Porn Baron To Open Sex Shop

American porn baron Larry Flynt will jet into the Midlands this summer to open up the first in a chain of raunchy Hustler sex stores.

The notorious publisher has struck a deal with a group of British businessmen to launch 'Hustler Hollywood UK' shops across the UK - and Birmingham is first on his list.

An astonishing budget of £8 MILLION has been set aside to buy, kit out and launch the first two Hustler branches, the second of which will be in London.

But the Brum store will be the first to start trading, with Mr Flynt flying in for a grand opening ceremony on June 1.

A 6,000 square-foot site in Birmingham's High Street is currently being targeted, where it will compete with rivals like Ann Summers, run by Brummie business-woman Jackie Gold.

The Hustler store will stock sex toys, furniture and branded clothing - and will include a "lifestyle" cafe.

It will also feature bleached wood floors and house up to 34 employees.

The shop does not require a special licence because no hardcore pornography or "extreme" sex aids will be on offer.

If successful, it will provide the blueprint for stores across the UK, including London, Nottingham, Liverpool and Manchester.

The men behind the bid say the shops could be followed by Hustler "gentlemen's" clubs to take on Birmingham's already crowded lap-dancing market.

Last night Hustler UK company secretary Roger Ede told the Sunday Mercury: "We are spending £8 million on the UK launch and planning to invest £25 million on top of that, rolled out over the next two years.

"We think the market is big enough for both us and Ann Summers. They are limited in the size of their stores, while we are seeking bigger premises and looking at a more upmarket clientele.

"The target audience we are looking at is couples aged between 19 and 26. Hustler Hollywood stores in America attract women as well as men and that is what we are aiming for.

"If they are successful then, yes, gentle-men's clubs could follow."

Hustler's American stores are centred in Los Angeles, where Mr Flynt's empire is based, and are run by his daughter Theresa.

Mr Flynt is notorious in the US for his magazines' hardcore content, which has included gang rapes and torture in the past. He also once tried to shoot an ex-wife.

Yet he is a hero to American liberals after fighting a series of obscenity lawsuits on the basis of the right to free speech.

His successful legal battles were immortalised in the 1996 film, The People vs Larry Flynt, starring Woody Harrelson.

Last night Jackie Gold, daughter of Birmingham City FC chairman David Gold and the woman behind the Ann Summers chain, said she was sceptical about Hustler's chances of success in the UK.

"From my knowledge of the magazine and their store, Hustler is very much a sex shop targeted at men selling top-shelf magazines and videos," she said.

"So I don't really see them as a threat or as competition to Ann Summers.

"We are a unique concept targeted very much at women and couples, selling sexy lingerie and sex toys via our infamous parties and 112 retail stores.

"I can't see Hustler being successful on the high street because of its association with the magazine."


Feb 29 2004
Exclusive by Tom Wells, Sunday Mercury