Each month, 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.
This month's Woman in Adult is truly a gal who needs no introduction. Donna Faro has achieved celebrity status in the pleasure industry as a TV shopping network star and natural-born pioneer in bringing luxury vibrators to the mainstream.
I will be doing my very best to make a difference for our industry, helping to break down barriers and continue to level it up to where it belongs.
Best known for her 13 years with LELO, Faro brought sex toys under the studio lights on the E-Vine (now SHOPHQ) late-night home shopping network, where she appeared alongside the industry's classiest silicone designs. Offering viewers the power to make purchases in their own homes, Faro's sales pitches struck a chord with consumers seeking only the most discreet, high-quality experience with pleasure products — many for the very first time.
Now, in 2021, Faro has stepped into the next chapter of her story as vice president of sales and marketing for high-end cannabis beauty and sensual wellness line, High On Love. Faro brings her expertise to her new position as the right hand of company president and longtime friend and collaborator, Angela Mustone. With a novel challenge at hand, Faro is ready to dive into creativity and innovation all over again.
Faro is a face to watch into 2022 and beyond. In her Women in Adult profile, she tells XBIZ Premiere that she'll be thriving, (occasionally) failing, and reaching for the stars in the name of pushing High On Love to the top of the game.
XBIZ: What a whirlwind year and a half it’s been! How have 2020 and 2021 brought changes to your career?
FARO: There have been a few changes to say the least. First and foremost, 2020 was a year of self-reflection for sure. With the changes in the business and in the world, I decided to pursue mainly the “pulse points” of job satisfaction by wrangling my wish list and saying hello to the unknown, leaving my role at LELO and in 2021 joining forces with High On Love, where they had similar goals and ideas on how to achieve them.
XBIZ: You’ve been in the pleasure space for... gosh, how many years now? What are some of the biggest and best strides we’ve made in the industry within that time span?
FARO: I’ve been fortunate to spend 13 years in the pleasure industry thus far, coming up on 14 this summer! Looking back, the changes I have seen are countless, from — obviously — product development and technology advancements, but more mind-blowing is the overall acceptance of this special and controversial category in sales channels we only dreamed possible all those years ago.
XBIZ: Tell us about your most recent career move, to High On Love. How did this business relationship come about? Why was HOL such a great fit for you at this juncture?
FARO: I have known Angela Mustone, founder and president of High On Love, from practically day one in the industry. We met just like many of us tend to meet, at a trade show in Canada. Our tables were across from each other. After having dinner together that night, we gravitated towards one another as business associates and friends over many common interests, but mainly over our drive to be successful in a business that was emerging (right place, right time) and our desire to pioneer what had not been attempted in the industry before: new approaches and a fresh outlook by bringing the shame out of the dark corners and making it a “chic” experience to purchase sex and intimacy products proudly, and changing the language of how we were described as an industry, therefore elevating the business. When High On Love was in the early stages, Angela and I spent many hours conceptualizing and dreaming for her big debut. I couldn’t be happier for her and now myself, that I get to share this with her as her vice president.
XBIZ: Why are you especially excited to be with HOL at this point in time? What great things can the industry and consumers expect from your brand this year?
FARO: Exciting me the most about High On Love is the similar excitement I felt with LELO back in 2008, and that is a disruptive and nonconformative daily plight to set ourselves apart. High On Love is the most unique line in not only the pleasure business, but in the wellness and beauty categories, period. As I am working with beauty editors and buyers, I am 10 confident that our brand is the ultimate “hybrid concept.” Our product lineup for 2021 is already breaking company records. With interesting, unexpected products and premium ingredients in the “Clean Beauty” category, HOL has really started to hit its stride. I really enjoy educating our partners on how we aren’t in any “one” bucket (for optimum crossover), and that it is best to create new thought processes on how consumers purchase and why they purchase. This is what retailers are seeking. When those “Aha” moments sync up during partnership meetings, there’s nothing that makes me prouder than to be in the right place at the right time (again).
XBIZ: Looking back on your career, what highlights stand out the most to you? What job positions or career timeline decisions are you the most proud of?
FARO: Meeting Pavle Sedic of LELO back in 2008 was a life-changing and most memorable experience of course. I remember thinking, “This man is onto something.” To this day we are friends and I treasure this most of all. I am most proud I joined him at LELO, and of everything we achieved there as a young team. Working together with amazing people like Candice Talamo and Pat Manginelli in those early years, and still being able to call on them to this day for feedback and ideas is priceless and special.
One of our greatest achievements is bringing intimacy and pleasure to mainstream network TV in both the U.S. and Canada at Evine (now SHOPHQ) and CityTV. The passion poured into this by us at LELO was historical to say the least. Millions can now experience our industry’s best products detailed to them all in the comfort and privacy of their own home, and purchase them immediately by clicking “buy” online or [buying them] in a retail location of their choice later on. These are not paid-for “commercials.” These are programs with special guests aired on network TV channels that reach and educate many, many millions of viewers. Being a main presenter and product expert on these shows and managing that business day-to-day is indescribable, and it’s a roller coaster I never want to end. Something I can say I am proudly a pioneer of with a few others is launching this endeavor. Luckily, High On Love carries a torch here as well, and I am still living this dream with them on network TV today.
XBIZ: Which industry women were most poignant in helping you define yourself in your industry career? Did you have any personal heroes or mentors that you looked up to?
FARO: Obviously, I love working with people that inspire me, so Angela Mustone and her tenacity and creativity are amazing to join in on and be a part of today. Pavle and Filip Sedic, the founders of LELO, left a huge impact on me as I make decisions and navigate my career. Their success has been just amazing to watch. I don’t really like to define myself. Sometimes my ideals are seemingly grand and over the top, but what I will say is that I am looking for the next big achievement where I am scared to death, willing to fall down, and try it until I get it right. No matter who is “watching!”
XBIZ: How will you be returning to some semblance of “normal” this year, as far as industry interaction goes? Where can your clients and friends find you in 2021?
FARO: I hope to return back to in-studio live TV airings as a step towards normal. For me, spreading the word that pleasure is healthy and helping to form our gem, High On Love, from humble beginnings into a powerhouse in the beauty and wellness industries, is something that once you’ve experienced, you want to do again and again. In 2021, I will try to continue to bring a different perspective to everyone I meet and have the pleasure to work with. I will be doing my very best to make a difference for our industry, helping to break down barriers and continue to level it up to where it belongs. I am super excited for a “new normal” and new success with the amazing team at High On Love, and keeping the looming 2022 in the front view!
