Cookies & Partners Launches First Sex Toy Commercial to Air on Italian TV

A sex toy commercial is being run on Italian television for the very first time, challenging attitudes towards sex and women.

The 30-second clip, from creative agency Cookies&Partners, showcases sex toys by www.mysecretcase.com, a company launched by Norma Rossetti in 2014 as "the first Italian sex shop dedicated entirely to women's pleasure”. Norma, who is also MySecretCase CEO, conceived the idea for this e-commerce after monitoring the increase of the sex toys market in Italy and matched it with the fact that current sex shops lacked a female touch. “I wanted to create an intimate space, in which women could feel comfortable and free to express themselves."

Francesca Mudanò, the Creative Director and Partner of Cookies&Partners, says: "For us this has been a huge opportunity. Not only because it’s a first, but above all because we could produce content with a strong social impact. Advertising tends to represent women as sexual objects, not subjective beings. It's about time to subvert that paradigm.” 

In the spot, four women of different ages are seen holding a sex toy. "We want a world where women aren't sexual objects" says the voice over "but can have them all."

The commercial, despite the fact that airs only after 11pm, is stirring up some controversy. Libero Quotidiano, an Italian newspaper, called it “live porno on Italian TV", and some people commented that sex toys shouldn’t be advertised in order not to perturb children.

In the meantime, access to the website registered a 300%+ growth. The market is more than ready, but the work to do ahead, culturally speaking, is huge.