Playboy Group acquires Westfield-resident sex shop chain Honey Birdette

Honey Birdette solidifies union with porn brand

News that global porn empire owner Playboy Group will buy out Brett Blundy’s sex shop chain Honey Birdette is no surprise to us.

In fact, we think it's a perfect match. The Playboy brand is synonymous with the sexual exploitation of women and girls. Honey Birdette is notorious for its pornified portrayals of women in shopping malls around the country. Playboy’s acquisition is logical.

Playboy to buy Honey Birdette.

Should be a seamless transition. No new ideas here, just a new generation of young women to take advantage of.

And a lot of silent enablers. Hi @champs_change https://t.co/q6tdvPHEqo pic.twitter.com/EFsc0y6zBs

— Melinda (@MelLiszewski) June 29, 2021

We've long documented Playboy’s history of objectifying and exploiting women for profit. Its dark past includes publishing child sexual abuse material and non-consensual images. We recently launched a campaign against City Beach calling on it to stop flogging the porn-brand's merch to teens.

And we've campaigned for years against Honey Birdette's porn-themed ads in so-called family-friendly shopping centres owned by Westfield, Lendlease, the Queensland Government's QIC and other 'Male Champions of Change'-led property companies. These corporate heads have done virutally nothing to stop Honey Birdette's floor to ceiling pornified displays, shown to all - even children.

Ads which trivialise and eroticise violence against women.

Ads which degrade and jeopardise the safety of women in sport.

Ads which sexualise and fetishise beloved children's character Santa.

Pornified portrayals of women shape attitudes leading to harmful behaviours to women and girls. And Governments and CEOs - while claiming to be against it - actually enable it.

Now they'll be directly aiding the activities of a global porn empire, and profiting.

Take action

Join the boycott of Honey Birdette's landlord shopping centres - link to the Facebook Event here.

Video: PhD candidate + mum-of-three Sharon Coulton calls for a nationwide boycott of Honey Birdette's landlord shopping centres

See also

MTR opinion piece on ABC - The House that Hef Built: Hugh Hefner's Dark Legacy

12 ways Honey Birdette disempowers women and girls

"Blissfully bound”: Honey Birdette eroticisation of violence harms women

Honey Birdette's corporate misogyny and the men who profit