For more than 16 years, Mallory Bohnenblust has been in the business of relationship communication and helping women feel comfortable in their own skin. Up to four times a week, she travels to help host a girls’ night full of laughs, fun, and a common theme: opening the lines of communication.
“It gives ladies the confidence to see that they’re not broken,” she said. “It’s always some form of the same story: we’re struggling to connect and we give them the tools to open up to their partner on a more intimate level.”
As a consultant with Pure Romance, Bohnenblust offers skincare products, bedroom accessories, and more. The company provides products for all comfort levels, she said, adding that 70% of their line is liquid, to include shaving cream, lotions, massage oils, and more.
“When you feel good in your own skin, it’s going to translate to better intimacy,” she said. “A lot of it is just taking care of ourselves.”
On the communication side, she said it’s an all-day process. For instance, if a partner is mad the other didn’t take out the trash, that anger can’t just be turned off.
“You can’t just turn it on once you walk into the bedroom,” she said. “It’s a whole process, just flirting and how you talk to your partner throughout the day.”
However, she’s well aware of the stigma that surrounds her industry. It’s something she has dealt with since joining the company in 2009.
“Trying to have people understand that nothing inappropriate happens at these parties; I don’t do anything outside of providing a fun ladies’ night,” she said. “There’s still a stigma when I’m just trying to open the lines of communication.”
It was a timeline when she had gone from a part-time waitress to a successful saleswoman. In fact, she was introduced to the Pure Romance brand with a family member when the pair attended a party in an RV.
Bohnenblust said she hadn’t wanted to go – her twins were 1 at the time and had just gone to bed. But they convinced her she needed some fun.
“I just thought to myself, ‘I could probably do something like this,’” she said. “Money was tight; my husband was in school, and I could see the potential to make us great money.”
From there, she began researching the company and determining how the job could work with her young family, then finally contacted the consultant to see how to get started.
“At first I was just hungry to get my family out of a financial situation that we were in,” she said. “I wanted to make more money so we could provide. We were on WIC, housing assistance, and food stamps. I was so thankful for those things, but it was not what I wanted for my family.”
Next, Bohnenblust began practicing whenever she could. She watched a DVD that came with her consultant kit, attended in-person and online trainings, and immersed herself in the brand.
“I knew if I was going to do this I needed to be knowledgeable,” she said. “Then I practiced because if I was going to present the products, I couldn’t be uncomfortable in it.”
She began hosting parties for friends, that led to more parties. She said usually each party leads to two more, and so on.
“I’ve always been a very loud person and a little over the top with personality, so I feel like it just fit,” she said. “I didn’t struggle with talking about the subject matter.” She added that her own comfort level allows attendees to relax, too.
Parties are for women only and held within Kansas and surrounding states. Bohnenblust now travels to Oklahoma, Nebraska, Missouri, Colorado, and into Texas.
“As women or as moms, rarely do we get to put our lives on pause and get to be in a room with our friends, relaxing and laughing,” she said. “When I have girls say they haven’t laughed this hard in a long time it makes my soul happy.”
She juggled parties with her waitressing job for two years until she was able to sell full-time. In years since she’s topped the brand’s sales lists multiple times, falling among their top10 sales numbers multiple times over. Her largest month along was nearly $40,000 in sales for a single month. In 2011, she topped $100,000 annual sales for the first time. In addition, she’s advanced through the corporate side of the business, sitting on the board of directors for the past 8 years. She’s also traveled to Australia, New Zealand, and more, teaching other consultants how to sell the products in a way that’s both fun and professional.
In 2023, the company restructured, moving away from an MLM or multi-level marketing business, and into a sales-only company. Bohnenblust said it was a huge adjustment as it removed their team aspect.
“We did lose a little bit of our community getting together and being social; it was hard to connect with what they needed,” she said. “It was sad because a big part of what I did for a long time.”
That also meant a payment structure change, with consultants going to sales-only, along with commissions based on performance.
In her 16 years with the company, Bohnenblust said she’s dabbled with other part-time options, deciding if she still wants to be in the business.
“Every time I just go back to how much I love doing parties; I’m not a 9-to-5 person, and I love interacting with people,” she said. “I think I will be 80 years old talking about ladies’ sexual health. Probably in a nursing home.”
Starting July 1st, another change will come, as Pure Romance moves direct to consumer with their sales. Bohnenblust will launch her own brand, Inspired Intimacy by Mallory, where she will continue to host parties and sell products to women. However, she will do so under her own umbrella, hand-picking what to sell, and expanding her inventory.
The change is an emotional one, she said, after so many years with the brand. She’s also excited to move forward as a business owner.
“I’m just ready to get there and get started, almost like a kid waiting for Christmas morning,” she said. “It was a huge part of my life for a very long time, and I’m so thankful for everything I learned. Now I’m ready to venture out on my own and see where it takes me.”
Overall, Bohnenblust said she hopes women feel comfortable coming to the events.
“If anyone has been invited, they’re going to laugh and they’re going to have a good time,” she said. “It’s not weird, it’s a natural part of life. And if we can make you feel comfortable in your skin, it’s going to translate in the bedroom.”
