Parents and grandparents have been left fuming after finding sex toys on shelves in Poundland right next to the sweets.
The bargain retail giant had the x-rated devices on display above boxes of Quality Street and Miniature Heroes as part of its Valentine's Day range.
Poundland hit back saying it has been selling the items for 10 years - but shoppers to the Stoke-on-Trent store were outraged that the toys were in full view of young children.
Jayne Wainwright, 61, told StokeonTrent Live: "I do not think they should have them. They are not appropriate. People should go to a sex shop if they want to buy them.
"Young children go in there. They might start asking questions which parents do not want to answer at that point."
Shoppers Jane Stanaway, 67, and Sylvia Stanaway, 62, also said the items were 'inappropriate' in a store where children will be shopping.
Jane said: "It is not really appropriate for Poundland to be selling this sort of stuff. It is not Ann Summers."
Sylvia added: "They should keep it to the sex shops. Poundland is a family shop."
Furious Margaret Jackson, aged 72, branded the items 'disgusting'. She said: "It is disgusting. My husband and I just saw them. It is best for that sort of stuff to be kept to the sex shops or online. They should not be on show."
A spokesman for Poundland said: "We're a bit bemused there are any complaints - we've continuously sold a very popular range of these kind of items for well over a decade now.
"What's more they can also be found in other high street shops and supermarkets. At Poundland they're always sold on higher shelves and there's an age-restriction in place at the till."
Last year Poundland angered some of its shoppers over football t-shirts they said were sexist.
The retailer shared images of the tops for young girls on on its Facebook page, which featured the messages "future WAG" and "goal digger" on the front.
Customers accused the store chain of misrepresenting women and girls, saying the brand should be 'ashamed'.
Beneath the images were posted the words: "Get goal-ready for this evening's game!" the post read before asking: "What are your score predictions?"
But instead of answering the question, followers of the page hit out at the contents of the T-shirts.
"What the hell is this sexist nonsense? Poundland, do you have any women, or men with daughters, on your product purchasing/marketing team? If so, they should be ashamed of themselves," said one.
A fourth said: "You need to change that future wag to future baller! What century are you in Poundland? Pathetic."
A spokesperson for Poundland said the clothing range wasn't a new addition to the store, adding: "It's stock that was available during the 2018 World Cup in Russia and while they've been popular, we appreciate the feedback."
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