Journelle: Private Label, Victoria’s Secret Hire

Journelle, the multi-brand lingerie retailer, a majority stake of which is owned by Triumph, is planning to launch a “private label collection for Holiday 2014” and hired in January a former Victoria’s Secret designer as a “senior designer.”

Rania Abu-Eid, “spent almost eight years at Victoria’s Secret first on the concept team, then moved to designing core collections, and eventually working under the vice president of design to launch and build the brand’s high-end designer collections sold exclusively in flagship stores,” according to the Journelle announcement.

“Building a private label line has been a goal of mine since the founding of Journelle, and I’m incredibly excited to devote creative and financial resources to launch this new vertical, and to have Rania join us,” said Claire Chambers Journelle founder and CEO.

Triumph, the privately owned firm which claims annual sales of over $2 billion, has, of course, long been a major private label supplier itself. Worldwide, it claimed, in a 2012 press release, that it served “40,000 wholesale customers and sells its products in over 2,000 Triumph stores. With Swiss Beldona and Chilean Coty’s, the company operates two successful multi brand retail concepts” in addition to Journelle. In the past several months, Triumph has also opened its first three U.S. Triumph stores, two on Long Island, one in New Jersey.

Journelle operates three stores in Manhattan as well as an on line store.

“I was ready to embrace a new challenge, and have been a long-time fan of Journelle – of the stores and the brand itself,” stated Abu-Eid. “The opportunity to step into a growing boutique brand and craft its identity through product design from the very beginning doesn’t often come your way – especially in the lingerie industry.”

According to Journelle, “The announcement of the private label line fits with the lingerie retailer’s expansion plans to open new stores and reach a broader market.”

In addition to the private label collection, Journelle declared it is planning “designer collaborations” in the future.