Nisha Downes, once known as the “main girlfriend” of flamboyant tobacco tycoon Travers “Candyman” Beynon, has opened up about the strict ‘rules’ he allegedly made his partners abide by.
Now 29, Downes confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that she left Beynon and his infamous “Candy Shop Mansion” on Queensland’s Gold Coast nearly three years ago, opting for a more grounded life away from the party-fueled, polyamorous lifestyle that made headlines around the world.
“I was 19 when I moved in,” she said, referring to her arrival at Beynon’s opulent estate in 2015. “But by the time I turned 27, I started asking myself, ‘Is this really what I want long-term?’”
She added that thoughts of the future, and whether she could raise children in such a dynamic, prompted her to reconsider. “In the end, nothing dramatic happened. I just felt like being with one person would be more intimate.”
Today, Downes remains on the Gold Coast but has swapped designer bikinis for business suits. She now works as a development manager in the construction industry, embracing a more conventional lifestyle.
Footage from her initial audition to live at the Candy Shop Mansion, filmed when she was just 19, shows a wide-eyed Downes meeting Beynon and his wife, Taesha, for the first time. “I stalk his social media,” she admitted in the video, via the Gold Coast Bulletin: “I’m a bit obsessed.”
Back then, she openly acknowledged moments of jealousy but said she and Taesha had a mutual understanding. “I respect that Taesha is Travers’ wife and she respects that I’m his girlfriend,” she said. “It’s kind of crazy to look at him and think, ‘That’s my boyfriend.’”
While her mother was initially wary of the setup, Downes said she came around after visiting the mansion. “Now she’s obsessed with him,” she said at the time. “She can see I’m happy and healthy.”
Beynon’s extravagant lifestyle, complete with multi-girlfriend arrangements, wild parties, and controversial decor, made the Candy Shop Mansion a staple of tabloid coverage.
Annual parties drew hundreds, though not without incident. A 2015 fireworks display sparked a nearby fire, and in 2018, Beynon was fined $13,000 after erecting a topless Virgin Mary statue, per 7 News Gold Coast.
In recent years, however, Beynon has faded from the spotlight. His last Facebook post was in April 2023, and he hasn’t updated TikTok since 2019. His business, FreeChoice Tobacco, has also seen changes: its headquarters vacated earlier this year, and the brand’s main website has gone offline, though franchise stores remain open.
Meanwhile, Beynon has re-listed his sprawling 14-bedroom mansion in Helensvale, per RealEstate.com.au. Initially put on the market in 2023 with a $25 million price tag, he’s now enlisted new agents to help sell the 2,230-square-metre estate, which features 175 meters of private waterfront, hand-painted murals, and mosaic details.
While Beynon retreats from public view, Downes seems to have found peace in a quieter, more private life… far away from the glitz of the Candy Shop Mansion.