I read three UK retailers' delivery pages. Two tell you the name on your bank statement

Every UK retailer in this category promises plain packaging, and the three I checked all keep that promise. The differences are in three places nobody photographs: what your bank statement says, what the returns label says, and whether there is a sender's address on the parcel.

I read the delivery pages at Lovehoney, Bondara and Ann Summers on 2 November 2026. Two of the three publish a descriptor. One does not, and that absence is worth knowing about before you order rather than after.

The statement is the part that leaks

Bondara is the most thorough of the three. Their delivery page says the card statement will show `Nagook Ltd` rather than the shop's name. That is a separate trading name, not an abbreviation, so someone reading your statement learns nothing about what you bought or where.

Ann Summers publishes a descriptor too, `AS Ltd`, and then adds a detail most shops leave out: some online banks such as Starling and Monzo may display "Ann Summers" instead. Their page attributes this to the bank's own display settings rather than to their checkout, which is plausible and also means the customer cannot do anything about it. If your account is with one of those two, the descriptor is not a guarantee.

Lovehoney's delivery page does not mention bank statements at all. I am not going to guess what appears there. The honest reading is that this information is not published on the page where you would look for it, and if it matters to you, ask them before ordering rather than assume the plain box covers it.

The returns label

This is the second place where a name turns up, and it is the one people discover at the worst moment.

Ann Summers addresses returns to Gold Group House rather than to the shop. Their page states this directly as a privacy measure. It matters because the label is the one piece of paperwork that leaves your house with your handwriting on it.

Bondara and Lovehoney do not say what their returns labels carry. Lovehoney does say that couriers require them to put a return address on every order, which is a requirement of the delivery network rather than a choice. A sender's address on a parcel is not the same as branding, but it is an address, and addresses are searchable.

What each one charges

The three price structures look similar until you line up the cut-off times, which is where they actually differ.

Ann Summers is the cheapest to start: Standard at £3.99, free over £50, up to three working days, order by 6pm. Express is £5.95 for the next working day if you order by 7pm, and it is unavailable in some postcodes. Their Click and Collect is free on the standard service, three to five working days, order by 9pm, and £5.95 for next day if you order before 3pm.

Lovehoney charges £4.99 for Standard at four working days, £5.99 for Express at two, £7.99 for Premium at one. Free delivery over £50. Standard and Express both cut off at 7pm and Premium at 5pm.

Bondara is the one with the late cut-off. Economy is £4.49 for two to five days and free over £49.99. Premium is £4.99 for one to two days, Express £5.49 for next day, Rapid £6.99 for next day on UK mainland, and DPD £7.99. Orders placed by 11pm on a weekday go out the same day on most services, and Rapid needs 5:15pm, DPD 3:30pm.

So if you are ordering at ten at night, one of these three will dispatch it and two will not.

Collection points, and how long they hold

All three let you avoid a home delivery, and the holding periods are the detail that decides whether that works for you.

Ann Summers sends Standard and Express orders to lockers, ParcelShops and Post Offices. Lockers hold for three calendar days, ParcelShops and Post Offices for seven, then it goes back. Lovehoney uses more than 7,000 collection points and holds for seven days. Bondara's page does not mention collection points at all.

If you work away from home or share a building, three days is not much. Seven is workable.

What the packaging itself says

All three describe the same thing in slightly different words, and the wording is the only way to tell how seriously they take it.

Lovehoney: "We ship all orders in boring brown boxes or plain envelopes so that the only person getting excited about your delivery is you."

Bondara: plain brown boxes for larger or more obvious items, padded envelopes for smaller ones, with no reference to the contents on the outer packaging and the name Bondara not displayed anywhere.

Ann Summers goes further on paper: plain heavy-duty envelopes or boxes, no branding on the outside or the inside, and the only labels are the courier's consignment label plus anything legally required, such as a battery safety label. They also publish photographs of what the packaging looks like.

That last part is more useful than it sounds. A plain box is a plain box, but knowing whether yours will be a padded envelope or a cardboard box tells you whether it fits through a letterbox.

What this means if you are ordering

If the statement matters more than the price, Bondara is the only one of the three that publishes a descriptor unrelated to the shop's name. Ann Summers publishes one, but it depends on your bank. Lovehoney does not publish one, and I would ask before assuming.

If you are ordering late, Bondara dispatches until 11pm.

If you want to collect rather than receive, Lovehoney and Ann Summers both hold for seven days at ParcelShops and Post Offices, and Ann Summers holds lockers for three.

If you want to know what the parcel will look like, only Ann Summers shows photographs.

Where these numbers come from

• Lovehoney delivery costs, cut-off times, packaging wording and the 14-day claim window: lovehoney.co.uk/help/delivery, read 2 November 2026.
• Bondara service table, cut-off times, packaging and the `Nagook Ltd` descriptor: bondara.co.uk/discreet-next-day-sex-toys-free-delivery, read 2 November 2026.
• Ann Summers delivery options and cut-off times: support.annsummers.com article "What are my delivery options", read 2 November 2026.
• Ann Summers packaging, returns label and the Starling and Monzo caveat: support.annsummers.com article "Will my parcel be discreet?", read 2 November 2026.
• The unopened-package rule that decides whether a return is accepted is in the returns guide.
• Which brands are owned by whom, which is the other thing that is not on the box, is in who owns what.