Ann Summers founder Jacqueline Gold on childhood abuse: ‘I wasn’t going to be a victim'

The 55-year-old, who founded lingerie and sex toy retailing giant Ann Summers, said that her mother did nothing to stop the abuse and even slapped her around the face when it became apparent

what was happening.

However, Jacqueline has said that she defiantly refused to let the experience influence her life.

In an interview with Radio Times, she said: “I’ve always been a survivor, and what happened to me I saw as cruelty, not sex.”

The Bromley-born CEO went on to say: “It was a matter of control, somebody else’s control over me. I wasn’t going to be a victim. It made me want to take control myself, to be successful. 

“All through my life, I’ve been determined not to allow what’s happened to me to shape my future.”

Jacqueline first started working for her father David Gold’s business at the tender age of 21, during her time there she saw how the company could grow and shift its focus. 

She first pitched the idea of the Ann Summers Party Plan, a gathering in a home environment where lingerie and sex toys could be sold, after being inspired by a tupperware party.

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I’ve been determined not to allow what’s happened to me to shape my future

Despite having no formal training, Jacqueline managed to convince an all-male board that her business proposal could be a lucrative one.

It was not long before the Ann Summers parties became a huge hit with women across the nation and finally, in 1993, Jacqueline opened her first high street store.

Reflecting on why she wanted to set up Ann Summers, the entrepreneur explained: “I saw an opportunity to empower women, the exact opposite to what had happened to me as a child.”

Jacqueline is thought to be one of the richest women in Britain and received a CBE in the 2016 New Year’s Honours list. 

She has been referred to by some as “the woman who brought sex to the British high street” and now Jacqueline’s legacy is being immortalised on the small screen in ITV’s new comedy drama

Brief Encounters.

The six-part series set in 1980s Sheffield follows a mother-of-one who gets a job as an Ann Summers demonstrator, which involves selling sex products to the women of the Yorkshire city.

Her new role is met with consternation and disapproval from some, not least of all her husband. 

Brief Encounters is set to air next week and stars Penelope Wilton, Sophie Rundle, Angela Griffin and Sharon Rooney.  

Read the full interview on the RadioTimes.com. The latest issue of the Radio Times Magazine is available to buy from newsstands.  

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