'The woman responsible for bringing sex to the high street and liberating thousands of women between the sheets' OK! Magazine 

Jacqueline Gold, Chief Executive of Ann Summers and Knickerbox, is one of Britain's most charismatic and successful businesswomen and an inspiration to thousands of women. She has been voted the second Most Powerful Woman in Retail by Retail Week, the Most Inspirational Businesswoman in the UK in a survey by Barclays Bank and handbag.com, one of Britain's Most Powerful Women by many publications including Cosmopolitan, Woman, and Good Housekeeping magazines, one of Britain's 100 Most Influential Women by the Daily Mail, Business Communicator of the Year 2004, and was made a new entry in Debrett's 'People of Today' 2005 for her contribution to British society. She heads an empire that is run by women, for women.

 

At the age of 19, after joining Ann Summers for work experience, Jacqueline saw the potential of selling sexy lingerie and sex toys to women in the privacy of their own homes. Working her way through the ranks of Ann Summers Jacqueline was made Chief Executive in 1987, and quickly transformed Ann Summers into a multi-million pound concern. Ann Summers now boasts a sales force of over 7,500 women as party organisers, has 134 high street stores in the UK, Ireland, and Channel Islands and one in Spain, and an annual turnover of £155 million. Whilst the takeover of Knickerbox has meant Knickerbox concessions in every Ann Summers store.

 

Jacqueline has been the subject of several documentaries including 'Back To The Floor' (BBC2, 2001), 'Ann Summers Uncovered' (ITV1, 2003), 'So What Do You Do All Day' (BBC2, 2004), 'Break With The Boss' (Living, 2006), and co-presented the daytime business series 'Mind Your Own Business' (BBC1, 2005). She is one of the panelists on the ‘Fortune: Million Pound Giveaway’ (ITV1, 2007), and was one of the celebrity jurors on ‘The Verdict’ (BBC2, 2007). Her first autobiography 'Good Vibrations' was published in 1995 (Pavilion Books), with a second book 'A Woman's Courage' to be published 12 April 2007 (Ebury). She is a columnist for Retail Week, New Business and Kent Business.

 

Her autobiography Good Vibrations was published in 1995 (Pavilion Books), with a second book A Woman's Courage published in April 2007 (Ebury), which led to Jaqueline being sued by a former employee for libel. A Woman's Courage was withdrawn from sale in November 2008 having been republished by Ebury on 7 February 2008 with three pages removed and re-titled 'Please Make it Stop'. The High Court libel action was settled in August 2009 when the former employee was paid costs and substantial damages. She is a columnist for Retail Week, New Business, Kent Business, and Women Mean Business.

 

Jacqueline is set to take over as chairwoman of her family’s £525 million empire.