Lovehoney Founders Thank E.L. James For ‘Fifty Shades’ Sales Boost

BATH, England—As mainstream media continues to buzz about the books and film version of Fifty Shades of Grey, manufacturers connote to capitalize on the craze, with the founders of Lovehoney going so far as to personally thank E.L. James themselves. "The massive social media reach for Fifty Shades of Grey demonstrates that the brand is the perfect and easy way to instantly engage with consumers in store and online," said  Lovehoney co-founder Richard Longhurst. "Fifty Shades of Grey is simply in a different league when it comes to consumer brand recognition." Research from digital advertising firm Pixability reveals that Fifty Shades of Grey material had more than 329 million views on social media in the run up to Valentine's Day.  The Official Fifty Shades of Grey movie trailers and advertisements garnered more than 113 million views on YouTube. Speaking in an interview with Variety Magazine, Pixability's Chief Technology Officer Andrea Goeldi said, "It's the most successful launch from a trailer-view perspective in some time." Fifty Shades of Grey also enjoyed 3 million Facebook likes and 2.1 million Facebook shares. This kind of exposure on social media combined with record-breaking box office figures and unprecedented book sales has cemented Fifty Shades of Grey as a credible brand, instantly recognisable to people all around the world. Lovehoney, the UK's biggest online sex toy retailer, owns the exclusive global rights to manufacture all Official Fifty Shades of Grey pleasure products. The firm saw first hand the power of social media, experiencing spikes in sales after each trailer was released and has seen popularity for their items soar in recent weeks. "We sold over a million Fifty Shades of Grey items in 2014 and we can already see that 2015 will be even bigger—sales in advance of the movie release and in the days that followed have surpassed all expectations," said Longhurst. Lovehoney has three Official Fifty Shades of Grey ranges: The Pleasure Collection, The Sensual Collection and the recently launched Red Room Collection, which consists of 10 high-quality leather bondage items inspired by scenes from the film.  The company worked closely with E L James to create all three lines and Lovehoney is credited in the Fifty Shades of Grey movie as official supplier of products seen in the Red Room.  For more information about stocking any of the Official Fifty Shades of Grey items, contact the Lovehoney Trade Sales team at  tradesalesteam@lovehoney.co.uk.   Pictured: Richard Longhurst (left) and Neal Slateford (right) present Fifty Shades of Grey author E.L. James with a plaque to celebrate 1 million Fifty Shades of Grey unit sales at the launch of The Red Room Collection.