Ann Reidy established herself as a business owner even before she co-founded Sensuous in 2003 as a distribution company alongside life partner Keith Jones. In 2009, the couple began to develop their own products, and today, Sensuous enjoys success all over the word.
As the director of Sensuous, Reidy takes a hands-on approach to establishing the company’s relationships with its international clientele, as well as handles a variety of other responsibilities. She enjoys wearing many hats at Sensuous, and thanks to her optimistic personality and go-getter attitude, Reidy is set on continuing to bolster Sensuous’ global success. In this month’s edition of Women In Adult, we profile Reidy as she discusses her motivation and multifaceted role.
Each day brings lots of new rewards, and I am constantly grateful for them.
XBIZ: What is your role and responsibility as the director of Sensuous?
Ann Reidy: As with any small business my role can change from day to day and one has to learn to be flexible and adaptable. So some days I could be making the coffee, chasing up payments, catching a plane, packing boxes, being involved in product development or even better enjoying the fun of product testing. No two days are ever the same, which is great. However my true role is director of new business development, which I thoroughly enjoy. I love the challenge of meeting new people and opening up new accounts.
XBIZ: How (and when) did you get into the business?
Reidy: I have been involved in my own businesses for almost all of my adult life. Before emigrating to Australia my life-long partner (who also just happens to be the other director of Sensuous) and I had a very successful corporate video production company in the U.K., and nothing beats the feeling of being your own boss. Sensuous was launched in Australia in 2003 when we started importing and distributing a number of adult products. We decided in 2009 that it was time to take that huge (some might say foolish step) and develop our own range of products. Starting from scratch was probably a little more challenging than we ever imagined and the first couple of years were quite tough. However Sensuous has now truly evolved into becoming a multinational company bringing love and romance into the lives of many couples.
XBIZ: What challenges have you confronted in your career and how have you overcome them?
Reidy: All people face frustrating challenges in their careers and it is having the resilience to dust yourself down, put on a huge smile and never give up. For many years I have had this written on my white board: “No matter who you are, no matter what you do, you absolutely positively have the power,” and I constantly remind myself of this. Enrolling in good sales training and motivation courses many years ago was probably one of the best decisions I have ever made. They taught me how to set goals, how to keep positive and most importantly to never give up.
XBIZ: What is the most rewarding part of your job?
Reidy: Each day brings lots of new rewards and I am constantly grateful for them. One of my greatest thrills is waking up in the morning, enjoying a cappuccino and seeing the orders that have come in overnight from the other side of the world. Designing and producing brand new products from conception to the shelf can be truly challenging but then nothing beats the excitement of walking into stores and seeing the Sensuous range proudly displayed alongside a number of international brands.
XBIZ: What is your personal motto or mantra that you live by?
Reidy: This is an easy one as I like pumping myself up with good vibes, so most probably: “Your level of success is determined by your level of discipline and perseverance.”
I hope you don’t mind me adding a second one which is maybe even more important, and that is: “To treat others as you like to be treated yourself.”
XBIZ: What career accomplishment are you most proud of?
Reidy: Building and maintaining our own business here in Australia and creating the Sensuous brand of gorgeous lotions and potions. In particular I am extremely proud of having created Edge, our unique award-winning male delay product that we ship thousands of each week. I often joke that “I am responsible for giving hundreds of men love happiness and pleasure around the world on a daily basis.” To top it off at the end of last year we started manufacturing and distributing EDGE USA in the States in order to keep up with the demands of our U.S. customers.
XBIZ: What are your professional goals for 2017?
Reidy: I should really try and learn Mandarin, but seriously I don’t think that this is ever going to happen. I much prefer to spend my spare time at the gym working out in aerobic classes and then sharing a well-earned coffee with my gym buddies. More realistically the goal for 2017 is to double the turnover of Sensuous, which we have now done consistently over the last three years. I am also very much looking forward to continue to travel the world and meeting lots of new faces and introducing them to the Sensuous brand.
Each month, industry news media organization XBIZ spotlights the career accomplishments and outstanding contributions of Women in Adult. WIA profiles offer an intimate look at the professional lives of the industry's most influential female executives.
