Passion Parties

Passion Parties started in 1994. The Las Vegas Sun reported in 2005 that its founders had left a failed adult products company based in Las Vegas and set up on their own. Brenda Eberhart, a co-founder who sold from Springfield, Ohio, told the paper the goal had always been the same: to build women’s confidence and improve their relationships. Pat Davis led the company as president for many years.

The company grew in the San Francisco area, then moved its headquarters to Las Vegas around 2005. That year Davis told the Las Vegas Sun it had about 10,000 sales representatives in the US and Canada, and that 35 of them had each generated $1 million or more in sales. Passion Parties also chased publicity. Its site listed coverage on Primetime Live and Good Morning America and in Time, The New York Times and O, The Oprah Magazine, and Davis hosted a party for actress Denise Richards on her reality show.

“To share the Passion Parties opportunity so that any woman can experience the prosperity of owning her own business; to share the products that will enhance any woman’s relationship; and to share the philosophy of women helping women.”

Passion Parties mission statement — passionparties.com (archived), 2015

By 2015 the company was celebrating 20 years in business. Its website ran in English, Spanish and French, with separate catalogs for the US and Canada.

Passion Parties sold what it called “love potions, sensual accessories and adult toys.” Despite the name, most sales were lotions and creams. A Consultant told the Las Vegas Sun in 2005 that toys made up less than 20 percent of sales. Prices that year ran from about $4.50 for a lubricant to $39.50 for an enhancement gel.

• Bath and body: the Body by Passion Parties line of massage creams, body whips and shower cremes, and the Hello Pretty body line.
• Playful products: flavored creams, body powders and sprays such as Crèmesicle, Nibblers and Powder Me Sweet.
• Enhancement gels: led by Pure Satisfaction, which Pat Davis called the company’s number one seller in 2008.
• For men: a separate line of washes, lotions and a massage candle.
• Romanta Therapy: scented bath salts, body lotions, pillow mists and massage oils.
• Adult toys and novelties: personal massagers, couples’ games, dice and coupon books.

Sellers were called Passion Consultants. They ran private, women-only parties in hosts’ homes, which the company billed as “The Ultimate Girls’ Night In.” Guests could see and try products, ask questions, and order in confidence. Hosting was free, and hosts earned credits toward free products. Hosts and Consultants had to be at least 18.

People who wanted to join picked their state or province on the company site and were connected to an existing Consultant, who walked them through the details. Consultants earned on their own party sales. Those who recruited others received bonus checks on their recruits’ sales, the Las Vegas Sun reported, and by 2015 the company advertised car and home bonuses for top performers. Kit prices and commission rates changed over the years; Direct Sales Aid could not confirm the final figures from an official source.

“You need to talk about things, communicate, about this topic the same way you talk about the kids or your career or whatever else is going on in your lives.”

Pat Davis, president of Passion Parties — Las Vegas Sun, July 2008

On January 11, 2016, Pure Romance announced from Cincinnati that it had acquired Passion Parties. The two had been head-to-head competitors. Pure Romance said the deal would take it into new markets, including Canada, and that thousands of Passion Parties Consultants were expected to join it. Local 12 News reported that the purchase brought Pure Romance to more than 25,000 Consultants. The terms were not made public.

“The Pure Romance team is excited to welcome Passion Parties Consultants into our growing family of women who embody our mission to empower, educate and entertain.”

Chris Cicchinelli, President and CEO of Pure Romance — acquisition announcement, January 11, 2016

The Passion Parties brand was retired soon after. Archived copies show passionparties.com went offline in mid-January 2016 and was redirecting to pureromance.com by July 2016. It still does today. Former Consultants who did not move to Pure Romance kept any stock they held but could no longer order.

The story did not end there for the sellers who moved. Pure Romance later ended its own Consultant program and now sells straight to customers, so neither brand runs a party-plan business today. People who enjoy party-plan selling can compare live companies such as Scentsy or Norwex on Direct Sales Aid.