FACTBOX: Who are the Spice Girls?

(Reuters) - British girl band the Spice Girls kicked off a reunion after nearly a decade apart by performing at the Victoria's Secret lingerie fashion show in Los Angeles on Thursday as a warm-up to a world tour that starts next month.

Rather that marking a new chapter, the band members have signaled that the tour starting in Vancouver on December 2 is more of a final bow to celebrate a career that saw the group sell more than 55 million albums and rack up 10. No. 1 singles.

Here is some background:

WHO WERE THE SPICE GIRLS?

-- The Spice Girls' sex appeal, catchy tunes and "girl power" philosophy made them a pop music phenomenon in the mid-1990s.

-- The British band was created in 1994 by two would-be managers who advertised for women to form an all-female group. The five winning applicants each took nicknames:

* Sporty Spice - Melanie Chisholm, also known as Mel C, born January 1974.

* Posh Spice - Victoria Adams (married surname Beckham), born April 1974.

* Ginger Spice - Geri Halliwell, born August 1972.

* Baby Spice - Emma Bunton, born January 1976.

* Scary Spice - Melanie Brown, also known as Mel B, born May 1975.

THEIR SUCCESS:

-- Their 1996 album "Spice" included the hit singles "Wannabe" and "Say You'll Be There" and launched them to international fame.

-- They hit the peak of their fame in 1997 with the release of a second album, "Spiceworld," plus a feature film of the same name.

THE SPLIT:

-- Halliwell left the group in 1998 and the other four went their separate ways after releasing the album "Forever" in 2000.