The Accidental Pornographer: A Story About Having a Go - And Succeeding... in Failing [Paperback]

"Hilarious, Heart–warming foray into porn." (Scarlet, October)

"...excellent book for business beginners...written in a fresh, breezy style" (Erotic Review, September)

 "With its saucy matter, colourful cast and cheeky tone, it′s easy to forget that his is a business book. What makes it genuinely interesting is that it′s a business book all about failure." (Daily Mail, September 26, 2008)

"Honest and amusing...inspiring in a refreshingly personal way...This book is perfect for anyone starting up a business" (Start Your Business, October, 2008)

"...the tale of [a] shipping nagnate who brought The Erotic Review...and ammusinglt failed to make a living out of it." (The Independent, October 10, 2008)

"Hilarious, Heart–warming foray into porn." (Scarlet, October 2008)

"...excellent book for business beginners...written in a fresh, breezy style" (Erotic Review, September 2008)

 "With its saucy matter, colourful cast and cheeky tone, it′s easy to forget that his is a business book. What makes it genuinely interesting is that it′s a business book all about failure." (Daily Mail, September 26, 2008)

"Honest and amusing...inspiring in a refreshingly personal way...This book is perfect for anyone starting up a business" (Start Your Business, October, 2008)

"...the tale of [a] shipping nagnate who brought The Erotic Review...and ammusinglt failed to make a living out of it." (The Independent, October 10, 2008)

"Griffith′s brazen and jovial attitude to business failure is refreshing and many of us could learn a thing or two from it." (EN Magazine, November 2008)

Gavin Griffiths was a fairly straight–laced, newlywed shipping executive when he bought a magazine called The Erotic Review for #1 – not just one copy, the whole business! Little did he know it would soon become the darling of the chattering classes, and a case study in heroic failure. More in the tradition of Tony Young (How to Lose Friends & Alienate People) than Felix Dennis (How to be Rich), in this highly entertaining memoir readers discover just why only one in ten new businesses make it, and what happens to the other nine.

"My name is Gavin Griffiths, and for over a year I was a pornographer…"

So begins the uniquely entertaining account of the author’s business experiences as a co–owner of The Erotic Review.

An established favourite with men of a certain age, The Erotic Review was a saucy magazine with a circulation of 30,000 at its peak. But the magazine was running at a loss. In the wake of the dot–com boom, Gavin Griffiths was enticed by legendary editor, Rowan Pelling, to go into business. They bought the magazine and its debts for £1.

This compelling account of Gavin’s entrepreneurial adventure is both amusing and informative. He was a newcomer to both publishing and the world of erotica, but he wanted to succeed. A fast learning curve followed, embracing a colourful cast of characters, exotic products, and the emotional and practical highs and lows of running a business.

The Accidental Pornographer is a personal journey that offers such insight into the perils and pitfalls of buying and running a business. It is not a success story – but is a tale of commercial realities, and it contains valuable lessons for every entrepreneur. From the legal requirements of starting a company, to the hidden perils of advertising and marketing, cash–flow woes and personnel matters, and the looming reality of debt and insolvency, Gavin Griffiths tells it as it really is. He also provides some amusing insights into the world of glamour magazines along the way.

"…It was a year that money could not have bought. I learnt more about business, people and myself than in all the years that preceded it."

With a haphazard career meandering through international shipping, contemporary art, dotcom start–ups and fruity periodicals Gavin Griffiths is now CEO of Helix Media Ltd, the London–based consumer magazine publisher he founded in 2004. He lives in Stratford–upon–Avon and is married with two children. Gavin has a firm conviction that life should be an adventure and his motto is ‘have a crack’. He considers failure to be part of the voyage. But he might be wrong so don’t come complaining if you lose everything.