IT HAS made millions and become a global phenomenon – but OnlyFans only got off the ground thanks to a last-ditch loan from a long-suffering dad.
Five years after launching a BDSM and fetish website, Timothy Stokely was loaned £10,000 by his banker dad Guy to launch OnlyFans.
Guy reportedly told him: “Tim, this is going to be the last one.”
Last chance saloon proved a prime motivator.
OnlyFans is now one of the world’s biggest online enterprises and Tim, 39, has become rich thanks to his salacious start-up.
He often shares snaps of his lavish lifestyle on Instagram with pictures of supercars and yachts.
Millionaire Tim, once dubbed “the king of homemade porn”, parties in New York and London’s most exclusive bars, clubs and restaurants.
It’s not too shabby when he stays home either — as he lives in a sprawling six-bedroom mansion in Bishop’s Stortford, Herts, with a gym, sauna, home cinema and huge driveway for his fleet of flash motors.
OnlyFans was launched in November 2016 as a site for creators to upload content, such as pictures and videos, for a subscription fee, with the platform taking a 20 per cent cut on all cash made.
By January 2017 it had 100,000 users, swelling to a million nine months later and ten million by July 2019.
Meteoric rise
But it was the pandemic that really boosted its popularity, with people shut and home and starved for entertainment.
In 2020 the founder announced his platform was attracting up to 8,000 new creators and more than 200,000 new users every day.
Covid coupled with celebrity sign-ups, like rapper Cardi B, saw the platform’s revenue explode by around 500 per cent by the end of 2020.
Last year the company was valued at $1billion (£839m) and now, more than 150million people use the site worldwide.
But it hasn’t been without its hitches.
In August last year the firm announced it was to ban sexually explicit material after some banks withdrew support.
But six days later, following an outcry from its creators and sex workers’ advocates, it axed the plan.
Since then the meteoric rise has continued.
While some of the site’s biggest names, and highest earners are celebrities and porn stars, there are also stay-at-home mums and dads raking in serious cash from pastimes such as cooking or keep-fit.
For many it’s just a lucrative side hustle that allows them to enjoy the finer things in life.
But for others it’s a full-time job that pays the bills and funds a lifestyle they could have never achieved in their former workplaces.
It’s believed that American model and TV personality Blac Chyna is the top earning creator.
After joining OnlyFans in April 2020, she is said to make up to £16million a month from her subscribers, who pay around £16 a month for access to her pictures and videos.
In 2020 former Disney Channel actress Bella Thorne made headlines setting up an account.
She made £800,000 in her first 24 hours and is now estimated to have monthly earnings of £9million.
But it’s not just about millionaires getting even richer, as there are so many success stories — including in Scotland.
But founder Tim’s time with the brand ended a year ago when he quit as CEO.
New boss Amrapali Gan — who joined OnlyFans in 2020 as chief marketing and communications officer, has grand plans for OnlyFans.
She has publicly backed those making adult content and is keen to also highlight the many people who use the site to share non-sexual content — cooking, gaming or exercise.
In an interview with Time she said: “OnlyFans is the new future of social media because we’re different.
“First, we’re safety focused. Our business model is a lot different from all these other tech platforms who are making money off of data, ads, things like that.
“We don’t make money unless our creators make money.
“And the subscription model takes away the frustrations people feel on these other platforms.”
She added that creators had “realised that their content, their personality — that’s what’s valuable”.
“That’s where OnlyFans comes in. It was a platform before its time.”
Amy Atkin, 21
AMY quit OnlyFans after her first baby – but is back on and is more popular than ever.
The 21-year-old, who first joined up at 18, said: “I really liked the idea of becoming my own boss. It was empowering.
“Then I fell pregnant with my son. I had a difficult pregnancy and was really unwell throughout. I stopped filming content due to feeling I didn’t fit that ‘perfect image’ any more.
After giving birth, my body didn’t bounce back. I had gained a lot of weight and stretch marks. This made me feel really down.”
But Amy, from Glasgow, had a change of heart, giving camera work another go – and was delighted with the result.
She added: “I now get a lot of comments and messages from subscribers saying how amazing it is that I’m embracing my imperfections, such as my stretch marks and other things I may feel insecure about.”
Paige Nisbet, 27
PAIGE has tripled her wages thanks to OnlyFans but vowed to never quit her “normal” job.
The model, from Peebles, Scottish Borders, works as a hotel housekeeper and joined the popular subscription service as a second job.
After posting pictures posing in lingerie, she was stunned when she tripled her income in just a month.
Paige said: “I look at OnlyFans like the gym. If you put the work in you’ll see great results and if you are inconsistent it will take longer.
“On OnlyFans, the lazier you are the less money you make.
“I don’t think I’ll ever do OnlyFans full-time as I like having an active job where I can socialise and live a normal day-to-day life with a guaranteed income.”
Julie Kennedy, 29
JULIE became a millionaire and moved to California after finding fame on OnlyFans.
Better known online as weejulietots, she boasts up to 2,000 paying subscribers at any time and pockets £50,000 every month.
But the married mum-of-two, from Glasgow, says: “I have had an ex school teacher – who gave me a particularly hard time in class – subscribe to see my content.
“The email address threw me and, sure enough, the display picture confirmed it.”
The model, who has an army of social media fans, is building a future thanks to her OnlyFans money.
And her parents understand why she decided to pursue a career in the adult entertainment industry.
Julie adds: “My family is very supportive and see I’ve created a great life for myself doing this as my job.”
Brooklyn, 31
TRANSGENDER model Brooklyn says her army of subscribers helped fund £150,000 towards transition operations.
She started using the platform in 2018 and can make up to £55,000 a month.
The 31-year-old former nightclub manager says: “OnlyFans has helped me fund my surgeries faster and I’ll be forever thankful to the fans who interact with me daily and help me transition physically into the woman I am today.
“I know what the guys want, I listen to them and note down requests and if it’s something that fits my brand and I’m comfortable with, I’ll film it and send it out for purchase.”
She adds: “I think I’ll always want a little something more when it comes to surgery.
“I automatically assume people know I’m trans so it throws me off when you get that ‘oh my god you’d never know’ comment.”
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