Money, sex and drugs: The Sugar Babies’ world

“If I can get money by spending time with someone, being spoilt and having a few of the nicer things, that’d be ideal.”

Blonde, leggy and baby-voiced, Nicole* certainly looks and sounds the part to be a Sugar Baby. Although she’s only been on the site for a month, she’s already paired up with two clients and is constantly receiving offers from potential new Sugar Daddies.

The Tab revealed last week that 129 women in Exeter are ‘Sugar Babies’ – young, ambitious women who are financially sponsored by older, wealthy men in exchange for companionship.

In a Tab excusive, Exeter student Nicole speaks about the Sugar Baby’s world of sex, money and drugs.

“There’s so many people looking for different things, a lot of them aren’t for me. Some of them are creepy and I’m very aware of the dangers.” She adds, “It’s not an escorting site but I’ve had emails just asking for ‘fun’. I’m blunt with them, telling them if they’re looking for a sexual relationship they’re in the wrong place. I’ve had a few shirty emails back. That’s not what the site is for but a lot of them think it is.”

Nicole has opened for business with two Sugar Daddies. “It starts with Skype calls, e-mails, and going out for meals. Some of them want you to come straight to their house or stay over in a hotel.”

The two Sugar Daddies are both British and “not really really old” at 36 and 38 years old, as opposed to the 70 year old men who have messaged Nicole. She agreed for one of the men to pay for her travel to London so they could meet over lunch, which he also paid for.

Perhaps worryingly, Nicole admits inside she feels quite immature but talking to her client over lunch helped her “feel more mature and confident.”

“I decided to go because we had chemistry on Skype and on the phone, and chemistry is important. Plus, he has to work around his daughter so he didn’t want me to stay around.”

“The other guy I’m talking to seems really experienced. He’s had a Sugar Baby before for a year until she moved to America. He helped her a lot with the plastic surgery she wanted.”

What everyone really wants to know, is has she put the D in her V? Not yet, but “if you’re with them long term and there’s chemistry, I’d never rule it out.” So far, Nicole hasn’t been asked to do anything sexual over webcam on Skype.

When The Tab asked if Nicole thought having sex with her clients would make her a prostitute, she immediately blurted out “I don’t know!” but then paused to reflect.

“I don’t know if I see it as prostitution… [pause] if someone is actively giving you money it’s not good. If someone is paying you for your company and you have sex with them then it is prostitution, in my opinion anyway.”

It’s easy to see why so many girls have been tempted into this morally-grey occupation when the money on offer runs into the thousands.

“I’ve been offered Skyping and talking on the phone for a month for £2000 a month. Another offered me to have regular threesomes with his other Sugar Baby for £3000. He’s American and is in London between three and four days a month, so it’d probably be for that period of time.”

“The men aren’t hanging about.  They’ve got money to waste. I think it’s crazy that they have to advertise themselves – you’d think they have no trouble.”

One Sugar Daddy explained that “When you’re so busy it’s hard to have time for a girlfriend.” Nicole added “a Sugar Baby knows what she’s there for. You don’t feel bad if they cancel, there are no complications. You’re not a girlfriend.”

When asked about the name ‘Sugar Baby’, Nicole giggled and replied “it makes me laugh, I’ve heard of Sugar Daddies but not Sugar Babies! I don’t know where they got it from. I’m just a girl, I’m just me.”

The Sugar Daddies dominate the London club scene and Nicole is looking forward to partying with them. However, she’s wary of the drug use: “I did some when I was younger but I haven’t touched it since and wouldn’t do it if a guy asked me to. It only takes a little while to get sucked into it, and then you’re screwed.”

Nicole hopes her Sugar Daddy contacts will be helpful later on in life. “I want to work in a company. I know that’s vague but I want to start at the bottom and work my way up. It’s not what you know, but who you know and these men are the big boys – you can tell because of how much they earn.”

*Name changed