Roping women in: How hit erotic novel Fifty Shades Of Grey has sparked boom for hardware stores



The success of Fifty Shades Of Grey has sparked an increase in the sale of hardware products within the U.S..

The erotic novel, penned by British author E.L. James, has encouraged New York women to seek out the same type of bondage material featured in the book.

Multiple hardware stores located in New York have reported that more females are dropping in to purchase rope, in particular, than ever before.

Dominant: Fifty Shades Of Grey has sparked a boom in sex toy and sex accessory sales. In particular, women are buying rope to mirror the book's plot line

The book's heroin, Anastasia Steele, worked in a hardware store named Clayton's for four years before she meets the protagonist, Christian Grey.

He goes into the store very early on in the first book to buy 'cable ties' and 'masking tape'.

According to the New York Post , soft-cotton 'clothes line' rope is in high demand.

Clifton Kahn, the owner of Lexington Hardware on the Upper East Side, said: ' Oh, we've been selling rope to women. I'd say tenfold more rope than usual in the last six months. The women are definitely buying, and it's still continuing.'

It's a similar story over at Tarzian Hardware in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

Christina Davila, a cashier at the store, told the paper: ' It's usually men buying rope, but the women, they've been coming in the last few months.

Trilogy: The series (above) has proved a hit with females, encouraging the act of female submission within the bedroom - a theme which is explored in much detail

A fan of the book herself, she revealed she is amused by the behaviour.

' I've actually read the book, ' she said. 'So when the women buy rope, it was kind of like, "Hmmm, that does seem a little unusual".'

Nathaniel Garber Schoen of Gerber Hardware in the West Village added that many women are after rope that is made from softer nylon material.

He recommended one of the store's most popular products among women at the moment - the 12-gauge, non-braided nylon.

'Anything skinnier is too small,' he said. 'You might hurt yourself. For those purposes, 12-gauge is a reasonable choice.'

Further kinky sex toys, such as 'riding crops' and handcuffs, are also said to be gaining in popularity.

'The book is just an explosion of permission for them to try something new in the bedroom'

Babeland, a sex toy chain store, reported an increase in sales of 30per cent over the last few months.

Fifty Shades Of Grey and the other titles in the trilogy, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed, have sat at the top of the New York Times' best sellers' list for more than 12 weeks.

Babeland has also claimed that visits to the bondage section of its website have increased by 81 per cent.

Claire Cavanah, co-founder of the store, said: ' You'd be surprised to see how very ordinary these people are who are coming in. The book is just an explosion of permission for them to try something new in the bedroom.'

Lidia Bonilla, a Brooklyn-based banking compliance consultant, said the book has helped broaden her sexuality.

She is even embarking on her own line of sex toys.