MASHINIi

L Brands.

LB.US | Retail sale of clothing, footwear and leather articles in specialized stores

L Brands, formerly known as Limited Brands, is an American retail company that focuses on women's intimate apparel, beauty and personal care products. Its main brands include Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works. Victoria's Secret sells lingerie, womenswear and beauty products. Bath & Body Works ...Show More

Ethical Profile

Mixed.

L Brands faces scrutiny over product safety, with reports alleging benzene, a known carcinogen, in Bath & Body Works and Victoria's Secret body sprays, sometimes exceeding safe limits (2-16 ppm). The company also paid a $90 million penalty for employment discrimination in 2021, alongside $4.47 million in wage violations. Critics point to a CEO-to-median worker pay ratio of 1,873:1. Victoria's Secret's presence in markets requiring animal testing led to PETA removing it from their cruelty-free list. While L Brands aims to cut Scope 1 & 2 emissions by 50% by 2030, its water use is in a "Medium to High" stress area.

Value Scores

Better Health for All-10
-100100
Fair Money & Economic Opportunity0
-100100
Fair Pay & Worker Respect-20
-100100
Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing0
-100100
Honest & Fair Business0
-100100
Kind to Animals-50
-100100
No War, No Weapons0
-100100
Planet-Friendly Business-40
-100100
Respect for Cultures & Communities0
-100100
Safe & Smart Tech-40
-100100
Zero Waste & Sustainable Products0
-100100

Better Health for All

-10

Over half (more than 50%) of 108 batches of body sprays from 30 major brands, including Victoria's Secret, tested positive for benzene, a known carcinogen.

1
Similarly, 44 out of 86 American deodorant and antiperspirant products, including those from Bath & Body Works and Victoria's Secret, were found to contain benzene.
2
The FDA states that no amount of benzene is safe in personal care products.
3
The company does not hold healthcare-related patents, produce food or nutritional products, conduct clinical trials, or offer products with addiction potential, making these KPIs not applicable.

Fair Money & Economic Opportunity

0

L Brands (LB.US) is a retail company and does not offer lending or deposit services to consumers.

1
Consequently, the company does not have a loan or insurance book, nor is it regulated as a lender.
2
This aligns with the '0' tier for 'inclusion_initiatives' as its core business lies outside finance, and for 'fair_lending_compliance' as it is not regulated as a lender.
3
No specific, concrete data points were provided in the articles for other financial KPIs, leading to their omission.
4

Fair Pay & Worker Respect

-20

L Brands reported a CEO to median employee pay ratio of 1,873:1 in 2021, with the median worker being a part-time, hourly employee earning $9,876 annually.

1
The company's overall work happiness score was 75 out of 100.
2
In 2023, L Brands incurred a $2,750,000 penalty for a benefit plan administrator violation.
3

Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing

0

No evidence available to assess L Brands on Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing.

Honest & Fair Business

0

No evidence available to assess L Brands on Honest & Fair Business.

Kind to Animals

-50

Victoria's Secret is not certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny or PETA

1
, and PETA removed the brand from its cruelty-free list, urging a boycott due to the company's decision to sell products in China, a market that requires animal testing
2
. The company's policy prohibits animal testing for branded products, formulations, and ingredients, except where mandated by government regulations
3
. Victoria's Secret supports the Institute for In Vitro Sciences (IIVS)
4
and collaborates with industry leaders to promote non-animal testing methods and research alternatives
5
.

No War, No Weapons

0

No evidence available to assess L Brands on No War, No Weapons.

Planet-Friendly Business

-40

SBTi targets for a 42% absolute reduction in Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 from a 2022 base year have been validated.

1
In FY2023, 78% of suppliers had SBTi-approved targets.
2
The company achieved 85% completion of Higg FEM assessments for its supply chain partners in FY2023, with over 98% of these assessments verified by a third-party, and 100% of Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers are mapped.
3
A formal zero-deforestation policy is in place, aiming to prevent sourcing from areas deforested after 1994.
4
Man-made cellulosic fibers are sourced exclusively from Canopy Dark Green Shirt Certified suppliers, including those certified to FSC or PEFC standards.
5
The company commits to tracing wood-based fabrics and aims to fully map its paper supply chain in 2025.
6
A climate risk and opportunity assessment aligned with the IFRS S2 framework has been completed, and scenario analysis is used to identify key vulnerabilities.
7
The company focuses on supporting women in key sourcing regions who are vulnerable to climate disruption.
8

Respect for Cultures & Communities

0

No evidence available to assess L Brands on Respect for Cultures & Communities.

Safe & Smart Tech

-40

The company, through its brand Victoria's Secret, experienced a cybersecurity incident on May 24, 2025.

1
This incident resulted in unauthorized access to customer data, including names, emails, purchase history, shipping addresses, birthdates, and phone numbers.
2
The breach also led to a temporary shutdown of e-commerce and corporate systems.
3
While the company undertook swift restoration of its website and partial recovery of corporate systems, the full cost of the breach is currently under audit
4
and did not materially impact Q1 2025 financials.
5

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

0

No evidence available to assess L Brands on Zero Waste & Sustainable Products.

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AI-generated analysis based on publicly available data. Not financial advice. Ratings are expressions of opinion derived from automated models and may contain inaccuracies. See our Risk Disclosure for full details.