This essay explores how a brand’s image affects consumers’ self-image through a case study of the lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret in order to reflect over the role of graphic designers as visual communicators in society. The study conducts a semiotic analysis of the brand and a qualitative research consisting of interviews and a focus group of a selection of women within the brand’s target audience. The conclusion is that Victoria’s Secret, through its models, contributes to an unrealistic feminine ideal that the study participants’ self-image was perceptibly affected by. While perception is personal and signs are context reliant, semiotics is not only useful for analyzing visual communication but also as a tool that graphic designers can use for creating ads with the consumer’s needs in mind.