BATH, U.K. — Lovehoney is the subject of a new fly-on-the-wall TV series starting on Valentine's Day, called “The Joy of Sex Toys.”
The show takes a behind-the-scenes look at the sex toy firm with sales of $65 million a year.
The four-part series, starting on the Lifetime satellite channel at 10 p.m. on Sunday for U.K. and Ireland viewers, focuses on the characters who work in the Lovehoney warehouse in Bath.
The company says the show is debuting after Lovehoney’s busiest day in its 14-year history, which was yesterday, Feb. 8, with a surge of orders ahead of Valentine's. Sales last year were up 53 percent and profits are up 79 percent to $5.3 million.
Lovehoney staff numbers have grown by 36 percent in the last year. It now has 228 full-time staff, up from 167 a year ago, and it has further temporary staff working during busy times such as the run-up to Valentine's.
Each episode features strong, character-driven storylines from a cast of pickers, packers, buyers, customer care staff, toy reviewers and the team at Lovehoney’s returns department.
Customers can return any toy for up to a year after purchase even if it is not faulty, and it is rubber-gloved Andrea and Katrina’s job to sort through all the returned packages and customers’ hilarious accompanying letters.
Viewers will see MTV stars Marnie Simpson and Chloe Goodman promote new lingerie lines while bosses are signing up rockers Motörhead for a new range of sex toys. Episode one also features the Lovehoney team at the 2015 XBIZ awards in L.A., collecting a clutch of awards.
The show also includes Laura and Chris who fell in love while working at Lovehoney.
The series travels to Brisbane to look at the sex revolution across Australia with the Lovehoney team.
The Joy of Sex Toys is Lovehoney’s third TV collaboration following the successful documentary “More Sex Please, We’re British” and an earlier six-part reality series for Lifetime called “Frisky Business.”
All the TV shows have been made by Oblong Films. They have been picked up by Netflix and screened in the U.S. and across various channels in more than 15 countries.
Lovehoney co-owner Richard Longhurst said, “TV has really worked for Lovehoney and helped us to market the brand globally.
“We have been lucky to work with a brilliant team at Oblong who are great at capturing the fun and excitement and occasional craziness of working for Britain’s biggest online sex toy retailer.
“Oblong have full editorial control so we genuinely don’t know what is going to be featured until it is sent to the broadcasters.
“We have assembled such an eclectic staff who love being on TV and create compelling episodes through the bizarre things they often have to do selling sexual happiness around the world.”
Oblong’s Jonny Young, executive producer, said: “We’ve loved working with Lovehoney. They realize that to make great TV we need great stories, and there are lots of those lurking in that huge warehouse in Bath.”
