This past October, I spent four days in Berlin at Venus, Europe’s largest adult entertainment expo. Being green in Europe, I was happy to see so many familiar faces from the U.S. Big and small manufacturers, like Spartacus, Vandal Glass, Ruff-Doggie-Styles, Screaming O, and Pipedream Products, were manning their booths, citing the favorable exchange rates and shifts in the U.S. economy as part of the reason why the European market was currently important to their business.
As the free evening newspapers in London seem to take a sort of schadenfreude in sounding the death knell for Britain’s economy, and the rest of Europe is feeling similar tremors, it seems that this is a prime time to think out of the box as retailers, manufacturers and distributors. Like with a good stock portfolio, diversification is one investment strategy that minimizes risk. So, if you are looking to Europe and seeing and imagining what the jingle of euros may sound like, I hope this article will shed some light on retail, manufacturing and distribution in the Old Countries.
Europe is not to its individual countries as the U.S. is to the 50 states. When one enters this market, this is a key point to keep in mind. Yes, there are cultural differences between states and regions in the U.S., and one can make generalizations about Europe, but before you mistakenly refer to “Europe” as if it were a single place, remember that just because countries are close to each other, it in no way means the cultures are compatible or the markets can be served in the same way. This may seem like an elementary point, but it is one that I remind myself of frequently.
In broad strokes, one could say that the Nordic countries have a more open approach to sexuality, and the styles of government and types of legislation that have been in force in the last half century have created a general mentality where equality between men and women is a charged, tangible, political imperative in daily life. The stereotypes of sexually liberated Scandos seem to stem from a generally relaxed approach to sex, which, in my experience of spending my teens in Sweden, means there are fewer qualms about the act itself. The fact that LELO has a good range of their novelty items in the state-owned and operated pharmacy Apoteket seems a direct reflection of this relaxed attitude.
The Durex Play line is also on the high street (meaning the main shopping drag in a given area of town in the U.K., the equivalent in America being something that is found at a mall). The Play line is found in drugstores over here, but what couples-oriented stores like Harmony — a high-street adult novelty chain that is part of a company that also has a strong adult film division — are finding is that people are increasingly coming into their store inquiring about the line, and walking away with other merch. At Harmony, a selection of Durex novelties is available, but good customer service and detailed product knowledge often open newbies’ minds up to add-ons that Durex does not yet have, or styles of vibes that Durex does not yet provide. The part that is most exciting is that, as a manager at Harmony’s Oxford Street store said, the conversion rates of customers driven to the store after finding out about the Durex line is high and there is a great opportunity to increase the numbers of items turned over per transaction.
When AVN Europe debuted in October 2007, it was the opinion of the editor that sex shops in Hungary were still of the raincoater model; if one wanted a couples-friendly experience, the best place to go was across the border to Austria. However, a new female-friendly store had just opened at a Budapest mall, signaling a development that has become the retail model that big and small novelty companies are banking on. (On a cultural note, though Budapest is the “Porn Valley” of Europe, the production of adult materials in Hungary does not correlate to a very liberal mindset.) Beate Uhse, a Germany-based, pan-European DVD and novelty giant in retail, Web, mail order, home parties, manufacturing, and distribution — in fact, the largest company of its kind in the world — has seen great success in the couples- and female-focused model. “The customer is changing,” Assia Tschernookoff, Beate Uhse’s head of corporate communications, succinctly states.
The most important thing to keep in mind when thinking about Europe is that there are breasts everywhere, and it’s OK. Der Stern, the German equivalent of Time magazine, regularly uses arty images of women in various states of undress to seriously illustrate political commentary. Britain has a culture of Page 3 girls, so with each issue of The Sun, a rather conservative, light evening newspaper, there’s a topless babe waiting for you just inside the cover. If you are at all fond of watching those TV programs that round up the best ads from around the world, you’ll have noticed that depictions of sex and nudity are not that big of a deal over here.
What does this mean when the U.S. and Europe cross swords? It’s a good idea to rethink your marketing approach and tailor it to suit target regions. A case in point: When Beate Uhse made an attempt to enter the U.S. market, the used the images and approach that they deploy across Europe. The U.S. did not respond well. Be sure to research your market thoroughly.
If you’re a novelty manufacturer and serious about branding, you may want to look to Lucom, a brand management company founded by Andreas and Patrick Giebel. Part of the Germany-based pjur Group, best-known stateside for lube, Lucom was created in response to the idea that the market doesn’t necessarily need more product, just that the existing products need to be marketed better. With part of their mission to effectively communicate brand identity and improve in-store marketing, Lucom currently counts pjur, M2M, TitanMen, and Heart2Heart among their clients, and has a strong interest in carefully nurturing a family of brands.
Other ways companies out here are setting themselves apart is through the notion of sexual health and environmental consciousness. Dutch novelty manufacturer TotalJoy has invested heavily in creating and marketing themselves as manufacturers of body-safe products, namely vibes. JOYDIVISION has had sexual health as part of their agenda for a while, with products like Soft Tampons and medical-grade lubricant, but the company is very proud of their products with mechanical components being TÜV certified, an award from the German association for technical inspection. Even smaller companies, like Saxenfelt, a Danish manufacturer of natural rubber products, including apparel and toys, have an investment in sexual health. Of course this applies to their adult stock, but the people at the multi-generational family business also use their knowledge of body-safe products to assist in developing actual medical aides for hospital use.
Style and substance is also a prevalent trend, as Jelle Plantenga, a sex and erotica consultant/sales agent for several high-end brands. He asserted, “As in the U.S., the biggest change is the move from product-orientated to brand-orientated.” In a sense, this is a projection that a higher price point, with quality and appeal to back up the product, will not be a deterrent to customers. SinFive, Shiri Zinn, GlassVibrations, LELO, JeJoue, and FunFactory are but a few examples of manufacturers of products that, with the right customer service, will make for a good sale that will likely give many happy returns (and are available in the U.S.).
Speaking of style, the definition of adult novelty, as is also reflected in ANB’s pages, is the increasing importance of apparel and accessories. Mail and Female, a Dutch mail order company with one retail location in Amsterdam, for example, has a stunning line of lingerie and a growing range of intimate add-ons, like fabric-friendly oil and light bondage products. Similarly, Late Chocolate, a Spanish line of select toys, body products, and lingerie, can supply any woman with an incredibly elegant and versatile chest of pleasure in stunning packaging. Needless to say, such bedroom adornments are best shared, but the vibe can be used alone. Bijoux Indiscrets employs a similar approach to couples-friendly love-making with their burlesque-inspired range of kits for lovers and playful intimate adornments, like blindfolds and feather ticklers.
In this new(ish) wave of couples- and female-friendly stores across Europe, the key to stocking well seems to be variety. Nookii’s games and novelties are on the shelves at Harmony, as is a fine selection of lingerie, adult novelties, and adult-themed novelties, and downstairs they have a selection of more pornographic materials, accommodating every kind of customer. Beate Uhse, which has access to a newly developing database of customers trends from Greece to Norway, has a policy of keeping their brand identity intact, even when their stores take on different names to suit the region they are in. The company colors, basic stock, store layout, and retail philosophy are consistent factors, but each store is tweaked — in terms of popular products and prominence of certain items in the store — to suit the region.
High-end retail in London echoes the sentiment of a manufacturer like Late Chocolate. Body products, books, novelties, items made just for the store, jewelry, and luxurious intimate apparel fill Coco de Mer, where customers can also attend intimate workshops in all things erotic. Their retail model inspires cult-like adoration of the brand. Myla focuses on stunning lingerie, but a selection of toys to complement naughty knickers is also available. Myla crosses the line that Agent Provocateur, which focuses on luxury lingerie and body products, does not, but seems to draw the line on things one can insert.
With Beate Uhse having in February acquired Dutch home party company Playhouse, home parties will be on the rise throughout Europe, but first in Germany, where Beate Uhse will call the company Ladies Night. Currently quite popular in the Netherlands and in the U.K. with brick-and-mortar and home party company Ann Summers, this is seen by Assia Tschernookoff as a logical development and response to the increasing number of women who are interested in novelties, but need more information, personal attention, discretion, comfort and ease of browsing intimate products. London’s Soho is still teeming with “book shops” that stock surprisingly well priced coffee table books, and cult-interest literature focused on film and the arts in tandem with a separate, porn-focused section for hardcore customers, but as much as a staple of London life these are, the new wave is femme-friendly.
As a final point, diversification seems to be the strategy of larger companies. Everyone is feeling the decline of the DVD market, and novelties are moving up the ranks, as with Shots Media and their own quite new line of novelties. Similarly, Beate Uhse’s success can be credited to having such a diverse business model. From online to at-home, they have a finger in every pie, and the eating is good. (I marvel at the sheer amount of invaluable market information they are currently focusing on harnessing from each of their stores.) Harmony and France-based Marc Dorcel, traditionally adult video producers, each have rounded out their companies with retail chains. Online, U.K.-based retailer LoveHoney.co.uk forayed into novelty manufacturing with their Love Bunny vibes, simultaneously reaching out in the social networking world by launching the toy through a Facebook application. Though it may not be the most original conclusion, what we can learn from the European market is to continue embracing crossover and quality. There is no shortage of consumers for adult product, so it all goes back to that simple idea of knowing your market and rocking your brand.
