The “Fifty Shades of Grey” effect knows no bounds — not even for the gags, restraints, ticklers and toys its helping move in sex shops across the country.
TheWrap spoke with standalone boutiques and national chains about sales spikes following the film’s staggering $94.4 million opening weekend, and they’re reporting back with record nunbers and rampant interest in the BDSM toys central to the Jamie Dornan–Dakota Johnson romance.
Babeland, a bi-coastal operation that markets largely to females, said sales of accessories in the BDSM category are up 90 percent from last February with their locations in Seattle and New York posting best-ever in-store numbers. Their official website also posted a five-year high in online purchases.
“In more than twenty years of business, I’ve never seen a cultural force like this,” Claire Cavanah, co-founder of Babeland, told TheWrap.
The range of products available include riding crops, leather cuffs, anal plugs, blindfolds and paddles. The chain also hosts sex workshops in select markets, and this February’s theme is “Fifty Shades.” The workshop scheduled for this Friday at the Soho location has attracted a record-breaking 1100 RSVP’s and counting.
Purple Passion, a high-end fetish boutique in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood, said foot traffic has been dialed up since “Fifty Shades” won the President’s Day weekend box office.
“We specialize in BDSM and fetish wear, so we carry a lot of clothing here, latex, leather and shiny toys,” a spokesperson for the shop said, “we’ve definitely had people running in who have seen the film.”
Some clientele haven’t even seen the movie, but their significant others have sent them out to purchase gear for exploratory fun.
“I just had a woman whose boyfriend went to see it and now he wants to try, she bought an outfit, a cane, blindfolds and french tickler,” the rep said. And given that the film has inspired a rush of purchasing, it’s done the same for instructional material and what to do with those whips and chains.
Adult video site Pornhub.com said searches for video clips related to bondage increased 45 percent over the Valentine’s Day weekend. Specifically the phrases “naughty swinger wife,” “make her scream” and “cupid” saw 636 percent, 518 percent and 433 percent increases in search activity.
“Fifty Shades of Grey” based on the blockbuster novels by E.L. James, made $245 million around the globe last weekend. Expect those bondage sales to surge for years to come, as sequels based on the books — “Fifty Shades Darker” and “Fifty Shades Feed” — are rumored to be in motion.