A sex doll company offering customers the opportunity to ‘try before you buy’ has been fined £10,000 over the lack of a licence (Picture: North News)

A sex doll company offering customers the opportunity to ‘try before you buy’ has been fined £10,000 over the lack of a licence.

Love Doll UK, based in Gateshead, hit headlines earlier this year for running a unique ‘try before you buy’ service.

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The controversial business offered clients the opportunity to pay £100 to spend time with a plastic partner before deciding whether or not to spend £2,000 to buy one.

But after news of the unusual business appeared in the media, owner Graeme Tulip, 40, was visited by officers from Gateshead Council.


And at Gateshead Magistrates’ Court last week the company was convicted of ‘knowingly using their premises as a sex establishment without obtaining a licence’ and fined £10,000 with £600 costs.

The dolls cost about £2,000 so the owner was offering customers to try them out for £100 (Picture: North News)

A spokesperson for Gateshead Council said: ‘We received a complaint that LD Europe Limited of Felling, Gateshead was operating a “try before you buy” service for its range of sex dolls, later referred to in the media as a “sex doll brothel”.



‘Council officers investigated the allegations and visited the premises in January this year.

‘They were shown around by the owner Graeme Tulip who had already been extensively interviewed in the media during which he had confirmed he was selling “sex articles” and offering them for loan.

‘As well as viewing a workshop and packaging area, Mr Tulip showed officers a showroom and a “try before you buy” bedroom. He was informed that such a use would require a Sex Establishment Licence and that no such licence had been sought or granted for the premises.’

Graeme had earlier spoken about how escorts were worried about him taking business away from him and how the ‘brothel’ comes complete with a double bed, lubrication, condoms and the sex doll.

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Graeme Tulip, the owner, says that some men who are in the ‘friendzone’ bring in photos of their crushes so the dolls can look like them (Picture: North News)

But the buisness required a Sex Establishment Licence, which Graeme didn’t have (Picture: North News)

He said: ‘I have spoken to escort services before about bringing sex dolls into brothels – but they are scared.

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‘I don’t know why they are, it may just require more of a vision than they have. It is more efficient – the sex dolls can pretty much run themselves.

‘Maybe they just don’t think that it’s viable, that it would put real life escorts out of business.

‘If I found somewhere that was open enough to consider it then I would think about selling them a couple of my dolls.

‘70% of guys aren’t bothered that the dolls have been used before. The other 30% would never touch a used doll.’

The company stocks an array of female dolls which can be chosen by body shape, breast size, and height.(Picture: North News)

What is classed as a 'sex establishment'? Sex cinemas, at which R18-certificate films can be shown. Sex shops, which are premises, vehicles or stalls used for selling, displaying or demonstrating sex articles (which may include R18-certificate videos and DVDs) or other things used in connection with sexual activity or acts of force or restraint associated therewith. Sexual entertainment venues, which are premises at which entertainment comprising live sexually stimulating performances or displays of nudity is provided in front of an audience, for the financial gain of the organiser or performers. Provision of such entertainment on no more than 11 occasions per year, with at least a calendar month between each occasion, will not require a sex establishment licence.

Source: Gateshead Council

Graeme also spoke of how it is not just men who take an interest in the lifelike lovers and that many of his customers are women who make purchases in a bid to keep their husbands from cheating.

He also explained that men who find themselves in the ‘friendzone’ sometimes bring him photographs of their crushes for him to model a doll on.

The company stocks an array of female dolls which can be chosen by body shape, breast size, and height.

He has now started to stock a range of male dolls which come with either a six or seven inch penis.

Gateshead Council said the company was tried in its absence as neither the owner nor his legal representative attended court.

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