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Ann Summers

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Ann Summers Ltd
TypePrivate Ltd
IndustryRetail
Founded1970, London
HeadquartersWhyteleafe, Surrey, UK
Number of locations
80 high street stores
Area served
United Kingdom
Ireland
Channel Islands
Key people
David Gold
Jacqueline Gold (Executive Chair)
Vanessa Gold (MD)
ProductsClothing
Sex toys
Revenue£109.96 million (2018)[1]
Websitewww.annsummers.com
Ann Summers store in Huddersfield
Ann Summers store in Huddersfield
Ann Summers store in London
Ann Summers store in London
Ann Summers store in Hull
Ann Summers store in Hull

Ann Summers is a British multinational retailer company specialising in sex toys and lingerie, with 80 high street stores in the UK, Ireland, and the Channel Islands.[2] In 2000, Ann Summers acquired the Knickerbox brand,[3] a label with an emphasis on more comfortable and feminine underwear, while the Ann Summers-labelled products tend to be more erotic in style. The chain had an annual turnover of £117.3 million in 2007–2008.

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Multinational corporation

Multinational corporation

A multinational corporation (MNC), also referred to as a multinational enterprise (MNE), a transnational enterprise (TNE), a transnational corporation (TNC), an international corporation or a stateless corporation with subtle but contrasting senses, is a corporate organization that owns and controls the production of goods or services in at least one country other than its home country. Control is considered an important aspect of an MNC, to distinguish it from international portfolio investment organizations, such as some international mutual funds that invest in corporations abroad simply to diversify financial risks. Black's Law Dictionary suggests that a company or group should be considered a multinational corporation "if it derives 25% or more of its revenue from out-of-home-country operations".

Sex toy

Sex toy

A sex toy is an object or device that is primarily used to facilitate human sexual pleasure, such as a dildo, artificial vagina or vibrator. Many popular sex toys are designed to resemble human genitals, and may be vibrating or non-vibrating. The term sex toy can also include BDSM apparatus and sex furniture such as sex swings; however, it is not applied to items such as birth control, pornography, or condoms. Alternative terms for sex toy include adult toy and the dated euphemism marital aid. Marital aid also has a broader meaning and is applied to drugs and herbs marketed to enhance or prolong sex.

Lingerie

Lingerie

Lingerie is a category of primarily women's clothing including undergarments, sleepwear, and lightweight robes. The choice of the word is often motivated by an intention to imply that the garments are alluring, fashionable, or both. In a 2015 US survey, 75% of women and 26% of men reported having worn "sexy lingerie" in their lifetime.

Republic of Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland, also known as the Republic of Ireland, is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. Around 2.1 million of the country's population of 5.13 million people reside in the Greater Dublin Area. The sovereign state shares its only land border with Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. It is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the Celtic Sea to the south, St George's Channel to the south-east, and the Irish Sea to the east. It is a unitary, parliamentary republic. The legislature, the Oireachtas, consists of a lower house, Dáil Éireann; an upper house, Seanad Éireann; and an elected President who serves as the largely ceremonial head of state, but with some important powers and duties. The head of government is the Taoiseach, who is elected by the Dáil and appointed by the President; the Taoiseach in turn appoints other government ministers.

Channel Islands

Channel Islands

The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, consisting of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, Herm and some smaller islands. They are considered the remnants of the Duchy of Normandy and, although they are not part of the United Kingdom, the UK is responsible for the defence and international relations of the islands. The Crown dependencies are not members of the Commonwealth of Nations, nor have they ever been in the European Union. They have a total population of about 171,916, and the bailiwicks' capitals, Saint Helier and Saint Peter Port, have populations of 33,500 and 18,207, respectively.

History

The company was named after Annice Summers, the female secretary of the male founder, Michael Caborn-Waterfield.

Annice Summers was born Annice Goodwin in 1941, but later took her stepfather's surname. She left the company soon after it opened, following a row with Caborn-Waterfield. She went to live in Umbria, Italy, two hours from Rome, and died of cancer in October 2012.[4]

In 2000, Ann Summers acquired the underwear brand Knickerbox for an undisclosed sum. However, in 2014 they announced plans to sell the brand.[5]

Retail

The first Ann Summers shop was opened in 1970 in Marble Arch, London, from which it grew to six shops.

Ann Summers was purchased in 1971 by brothers Ralph and David Gold,[6] who turned it from a standard sex shop into an established high street brand and lingerie boutique. In 1981, David Gold installed his daughter Jacqueline Gold (who was the Executive Chair of Ann Summers)[7] and she introduced the Party Plan concept. The retail operations for all of Ann Summers' shops are managed from their Head Office in Whyteleafe, Surrey and, as of December 2010, Ann Summers operated 144 retail outlets across the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands and Spain.

The shops offer lingerie, underwear, cosmetics, swimwear and sex toys. The stores sell two million Rampant Rabbits, a kind of vibrator exclusive to Ann Summers, per year.[8]

Ann Summers parties

Jacqueline Gold initiated the Party Plan concept in 1981.[8] Initially, the Ann Summers parties were as much a way of circumventing regulations restricting the display of sex toys as they were a marketing tactic, but their popularity quickly grew and Ann Summers now employs over 7,500 Party Organisers,[9] coordinated from the Head Office in Surrey. There were around 4,000 Ann Summers parties every week in the UK in 2003.[10]

The Ann Summers parties are women-only,[10] and include the presentation of sex toys and lingerie in the informal setting of someone's home, usually the home of one of the attendees. It can also involve the perusal of a catalogue, and often there are party games.[11]

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Michael Caborn-Waterfield

Michael Caborn-Waterfield

Michael 'Dandy Kim' Caborn-Waterfield was a British businessman and entrepreneur. He is best known for setting up the first Ann Summers sex shop in 1970.

Umbria

Umbria

Umbria is a region of central Italy. It includes Lake Trasimeno and Marmore Falls, and is crossed by the River Tiber. It is the only landlocked region on the Apennine Peninsula. The regional capital is Perugia.

Italy

Italy

Italy, officially the Italian Republic or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern and Western Europe. Located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, it consists of a peninsula delimited by the Alps and surrounded by several islands; its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical region. Italy shares land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia and the enclaved microstates of Vatican City and San Marino. It has a territorial exclave in Switzerland, Campione, and some islands in the African Plate. Italy covers an area of 301,230 km2 (116,310 sq mi), with a population of about 60 million. It is the third-most populous member state of the European Union, the sixth-most populous country in Europe, and the tenth-largest country in the continent by land area. Italy's capital and largest city is Rome.

Marble Arch

Marble Arch

The Marble Arch is a 19th-century white marble-faced triumphal arch in London, England. The structure was designed by John Nash in 1827 to be the state entrance to the cour d'honneur of Buckingham Palace; it stood near the site of what is today the three-bayed, central projection of the palace containing the well-known balcony. In 1851, on the initiative of architect and urban planner Decimus Burton, a one-time pupil of John Nash, it was relocated to its current site. Following the widening of Park Lane in the early 1960s, the site became a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane and Edgware Road, isolating the arch. Admiralty Arch, Holyhead in Wales is a similar arch, also cut off from public access, at the other end of the A5.

David Gold (businessman)

David Gold (businessman)

David Gold was a British businessman. He was the chairman of Birmingham City Football Club until 2009. From 2010 to his death in 2023, he was the joint chairman of West Ham United.

Jacqueline Gold

Jacqueline Gold

Jacqueline Gold was a British businesswoman who was the executive chair of Gold Group International, Ann Summers, and Knickerbox.

Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, to the southwest of Greater London. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. With a population of approximately 1.2 million people, Surrey is the 12th-most populous county in England. The most populated town in Surrey is Woking, followed by Guildford.

Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest in the world.

Channel Islands

Channel Islands

The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, consisting of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, Herm and some smaller islands. They are considered the remnants of the Duchy of Normandy and, although they are not part of the United Kingdom, the UK is responsible for the defence and international relations of the islands. The Crown dependencies are not members of the Commonwealth of Nations, nor have they ever been in the European Union. They have a total population of about 171,916, and the bailiwicks' capitals, Saint Helier and Saint Peter Port, have populations of 33,500 and 18,207, respectively.

Spain

Spain

Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country primarily located in southwestern Europe with parts of territory in the Atlantic Ocean and across the Mediterranean Sea. The largest part of Spain is situated on the Iberian Peninsula; its territory also includes the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, and the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla in Africa. The country's mainland is bordered to the south by Gibraltar; to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea; to the north by France, Andorra and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. With an area of 505,990 km2 (195,360 sq mi), Spain is the second-largest country in the European Union (EU) and, with a population exceeding 47.4 million, the fourth-most populous EU member state. Spain's capital and largest city is Madrid; other major urban areas include Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Zaragoza, Málaga, Murcia, Palma de Mallorca, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and Bilbao.

Cosmetics

Cosmetics

Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect the body or skin. Cosmetics designed to enhance or alter one's appearance (makeup) can be used to conceal blemishes, enhance one's natural features, add color to a person's face, or change the appearance of the face entirely to resemble a different person, creature or object. Cosmetics can also be designed to add fragrance to the body.

Rabbit vibrator

Rabbit vibrator

A rabbit vibrator is a vibrating sex toy, usually made in the shape of a phallic shaft for vaginal stimulation with a clitoral stimulator attached to the shaft. The name of the device is derived from the fact that the clitoral stimulator looks like a pair of rabbit ears. The first rabbit vibrator appeared on the market in 1984 and, along with the magic wand vibrator, is considered by Cosmopolitan magazine to be one of the classic sex toys.

Controversy

Due to the adult nature of the business, Ann Summers has frequently faced opposition, both legal and social. For example, in 2003, they won a legal battle to advertise for employees in job centres[12] and an ASA complaint was rejected.[13]

They have also encountered opposition to their advertising. The company received a letter of complaint from Buckingham Palace, due to a non-endorsed advertisement featuring the Queen.[14]

In 2003, the company's payments to party organisers were discussed by a number of media sources.[15]

In 2004, two complaints were upheld by the ASA.[16] The ASA decided that the first ad was degrading to women, offensive and unsuitable for use as a poster. In the second case the ASA ruled that the use of a reference to the nursery rhyme "Ride a Cock Horse" was likely to attract the attention of children and that the advertisement was unsuitable for the medium in which it appeared.

An Ann Summers lingerie factory in Portsmouth closed in 2005, with over 50 redundancies.[17]

Additionally, Ann Summers in Perth, Scotland, was forced to close after the local people complained about the store (mostly from parents embarrassed by questions raised by their children), which also led to other problems with the store.[18] Perth was originally the only UK town where an Ann Summers store failed to take off.[19] However, in May 2007 the Middleton Grange, Hartlepool store which opened in November 2005 was closed after less than two years of trading due to poor sales.[20]

In 2006, Muslim groups complained about the release of a blow-up doll named Mustafa Shag, claiming that the doll was offensive to Muslims as Mustafa was one of the names given to the Prophet Mohamed.[21]

In 2007, the company faced legal issues with Apple Inc due to its release of an electronic add-on to music players called the iGasm. The company has not backed down despite cease-and-desist orders by Apple.[22] Also, a former director, who is now a Beate Uhse AG employee[23] is pursuing a libel claim against Jacqueline Gold.[24] An advertisement was banned from the London Underground in the same year.[25]

In 2010, Ann Summers' Halloween advertisement was banned by the Radio Advertising Clearance Centre, which decided the advertisement used "fairly overt sexual references in terms of sound effects."[26]

In 2011 an advertising campaign which featured a pastiche of a Marks and Spencer advertisement was withdrawn after a threat of legal action by M&S.[27]

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Advertising Standards Authority (United Kingdom)

Advertising Standards Authority (United Kingdom)

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is the self-regulatory organisation of the advertising industry in the United Kingdom. The ASA is a non-statutory organisation and so cannot interpret or enforce legislation. However, its code of advertising practice broadly reflects legislation in many instances. The ASA is not funded by the British government, but by a levy on the advertising industry.

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It has been a focal point for the British people at times of national rejoicing and mourning.

Nursery rhyme

Nursery rhyme

A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes.

Portsmouth

Portsmouth

Portsmouth is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.

Perth, Scotland

Perth, Scotland

Perth is a city in central Scotland, on the banks of the River Tay. It is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire. It had a population of about 47,430 in 2018.

Hartlepool

Hartlepool

Hartlepool is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is governed by a unitary authority borough named after the town which also governs the civil parishes of Greatham, Hart, Dalton Piercy and Elwick. The borough is part of the devolved Tees Valley area. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County Durham.

Islam

Islam

Islam is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centered around the Quran and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam, called Muslims, number approximately 1.9 billion globally and are the world's second-largest religious population after Christians.

Muhammad

Muhammad

Muhammad was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. He is believed to be the Seal of the Prophets within Islam. Muhammad united Arabia into a single Muslim polity, with the Quran as well as his teachings and practices forming the basis of Islamic religious belief.

Beate Uhse AG

Beate Uhse AG

Beate Uhse Group BV is a German industry group which focuses on selling adult entertainment in the form of sex toys, lingerie, clothing and pornography. It is the most successful company in the German sex industry, and the country's leading pornography retailer.

Halloween

Halloween

Halloween or Hallowe'en is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observance of Allhallowtide, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed.

Source: "Ann Summers", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 20th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ann_Summers.

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References
  1. ^ "Turnover of Ann Summers worldwide from financial year 2010 to 2018". Statista. January 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  2. ^ "Ann Summers Store Finder". Archived from the original on 25 December 2010. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
  3. ^ "Ann Summers to buy Knickerbox". BBC News. 3 April 2000. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  4. ^ "MRS SEX; Girl behind Ann Summers legend is now rich recluse". 3 April 2000 – via The Free Library.
  5. ^ Armstrong, Ashley (15 March 2014). "Ann Summers to sell Knickerbox". The Telegraph. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  6. ^ ZapelliA Web Solutions - www.zapellia.co.uk (31 March 2000). "The History of Ann Summers". Ann Summers Party Plan. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  7. ^ "Ann Summers reshuffles top team". Drapers. 15 February 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Jacqueline-Gold-profile-of-the-chief-executive-of-Ann-Summers". The Telegraph. London. 24 December 2010. Archived from the original on 30 January 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
  9. ^ "DB Consulting : Ann Summers" (PDF). Dbconsulting.co.uk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  10. ^ a b Oaff, Barbara (3 September 2003). "Ann Summers Party Organisers". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
  11. ^ "Ann Summers Catalogue pdf" (PDF). Ann Summers. 24 December 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
  12. ^ "Sex toy chain overturns job adverts ban". Business.scotsman.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2007. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  13. ^ "'Hotbot' adult poster banned". BBC News. 9 April 2003. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  14. ^ Cozens, Claire (26 June 2002). "Queen is not amused by Ann Summers sex ad | Media | MediaGuardian". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  15. ^ Barbara Oaff. "Wage slaves: Ann Summers party organisers | Money | The Guardian". Money.guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  16. ^ [1] Archived 17 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ "Jobs fear at saucy lingerie plant". Portsmouth.co.uk. Archived from the original on 9 June 2010. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  18. ^ "The latest news, sport, showbiz and comment from". the Sunday Mail. 11 August 2009. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  19. ^ "The latest news, sport, showbiz and comment from". the Sunday Mail. 11 August 2009. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  20. ^ Willis, Ian (15 May 2007). "It's the last of the Summers line". Hartlepool Mail. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  21. ^ "Emma, Ann and a sex doll that upsets Muslims". London: News.independent.co.uk. 9 February 2006. Archived from the original on 11 October 2008. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  22. ^ "Apple v Ann Summers in iGasm spat". Macworld.co.uk. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  23. ^ Michael Vaughan, Beate Uhse (30 October 2002). "Sex war threat haunts UK High Streets". BBC News. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  24. ^ [2] Archived 23 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ "Ann Summers Rabbit ads banned from the Tube". 23 August 2007. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  26. ^ "Ann Summers has 'offensive' Halloween advert banned | Metro News". Metro.co.uk. 22 October 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  27. ^ "Ann Summers pulls Squeal Deal after M&S threats". 20 April 2011. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
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