It had been a good couple of decades since I had wandered into an adult store but to my surprise, the passage of time wasn't making it any easier.

Key points: Female designers have influenced innovations in the field of pleasure products

Female designers have influenced innovations in the field of pleasure products Female customers report that sex toys have shifted from being a "dirty little secret" to something they are more comfortable owning and talking about more openly

Female customers report that sex toys have shifted from being a "dirty little secret" to something they are more comfortable owning and talking about more openly A greater variety of toys and products exists than ever before, often incorporating materials that are better for the user and the environment

Needing to interview an adult store proprietor who was retiring after 25 years in the game, I found myself, technically now a grown man, once again reduced to a bundle of nerves as I waited for a break in pedestrian traffic to allow as inconspicuous an entrance as possible.

Once inside, the said retiree was busy serving a couple so I was left to awkwardly wander the aisles.

I did my best to avert my gaze from the dizzying array of products on display and the handful of other customers, who clearly were not as burdened with the same hang-ups as I was.

Throwing caution to the wind, I began to take note of what was on display and was only slightly surprised to see the global takeover of salted chocolate had now made its way to personal lubricants.

"It tastes just like the real thing," store owner Glen Idiens called out, making his way towards me now that he had finished with his customers.

"It's one of our more popular products, as is the mint-flavoured one," Mr Idiens said.

Veteran adult store proprietor Glen Idiens says the female touch has breathed new life into the pleasure product industry. ( ABC Local: Anthony Pancia )

Innovation in pleasure products

It appeared much had changed in the 20-odd years since my last visit to an adult store and the surprises just kept on coming as Mr Idiens guided me through the aisles, stopping to explain what 'pleasure products' were now capable of.

"This is our remote-control range," he said.

He held up a two-part piece of apparatus, one the size and shape of a small egg and a remote control the size of a, well, smaller egg.

I need not have asked, but while holding one of the small, egg-shaped devices, Mr Idiens fired off the remote and it sprang to life, catching me by surprise with the intensity with which it vibrated.

He pressed the remote again and the intensity stepped up a notch, a third tap resulted in it springing off the palm of my hand onto the carpeted floor.

"We have other ones that come with an app, so you can trigger it off in China while your partner is at home in Bunbury," Mr Idiens said.

Female-centric design

With some awkwardness, we made our way toward the female section and I was struck by the lack of phallic-looking devices I had expected.

Instead, most products were inconspicuously shaped and soft to touch with a colour pleasing to the eye.

"The biggest change I've noticed in the 25 years I've been in this business is probably with this type of stuff," Mr Idiens said.

He held up another device that could be mistaken for a kitchen accessory.

"There are now a lot more women designing these products and it has really changed the game," he said.

"We now have more female customers and those I speak to say they're much more comfortable entering a store like this, so overall, it's been a positive.

"It's also helped break down that stigma around pleasure products. There's something for everyone."

Indeed, on the evening I visited Mr Idiens' store, located in Bunbury's CBD, a steady trickle of customers wandered in, happy to make small talk with both proprietor and reporter on their prospective purchases and intended purposes.

Two female customers, who asked not to be named, concurred that the stigma of sex products had shifted from "a dirty little secret" to "a normal thing for women to have".

"I come in here quite regularly," said one, aged 32.

"It has changed a lot since I first came in, the amount of toys we can choose from, and experiment with, has come a long way, particularly when it comes to the size and shape.

"It's made with the female form in mind and you're not put off by aggressive looking things and images of submissive women.

"It's no longer a dirty little secret. We all have something at home. It's become quite a normal thing for women to have and it's great."

Pleasure products have evolved far beyond the traditional fare of fluffy handcuffs. ( ABC Local: Anthony Pancia )

Toxic and poor quality products

Upon returning to the office I tracked down Melbourne-based Made Downunder CEO J D Ryan.

She had long jumped ship from a career in the public service to the design and manufacturing of pleasure products out of "a sense of outrage at the poor quality and dangerous materials being used".

"Most of the products were made from soften plastics and quite crude in their shape and design," Ms Ryan said.

"They would smell of old plastic and were essentially quite toxic, certainly not anything you would want to put in your mouth or anywhere else."

"There's been an evolution," says Melbourne pleasure product designer J D Ryan. ( Supplied: Felicia Addy )

Ms Ryan said her product design was influenced by "customer feedback," or a "gap in the market" that aimed to pleasure a particular part of the female anatomy, with an emphasis on "stimulation rather than pure penetration".

"There has been an evolution and part of that is down to women designing these products and women feeling comfortable enough to purchase them," Ms Ryan said.

"What that has resulted in is a wonderful range of pleasure products that are well-designed and purpose built for women."

Taking control of pleasure

Perth-based sexologist and relationship educator Amanda Lambrose agreed, adding the uptake of modern-day pleasure products could be attributed to a "feminine-inspired" approach to design and changing of societal norms.

"The conversation has definitely swung towards pleasure and how, in this case, women can take control of how they get it," Ms Lambrose said.

"I mean, we're still not at the point where you'll hear that spoken of at a dinner but who hasn't had a conversation with their girlfriends about what toys they may have at home?"

Well, not me, clearly.

I ask Ms Lambrose if she commonly advocated for the use of 'pleasure products' while counselling couples.

"Not in every case, but they [pleasure products] can help, which takes the burden off either party if they're simply not feeling up to it," she said.

"Instead of an outright no, there is that option to still have a bit of fun."

Women of Canada agree

Other than slightly skewed, brand-related surveys that would have you believe pleasure products exist in every household, there is little in the way of independent surveys available to quantify just how common they are.

One study published by the University of Toronto, surveyed 1,408 female participants aged 18–81, and found 52.3 per cent had either used or owned a pleasure product.

It further stated: "The results of the study suggest that sex toy use is common among Canadian women, with comparable prevalence rates to those found in nationally representative samples in the United States".

"Researchers have attributed this finding to the promotion of vibrators as aids to achieve greater sexual pleasure and orgasm for women specifically."

Not just the shape that has changed

Lea-Anne Trevillion is director of the online store, Femplay.

She said the materials used in the manufacture of modern-day pleasure products only enhanced the experience.

"Technology today has changed our industry so much, from having a basic rubber rabbit-looking vibrator that isn't very pleasing to look at but it still did the trick to now having the most innovative selection of adult toys that you can imagine," Ms Trevillion said.

"This also includes the fantastic materials that are now used — for example silicone, which is great for people with sensitive skin, as well as glass.

"[There are] rechargeable toys as well, which are great for the environment with no batteries being thrown into waste fill."

Armed with far more knowledge than I had initially set out to find, I ask Ms Trevillion to summarise how the feminisation of pleasure products had been received by women.

"Toys that are being designed with our bodies in mind represent liberation to every woman," she said.

"They can enjoy themselves with an adult toy and explore their bodies as well.

"I can genuinely say that we all believe that we are making a difference in people's pleasure, it's natural to explore and have satisfaction within your sexuality."