It was the year 2006, smack dab in the middle of the early aughts, and Birkenstock was losing its foothold as everyone’s favorite ugly shoe. So it brought in some outsiders to take stock of its products. Consultant Erich Joachimsthaler visited the U.S. headquarters in California. And he was shocked at what he saw.

“I remember there was this one wall of all the shoes. And they had some amazing designs,” he said. “But neither the retailers where the image is created nor the journalists that write about fashion and shoes would actually feature anything but the two straps and three straps.”

The brand’s Arizona sandal was its best seller. It had — for better and then worse — become the company’s identity.

“We needed to change the brand from not just being about that iconic model, but really show the breadth of products they had,” Joachimsthaler said.

Joachimstahler came up with an incentive to push other designs: Give people on the sales team a bigger commission when they sell newer models.

“And don’t talk about the two straps and don’t talk about the hippies, and I know you’re a hippie because you’ve been here for 30 years,” he said. “Let me tell you what you need to tell to the specialty stores when you’re trying to sell.”

Fast forward a handful of years and Birkenstock overcame its crunchy granola image. Vogue staffers wrote stories gushing about them. And the designer brand Celine featured copycat styles at Paris fashion week.

Today, Birkenstocks are still cool. And it’s not just because Y2K is back in style. Luke Williams, author of “Disrupt: Think the Unthinkable to Spark Transformation In Your Business,” said a lot of work goes into a brand comeback. And companies can’t solely rely on nostalgia alone. Think of all the brands that have never come back into style.

“Take your pick: Kodak and Polaroid in digital photography, or Blackberry or Blockbuster. We never think this is going to happen to us,” he said.

When brands are strong, when they’re associated with one image or product, they can get tunnel vision, Williams said. 

“And I guarantee that if 98% of a brand’s revenue is coming from one particular product, 98% of everyone’s attention is going into maintaining that product,” he said. “And this is why we see so many brands become irrelevant overnight.”

Brands become irrelevant because another company comes in and disrupts the market. Take Blackberry. Remember when the coolest way to text was BBM? And now it’s blue bubble or bust.

But some brands with aging images have made stunning comebacks like Abercrombie & Fitch, Pabst Blue Ribbon and Casio watches. They revamped their products, tweaked their marketing or turned over their C-suites.

Victoria’s Secret is doing all of the above. A handful of years ago, it was losing ground to American Eagle’s Aerie and Savage X Fenty. And it had a big image problem. Its former CEO had ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Net sales fell by more than half a billion dollars in 2019, according to public documents, and the company said it closed over 200 stores in 2020. But then Victoria’s Secret announced a rebrand in 2021.

“The old Victoria’s Secret definitely felt like it was more about women through a male’s gaze and us saying like, ‘This is what sexy is,'” said Sarah Sylvester, executive vice president of marketing at Victoria’s Secret. “And I think with the new Victoria’s Secret, it’s what she defines as sexy and glamorous.”

Victoria’s Secret stores have been redesigned from dark and stark to light and airy. Its models are more diverse. And its undergarments have become more practical. 

“How can we not sell, you know, mastectomy or maternity bras? Like, why would we turn any woman away for anything that she needs if we’re supposed to be the leader in bras?”

Sylvester expects the rebrand to take fiver years, which puts Victoria’s Secret about halfway through its journey. And it’ll take this long, because when lots of customers hear Victoria’s Secret, they still think of thin models in rhinestone bras and angel wings.

“Which is amazing — maybe except when you’re trying to do a rebrand and change that perception,” Sylvester said.

It’s hoping to cement that image change with its iconic marketing event. The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is coming back this year after a four-year hiatus.