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“After the crash, people weren’t hiring photographers the way they used to before, so I had to look for another job. I already had a growing interest in product design at the time, especially with body safe sex toys. One day, while I was shopping around for a toy for myself, I realised that most of the sex shops in Ireland were dark, male-dominated places and they didn’t offer a comfortable shopping experience. There are still places I don’t like going in to, even now, and I run my own sex shop. It was here that the idea came to me, of creating a space that provided a more personalised shopping experience. After doing my research I quickly realised that renting a space in the middle of a recession would be very pricey, so instead, I started my business online. To be honest, I did not know that it would be such hard work, but I cared deeply about it and it seemed like a lot of fun! The first year was extremely hard, but every now and then I’d get a little reminder to keep on going. For example, not too long ago, I received a call from a woman in her seventies whose husband had died. She told me that she wouldn’t be caught dead in a sex shop, and explained that she had been a widow for two years at that point. She did not want to date anyone because she had loved her husband so dearly, but she felt the sexual frustration was getting to her, and looked to me for help with picking a toy. It was probably one of the loveliest call I have ever received. Her bravery to contact me and to have placed such trust in me, made me realise why I got into this business in the first place. That’s what keeps me going every day.”
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