s Secret coming to Anchorage – KTVA.com

Be it a matching bra and panty set or whatever’s sitting at the top of the delicate drawer — lingerie is something most women don’t leave home without.

But where do women in Anchorage go when it’s time to restock? Most name Nordstrom as their go-to for undergarments, while some soon-to-be moms say Motherhood Maternity is where they turn.

Others share woes of having to shop online, with the Victoria’s Secret website saved in their recent browser history.

“I think people have been asking for Victoria’s Secret, easily, in conversation for the last 10 years,” said Kari Skinner, director of marketing for the mall. “Personally, when I’m Outside, I’ve gone to Victoria’s Secret, like I think a lot of people do. And now, we won’t have to.”

Bringing Victoria’s Secret to Alaska took years, Skinner says, but now, it’s a done deal.

“It’s going to be almost 11,000 square feet,” said Skinner of the new store. “We had to make sure we had enough space for them.”

To accommodate, PacSun moved across the hallway to the space once held by Gap on the third floor, while neighboring store Lids moved down to level two of the mall. And while Victoria’s Secret is setting up shop, Abercrombie “chose to close this location,” Skinner explained, describing the entire process as a game of Tetris.

Skinner says when it comes to the list of lingerie shops in the Last Frontier, “everybody’s kind of made do.” A little more than a decade ago, Leeann Taylor decided she’d take advantage of what was then an open market in Alaska.

“I didn’t know a lot about it at the time,” said Taylor of starting the lingerie shop, About Face. “I just knew I didn’t see a lot in town that I wanted.”

Having spent 11 years tuned into the local lingerie market, Taylor says she’s learned a thing or two about the ladies who stop by her boutique, located in South Anchorage on Dimond Boulevard.

These days, Alaska women are more open to learning about lingerie, she says.

“It takes a lot of one-on-one, and it’s something we pride ourselves on providing,” said Taylor of her shop and staff. “In our experience, I’d say it’s closer to 95 percent of women who come in here are wearing a bra that doesnt fit them well.”

They leave with knowledge — and come back for more fashion-forward pieces, she notes.

“We probably help two to three customers a week looking for products for boudoir shoots,” she said.

But even Taylor has to admit, Anchorage is still slim pickings for those in the market for intimate apparel.

“I know other lingerie stores in town,” she said, listing the few shops women have come to rely on over the years. “I’m certain that there’s not another store like ours in town that offers the classic lingerie in the size range we have.”

Taylor says she still gets new customers every day, most of whom are referred by word-of-mouth, she says — a sign that Alaska women are in the market for that perfect pair of undergarments or just a bra that fits well.

It’s that community feedback Skinner says played a factor in the 5th Avenue Mall’s decision to add Victoria’s Secret.

Even though she says it may be hard for Anchorage shoppers to imagine what 11,000 square feet of Victoria’s Secret finds may look like, it’s a little more difficult to imagine life without lingerie.