'50 Shades of Grey' spurs sale of sex toys

Sales of blindfolds and hand cuffs - both used in the bestselling novel Fifty Shades of Grey - are flying off the shelves at sex stores around the country.

“We’ve seen a 35% increase in sales over the last six weeks,” says a representative for sex store Sexyland, who believes the spike can be directly attributed to the Fifty Shades trilogy.

The rep told Yahoo7: “I think the books have encouraged women to be more open about their sex lives. Women in their 30s and 40s are coming into our stores and asking about experimenting with bondage products such as cuffs, whips and restraints.”

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Fifty Shades of Grey and the other titles in the trilogy, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed have been a hit with females and topped best sellers’ lists for the past eight weeks.

Penned by British author E.L. James the series explores the theme of BDSM - Bondage, Discipline, Sadomasochism, which means erotic power exchange. The protagonist S&M hunk Christian Grey introduces the book’s innocent young heroine Anastasia Steele to the world of bondage and female submission.

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The kinky scenes have clearly hit a note with Australian women. Sydney housewife Judy Davies confesses: “Bondage had never been my thing but after reading the novels I decided to spice up my love life and experiment with hand ties and whips. My husband was so pleased I’ve encouraged my friends to do the same!”

A similar trend has occurred in the US with reports hardware stores have seen an increase in women buying soft-cotton ‘clothes line’ rope.

Clifton Kahn, the owner of Lexington Hardware on the Upper East Side, told the New York Times: 'Oh, we've been selling rope to women. I'd say tenfold more rope than usual in the last six months. The women are definitely buying, and it's still continuing.'

Claire Cavanah, co-founder of sexy chain store Babeland in America explains, “The book is just an explosion of permission for women to try something new in the bedroom.”

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In Australia Sexyland is embracing the popularity of the literary trilogy and has launched ‘5 Shades of Fun’ to coincide with the global phenomenon. The nationwide promotion simplifies the mysterious world of BDSM-based erotic products by offering five levels of intimacy for curious couples to the more adventurous.

For those new to BDSM feather ticklers, blindfolds and candle wax are recommended but for advanced couples suggestions include butt plugs, hoods and ball gags.

Curious? Visit Sexyland

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