opinion

Knock it Off

Like the fake Louis Vuitton bags that litter Manhattan’s streets, rip-offs can be found in almost any industry. If it’s not a designer bag, it’s a watch or a designer shirt; the fact is, copying is an inherent part of business.

As the adult industry takes steps to become part of the mainstream marketplace, companies are forced to compete more with one another, making copying commonplace.

“All design is a synthesis of what has come before, and it’s unavoidable,” says Greg DeLong, head designer and co-founder of Njoy. “There is a natural undercurrent of design elements that start to bear a family resemblance between companies in any industry.”

Since Njoy began a little more than two years ago, DeLong has sought ways to make his designs harder to copy. He not only drew up unique shapes and forms for his toys but also decided to make them in stainless steel, something no one in the industry had used in production.

“Even with copying, unique design is going to grow,” DeLong says. “And that’s the real strategy to not being copied — just simply stay ahead of the others.”

For a small company like Njoy that is just getting its footing, legal protection can be pricey. Instead of investing right away in copyright or patents, DeLong says to stay focused on what other product ideas you can come up with.

“If we got copied, we wouldn’t spend money on lawyers,” he says. “We’d spend it on the next product we are going to make, something that keeps us ahead of existing competition and whatever rip-off they have.”

The financial burden of legal protection hasn’t stopped Stockroom President Mike Herman from obtaining patents and copyrights for his product line. In November, he filed for a patent for the Bolero Straitjacket, designed with a completely open chest that allows the wearer’s chest and body to be accessible.

“[Customers] will be assured that when they buy a toy or garment with the Stockroom label they are getting hand-crafted, quality products from a first-rate design and manufacturing house and not a cheap overseas knockoff made with inferior quality control,” he told XBIZ in November.

A rip-off is not always obvious to the company owner or consumer because it’s not a direct copy. Instead, it incorporates several design elements from different companies. DeLong has seen many pieces of his products incorporated into lower-priced toys.

“We aren’t necessarily happy about people grabbing from our designs, but I would be far more alarmed if it was a one-to-one copy or they were making things out of stainless steel,” he says.

Sometimes copying actually can help small or new businesses, says Christian Trinker, founder of Funfactory USA.

“Products that copy parts of our designs actually help raise awareness about our company and high-quality products in general,” Trinker says. “A copy is a compliment; it means you are good enough for people to replicate.”

However, when a company copied Funfactory’s Smart Balls, vaginal balls used for Kegel exercises, the company didn’t hesitate to take legal action.

“They took our product even down to the name, so in that case your legal grounds are obvious,” Trinker said. “In a situation like that, you must sue them because it could ruin your business.”

The biggest threat moving forward, Trinker says, is protecting designs in Chinese production mills, where a few of his designs have been copied. This is a problem not only for small businesses like Funfactory but also for powerhouse manufacturers like Topco Sales.

“In the past when we have come up with a unique design, we go to a Chinese vendor to make it,” says Desiree Duffie, director of public relations and marketing at Topco. “Then that vendor turns around and sells it to our competition for a cheaper cost because we’ve already paid for the work.”

This costs the company “hundreds of thousands of dollars,” says Duffie, which inspired them to merge with High Tech Novelties, a Chinese adult toy company. The partnership gives Topco its own staff and operations in China, eliminating any chance that its designs will be sold.

Despite the increasing amount of copying in the industry, Tantus CEO Michael Smith isn’t losing sleep over the rip-offs on store shelves.

“We are in a financial crunch right now, and when that happens people research more before they buy something,” Smith says. “They are going to go online and find out who has the best product.”

Smith has dealt with copying since he first started at the company. California Exotic Novelties sent a cease and desist letter that told Tantus to stop manufacturing a product called the Cascade Vibrator; the name had already been used for one of California Exotic Novelties’ products. Smith made sure it happened. Within 15 minutes, the name was taken off the product, and the matter was resolved.

“The letter wasn’t relaxed by any means, but it was resolved very simply because Tantus didn’t want to lose market share based on a name,” he says.

Smith has sent similar letters when his own designs have been copied.

He says that although copying will continue to be a problem, the move for adult companies to be more accepted into the mainstream market will safeguard business. With mentions in such magazines as Marie Claire and Health and Fitness and on mainstream retail websites Drugstore.com and Amazon.com, people are becoming more secure with buying sex toys.

Smith says that as soon as the consumer grows more comfortable walking into an adult store, the rip-offs won’t be able to compete with the real thing. “Even with copying, there are tons of innovative products out there, and they are diversifying the adult marketplace,” he says. “Eventually the consumer will want the highest quality and not the $5.99 jelly replacement.”

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More Articles

opinion

Mitigating Retail Shrink Through Intelligent Video Solutions

Retail shrink isn’t just a cost of doing business — it’s an existential threat. Theft, fraud, operational inefficiencies and employee mismanagement chip away at profits in ways that many business owners don’t even realize.

Sean Quinn ·
opinion

The Power of Authenticity in Selling Pleasure Products

I’ve been working in the pleasure industry for more than two decades. For a significant chunk of that time, I thought that to be successful in sales, I had to fit a mold. I assumed that selling meant following a formula: say the right things, use the right voice and present myself in a way that was guaranteed to convert.

Kimberly Scott Faubel ·
profile

Dennis DeSantis on Building a Blockbuster Career in Adult Retail

The adult industry and the mainstream Hollywood scene often intersect, and few executives are more familiar with that crossover than Dennis DeSantis.

Ariana Rodriguez ·
profile

'Pleasure Professionals Place' Facebook Group Marks 5 Years of Fostering Connections

Where can you find the pleasure industry’s most tantalizing, trending and relevant conversational banter? For once, we’re not talking about a trade show after-party!

Colleen Godin ·
opinion

How Cannabis Culture Is Reshaping Sexual Wellness, Pleasure

April is a month of celebration: Lovers Day, Earth Day… and 4/20. Once a subculture symbol, “420” has evolved into a movement that bridges cannabis advocacy, wellness and an increasingly vital discussion around sexual health and pleasure.

Ian Kulp ·
profile

WIA Profile: Holly Corbella

Even during last year’s retail slump, the adult home party business continued to rock and roll — at least in New Jersey. Just ask Holly Corbella. Based in the Garden State, Corbella is the founder, CEO and lead party planner for Parties by Bellas, an intimate, in-home sex toy event company focusing on creating budget-friendly home parties for women on the East Coast.

Women In Adult ·
profile

Friday Bae Founder Benoit Palix Discusses Brand's Gen Z Focus

French sexual wellness brand Friday Bae is aiming to disrupt the market with its genderfluid, inclusive pleasure products. With bright pops of color for Gen Z and millennials to swoon over, Friday Bae is merging creativity and education for fans, dubbed the “Bae Squad.”

Namma Karp ·
profile

Self Serve's Matie Fricker on Promoting Sex-Positivity in Albuquerque

For 18 years, Self Serve has been providing a sex-positive space for adult toys and resources to folks in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The story behind its success is all about making connections: connecting with your passion, with your business partner, with your customers, with your staff and with your community.

Justin Goodrum ·
opinion

Why Inclusivity in the Pleasure Industry Is More Important Than Ever

2025 has kicked off with a series of unsettling events. Tension and anxiety are high across North America as the unknown impact of tariffs, climate change and attacks on human rights loom ominously. In times of unrest, seeking pleasure is not frivolity but necessity.

Sarah Tomchesson ·
opinion

2025's Top Tech Trends That Adult Retailers Should Know About

I just got back from the National Retail Federation’s Annual Convention & Expo, also known as “Retail’s Big Show,” where I walked the floor, sat in on key panels, talked with industry experts and influencers, and did my best to sift through the b.s. so I could report back to you all on the things you need to care about.

Sean Quinn ·
Show More