ANN Summers chief executive Jacqueline Gold admitted she has been “hurt” by rumours that she was only sanctioned for her recent CBE because of her friendship with David Cameron.
The 55-year-old businesswoman denied having ever met the Prime Minister and said the claims could have been designed to slur Mr Cameron by those with antiquated views about her high-street sex-shop firm.
She told Hello! magazine: “I’d be lying if I said recent criticism hasn’t hurt me but I also understand where it comes from.
“There are people who still have very outdated views of Ann Summers in this country and there is some snobbery around that.
“If there is a perception that I’m David Cameron’s best friend, then perhaps there is an agenda to get at him at my expense.
“The truth is [the CBE] came as a total shock. I’ve been awarded a CBE for ‘service to entrepreneurship, women in business and social enterprise’.
“It’s absolutely the highlight of my career.”
Ms Gold, who received her investiture in the 2016 New Year’s Honours List, said she was excited to meet the Queen again.
She said: “We might discuss what it’s like to be a strong woman at the head of a big firm.”
The woman famous for introducing the Rampant Rabbit vibrator to the UK also admitted she had taken a mobile phone cover bearing the sex toy’s distinctive pink ears to a Downing Street reception.
Ms Gold added: “You hand in your phone on arrival and they store it in a cabinet that looks a bit like a wine rack. Mine was the only one with pink ears sticking out. It’s like my calling card.”
Ms Gold is reportedly the 16th richest woman in Britain with an estimated fortune of £250 million.
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