'Redefine sexy' campaign

Victoria's Secret's "Angels" are probably almost as famous as their divine counterparts, swanning across the catwalk long-legged, tall and skinny for the US lingerie label.

Recently, the company, which controls 35 percent of the US lingerie market, came under fire for an advertising campaign with the message "The Perfect Body," with all the models in it conforming to the industry's very slim standard. Faced with a huge social media backlash and accusations of body-shaming, the company amended the slogan.

It has also been criticized for not offering a big enough size range, thus shutting out a lot of potential customers.

So, it's no surprise that a campaign by Lane Bryant, which has been catering to the plus-size market since 1900, with the slogans "I'm no angel" and "I'm all kinds of sexy" has seen such a huge, largely positive, response on Twitter and elsewhere.

Not everyone rates the swipe at Victoria's Secret positively though. Some say the campaign is an unfair criticism of the "angels" and, generally, very slim women.

But most of the comments on Facebook and Twitter hail the campaign's aim of celebrating different shapes and sizes and "redefining sexy."

"Our '#ImNoAngel' campaign is designed to empower all women to love every part of herself. Lane Bryant firmly believes that she is sexy and we want to encourage her to confidently show it, in her own way," said Lane Bryant CEO and President, Linda Heasley in a statement.

The campaign comes just a few days after French lawmakers banned ultra-thin models. Models must in future present a medical certificate proving that they have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of at least 18.