"We never know where life’s going to take us,” says Mike Savage.
He should know. The pleasure biz veteran, who describes himself as “a poor Irish kid from Philly,” first made his name in the adult retail biz over the course of a nearly 40-year career that saw him rise to become president of Fantasy Lingerie following decades as a key sales executive for East Coast News and IVD. Now, he has returned to the industry after stepping away for a decade.
There’s a nice feeling when you finally lay your head down on the pillow, knowing you put smiles on people’s faces around the world.
“I never thought I’d be back in adult retail,” Savage reflects. “It’s really been an amazing journey that has taken me back to where I started. That’s why I named my new company Full Circle.”
Based in South Florida, Full Circle Distribution functions in tandem with Miami Distro, the smoke shop distributor that Savage built over the last decade.
“Miami Distro is a smoke shop distributor,” Savage says. “I make my own CBD, delta, kratom and nicotine vape pens. We have our own nitrous oxide. We make a brand called Smoxy that offers lighters, torches, candles and room sprays.
“We just signed a licensing deal with the Grateful Dead!” he adds. “So we will be releasing a whole line of products under this license.”
Full Circle Distribution/Miami Distro aims to be the crossover supplier for both adult and smoke shop stores of all sizes. Full Circle has been set up to serve distributors and international sellers with cases of product inventory, Savage explains, while Miami Distro services smaller retail operations that only place orders by the unit.
Full Circle has launched three new brands: The Pleasure Company, Savage Me Toys and the Be Savage lingerie collection.
The Pleasure Company has released about 75 SKUs, all vibrators geared toward women. Savage says he isn’t trying to reinvent the vibrator category with new experimental designs; he just wants to make products that deliver what customers are looking for.
“We focus on power, comfort and the quietness of the motors,” Savage says. “It’s been going over well. I spent a year reviewing products, changing parts of them, upgrading elements and adding an extra motor here and there. For the past year, vibrators have taken over my house so that we could perfect this collection.”
Among the latest Pleasure Company releases: a collection of wearable vibrating necklaces, a ring and a makeup brush.
Meanwhile, Savage Me recently introduced its collection of life-size dolls.
“We now have a collection of 15 different dolls,” Savage says. “That’s the beginning of the Savage Me collection. We’ll also be releasing a full line of hand-held, midsize masturbators and large torsos in February.”
During his first go-round in adult retail, Savage specialized in lingerie, which he calls “one of my loves.” No surprise, then, that Full Circle’s Be Savage line offers a variety of styles, ranging from body stockings and club-wear dresses to two-piece sets featuring an assortment of strappy, sleeveless and long-sleeved tops and bralettes paired with skirts, panties and garters. There are also minidress styles, complete with accessories such as gloves.
Savage proudly touts a recent lifestyle photo shoot for the lingerie collection.
“We made sure we represented diversity with our models,” he says. “It’s a one-size-fits-all collection, but the next thing I want to do is come out with a plus-size line.”
What lured Savage back after so long? Savage says it was his friends and former colleagues in the industry, who continued calling on him for his sales know-how. In 2020, he decided to help a friend’s struggling sex enhancement brand by showcasing its supplements and honey at smoke industry trade shows. Then, adult companies began coming to Champs, the big smoke industry trade show, and he found himself working with some of his adult biz friends again.
“At the same time, in the smoke shop industry, a lot of the products I had been selling had started to get banned,” Savage recalls. “And the vape pens are constantly changing — it’s just madness. I started to long for the days when I could just make one beautiful vibrator with a nice box and sell it for 10 to 15 years.”
Ultimately, Savage says, the smoke shop industry became a rat race that drove him back to his home in adult.
“I’ve really been enjoying the professionalism of the adult industry compared to the smoke shop world,” he confides. “For example, at the smoke shop shows, every booth is playing music louder than the next booth, and it’s so difficult to sell. How am I supposed to build relationships in those types of atmospheres? When the wife and I showed up at Altitude this year, and nobody was playing music, so you could actually talk to the person in front of you, I was like, ‘This is nice. This is an enjoyable show.’”
Savage’s wife Sara is in charge of graphic arts for Full Circle, including designing packaging and catalogs. His brother, daughter, son and daughter-in-law handle sales for the company. Savage fondly notes that they are all “Savages” — referring not just to their shared last name, but their drive.
“We started out as a core family business, which is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Savage says.
In January, 17-year industry vet and former XBIZ Exec Awards Businesswoman of the Year Briana Watkins joined the Full Circle Distribution/Miami Distro family, as VP of sales and marketing. Watkins says she was drawn by Savage’s passion, which reminded her of her own past mentors in the industry.
“We’re focusing on bringing back personal relationships,” she says. “Everything has felt so corporate lately; we want it to feel like working with family — like we’re having fun while making money and building strategic partnerships.”
In her new role, Watkins will spearhead strategic sales initiatives and marketing campaigns to support growth.
“My focus is on catering to retailers’ needs by thinking outside the box and offering tailored solutions that make doing business with us seamless and enjoyable,” Watkins shares. “We have a clean slate and the opportunity to build the business the way we want: aligned with our principles, focused on customer relationships and open to exploring untapped opportunities within and beyond our industry.”
Savage expresses utmost confidence in Watkins.
“We are confident her vision will drive growth, strengthen our partnerships and elevate our brands to new heights,” he says.
Savage also agrees with Watkins about the importance of nurturing relationships in the adult retail business.
“Like most companies, we feel that we put out really good products and packaging,” he says. “And of course, that’s always the goal — but it’s mainly about relationships. I appreciate everybody way more the second time around. I’m grateful for an opportunity to reintroduce myself to people because I’ve evolved and grown as a person and a professional.”
Full Circle Distribution is preparing to expand its retail footprint with new planograms and in-store marketing material that includes wall skins and floor decals to promote its brands. According to Savage, the planogram displays will be available in the company’s warehouse showroom. In terms of growth, Savage says he’s eyeing international markets like Australia, Germany and Mexico.
“I am super excited for 2025,” Savage says. “For the last three or four months, my wife and I have been working harder than we’ve ever worked in our lives. It’s a full-court press on new product development, plus the two major launches: Savage Me toys and the Grateful Dead collection. But there’s a nice feeling when you finally lay your head down on the pillow, knowing you put smiles on people’s faces around the world.”
Savage doesn’t expect to accomplish everything he’s aiming for right away, however.
“It’s not a 50-yard dash,” he says. “I don’t have any expectations for what we will achieve in a year. We’re just going to wake up every day, and we’re going to give it everything we’ve got. My vision is that I’m building something to last, something my kids can take and run with.”
