Across the mighty Atlantic in Milton Keynes, England resides a dynamic Website company presently bubbling over with success like so many bottles of Veuve Clicquot.
As with many stories of business triumph, Pure Totty begins with a man, who had a dream and just happened to have a lot time on his hands. Steve Chamberlain was made redundant (British for "fired") from a sales gig in May 2001 and wondered the same thing that so many suddenly unemployed people wonder at that moment: What should I do next?
"I decided I didn't want to work for anyone else, and wanted to start my own business, and I chose 'porn," says Chamberlain. "Well, I was a red-blooded 33 year-old."
What followed was the start of Totty Inc. (with three partners) and the subsequent December 2001 debut of TottyInc.com. "To be honest, it wasn't a success, which was a shame, as I ploughed £8,000 of the £9,000 redundancy I had into it," says Chamberlain. "We shot some great girls, and created the image of a British Totty Girl. It was certainly fun shooting the content, and I guess if nothing else, part of the learning process."
Shortly after the launch, Natalie Watts, a model uninterested in the porn game, approached Chamberlain. She wanted something more akin to the 'laddie mag' style (Maxim, FHM, etc.) and to be a "Page 3 Girl," a feature in a national newspaper that traditionally makes a lot of models famous.
"We obviously couldn't put her on the adult site," says Chamberlain, "so with our last £1000 launched we launched Pure Totty. This became our established brand as we moved from hardcore into softcore/tease sites."
PureTotty.com officially debuted March 15, 2002 and quickly became a major player in the often-times esoterically defined teen 'non nude' adult milieu.
"We have worked hard to establish the image of a Pure Totty Girl," says Chamberlain. "Not quite sure we got the Playboy Bunny rep, but we're working on it."
Soon Chamberlain realized that, unlike the hardcore marketplace, softcore was a tad less inundated, and so began earning solid revenue from a suddenly popular niche.
Chamberlain is the self-described "Boss" of the Pure Totty team, which consists of five staff members and some 20 models with whom they work regularly. And if you're wondering exactly where Milton Keynes is, Chamberlain says it's a relatively new city 50 miles North of London. As for producing softcore content in the U.K., Chamberlain says because their brand is "British Girl" it offers a unique selling point. "I must say though I love the U.S.," says Chamberlain, "but I do see benefits to being based in the U.S., such as the Webmaster conventions and industry exhibitions."
Chamberlain says if all goes according to plan, he will based in the U.S. by 2005 and then travel to the U.K. to shoot British-centric content.
Back to the timeline: As Pure Totty gained popularity, the company began launching more model sites. While the original Pure Totty Girl, Natalie, gained recognition with NatalieModel.com, soon came Naomi K with NaomiModel.com. "We did notice that as we launched more sites, Pure Totty's traffic seemed to drop a little," says Chamberlain. "I guess if your favorite model had a site, you went there and joined that instead of Pure Totty."
Pure Totty now boasts more than 15,000 images of 12 models. "We tried to create an image for the Pure Totty Girl, but people said 'Who's image is it?' and because some guys like one thing and one guy likes another, we decided to offer exactly that," says Chamberlain. "On PureTotty.com you will find a variety of girls, from the model type through to the girl next door. We shoot all of our own content exclusively, so you won't see banks of old pics you see everywhere."
Chamberlain says they shoot content in studios, on location, and in the models' own houses. There are also Pure Totty Webcam Girls who shoot their own photo sets from home. This has been a flourishing endeavor, which led to PureCam.co.uk.
Other features on the sites include video content, forums, and, according to Chamberlain, much more to come. "I don't think there are many sites like PureTotty.com," he says. "You get 12 Pure Totty Girls, you get six Pure Totty Webcam Girls, you get 15,000 images, and you get a whole lot more. Pretty much something for everyone - well, something for every horny person, anyways."
Chamberlain says that many of the ideas for content come from his "twisted mind." While content is produced in-house, outside photographers are utilized, but under the guidance of Pure Totty. "I guess its based on knowing what's horny and sexy, and creating it on film," says Chamberlain. "Isn't it something like the average guy thinks of sex every so many seconds? I am sure I bring the average down quite a bit."
Chamberlain adds that his team puts a lot of work into the look of the site and its content. "Coming from sales, I believe it's easier to sell something you believe in. Next, you need to take it to the audience, and we have employed plenty of well-established Webmaster tools to do that, from the good old search engine through to TGP submissions."
He adds, "To retain those members, make sure you deliver what you promise. They certainly want to see regular updates on the sites, and interactivity from the girls is a key also."
As the mainstream entertainment industry has merrily co-opted the finest bits of adult content, the softcore market has become a tiger's den of competition - magazines and Websites frantically trying to keep their brand relevant and progressive.
"I don't believe we are mainstream hardcore, more the softcore/tease market. In the U.K. what we produce would be called 'lad mag' or 'mid shelf-style' content," says Chamberlain. "We also maintain our established strategies, and I think it's vital you continue to do what you know, but always explore new avenues. We are always keen to make new partnerships and learn new ideas.
One such idea is the launch of an affiliate program, DurtyCash.com. Chamberlain says the strength of DurtyCash.com is a 50 percent referral payout and a variety of Webmaster tools to help with promotion. "I know some of the biggest sites have more than 2,000 referral partners," says Chamberlain, "and for the sites we've been running we have done pretty much all promotion in-house. I believe our sites are not saturated on the Internet, so for potential partners there is a great opportunity to promote us as a new sponsor."
The state of the adult Internet industry is always a hot topic. Chamberlain says, from a British/European point of view, the dollar is hurting. "We obviously sell in dollars but when we convert to pounds we are losing like 25 percent on its value," says Chamberlain. "I know the VISA regulations got a few people running scared, but hopefully that is now done and dusted."
As for keeping his thumb on the pulse of the Webmastering community, Chamberlain says he this is one area he had "ignored" until recently. "I joined a message board and since then have learned more in three months than I did in the first three years," he says. "But it is vital to build up a strong group of partners and learn what you can. I know some people are hesitant to share information, but I have definitely benefited from working closely with other Webmasters and site owners."
The matter of being an "adult" company located in the U.K., as it pertains to legal and social issues, is not such a concern for Chamberlain. "The U.K. laws appear to be a lot more relaxed," he says. "We did get into a little hot water over in the U.S. because of the fact that topless models in the U.K. start at 16, and as we learnt pretty quickly, that's taboo in the U.S.
"It's funny, when the U.K. and the U.S. share so many things - I mean its not like the U.K. is a third world country, or, sorry to say it, one of the Eastern European countries who maybe exploit their models, but the number of issues the difference in the age of topless modeling kicked up was unreal. I think for a short time, I was looked at as the devil himself." Chamberlain says he now works only with models 18 and older. "It's a little sad, as there are lots of great models starting out in the U.K. and we won't work with them."
Even so, when it comes to marketing and branding strategies for the U.S. market, Chamberlain says it isn't quite necessary. "Strip a girl down and she is as sexy in the U.S. as she is in the U.K.," he says. "I know you can stereotype, and I know some girls have a distinctive look, but if a guy finds a girl sexy, then he finds her sexy. I do believe that the sheer fact she is British, mind you, is an appeal to a guy in the U.S. It's funny, I know how hot British guys find American girls, and I think it's vice-versa."
Though Pure Totty recently launched PureCam.co.uk and TeenAss.co.uk, they have a few more sites set for unveiling. There are also plans for Webcams for each of the girls' sites so they can perform live shows for members.
"We are currently focusing on developing and further establishing the network we have," says Chamberlain. "I think if you grow too quickly you can neglect what you already have. I am sure we will expand to more sites this year. But, for the moment, we are happy with the ones we have live."
