If it doesn’t happen under lock and key, Tom Nardone isn’t interested in selling it. From the bedroom to the bathroom, Nardone is the king of capturing consumers who could use a little assistance in their most vulnerable moments.
Over the last few years, Nardone, an industry veteran in both retail and manufacturing, has branched out from his famous brands to reach the adults-only market in new and equally helpful ways. Under the umbrella of his parent company, PriveCo, Nardone can do more of what he loves, which he says is to simply “do nice things” and “meet nice people” — a topic upon which Nardone revealingly expands later.
PriveCo started in 1998 as a way for people to buy things they were embarrassed to purchase in public.
Nardone’s sexual health brands, like Vibrators.com and Bachelorette.com, are likely the most recognizable for XBIZ readers. However, Nardone’s first website was more of a pharmacy than an adult boutique. “PriveCo started in 1998 as a way for people to buy things they were embarrassed to purchase in public,” he tells of his first e-tail venture. “Our first website was actually an online drugstore. ShopInPrivate.com was started to sell things like hemorrhoid creams, absorbent underwear and condoms.”
Much like today’s pharmacies that have started selling pleasure products, Nardone found that folks wanted to top off their shopping carts with something more fun than an anal analgesic. Nardone then spent the next 23 years perfecting the art of the niche adult store.
Nardone explains his approach in terms of keeping it simple with a narrow product focus. For instance, he notes that on Vibrators.com, “We really only sell vibrators. You won’t see lingerie, nor a tremendous S&M section, or anything like that. We just want to be world’s experts on vibrators … We have testing equipment to test how loud and how powerful they are. We use these measurements to help separate the marketing talk from the truth about the toys in the market, and it allows us to sell only the best vibrators. We work hard to make every customer happy with their vibrator purchase.”
Similarly, Bachelorette.com is a throwback to the kind of silly, obnoxious yet undeniably humorous bachelorette party gags of the 1990s brick-and-mortar heyday.
“Bachelorette.com may be my favorite,” Nardone reveals with a smile. “It is the world’s largest bachelorette party store and sells all sorts of ridiculous stuff … They say a bad joke never gets old because it was stale from the start. That’s how I felt about bachelorette party items. The gags are just as bad now as they ever were, but they still make me laugh.”
Now Nardone has his sights set on another primarily adult-focused niche that, according to him, is just as friendly and altruistic as the pleasure space.
“This year we launched Dignity Lifts, which are electrically lifting toilet seats for people who struggle with standing up on their own,” says Nardone.
“The toilet lift business is similar to sex toys,” he continues. “The industry is full of healthcare workers. They are people that get joy from helping others. They are like us. Helpful, friendly — not quite as sexy, but truly nice.”
Nardone admits his new business might not conjure any sales with adult retailers. However, he believes the success of Dignity Lifts is a testament to the big shifts happening between the mainstream and adult worlds.
“In the past, when you entered the adult products business, it seemed like you may never be eligible to work outside it again. I don’t think that is true any longer,” reflects Nardone. “People are more open-minded now. A company that sells vibrators can now sell healthcare items.”
In a surprising twist, Nardone’s entrepreneurial spirit landed PriveCo in another mainstream industry that’s similarly interested in bullets and quality plastics — though ultimately not the type Nardone felt comfortable promoting.
In 2013, PriveCo launched a brand of bulletproof vests that Nardone says were affordable and extremely successful. However, Nardone said he was happy when another company purchased said business in 2020.
“One of my favorite sayings is, ‘When you do nice things, you meet nice people,’” says Nardone, circling back to his earlier sentiment. “The adult products industry is a wonderful place full of people who really want to help others. My foray into the bulletproof vest business showed me the opposite. Bulletproof vests attracted people who weren’t nice.”
Among insiders, the pleasure industry is famous for evenings spent with clients and friends over dinner, drinks, and plenty of laughs and good cheer. Nardone says the topics of conversation were less than cheerful in the presence of gun enthusiasts.
“Most of my dealers and buyers were in the gun industry,” recalls Nardone. “Their employees and everyone in the industry lived and breathed guns … Dinner conversations revolved around guns and when you can legally, not morally, use them. Everyone there seemed to have a plan for when they were going to get to use their gun to kill somebody. I was happy to exit that business and to leave those people alone.”
Today, Nardone has returned in full force to the industries that put a smile on his face for all the right reasons: sexual health and mobility assistance.
Nardone encourages the next generation of sex toy sellers, marketers and makers to stick with whatever work brings positivity into their lives.
“As someone who has bought and sold all sorts of products, I realized that some products attract the right people. Products that help people attract the best people,” says Nardone. “Our products help people reach orgasms, which is a much more noble cause than society realizes. I like the people who know this. That’s who I want in my tribe.”
Though we’re still a long way from total mainstream acceptance, Nardone hopes to spread the word that the adult products industry is “a wonderful place full of people who really want to help others”and “a great place to build a career and to make lifelong friendships.”
“If I had any advice for younger generations of pleasure professionals, it would be to become the nice person that you want to surround yourself with,” concludes Nardone. “This will attract your tribe and you will live happily ever after.
