Hard Times: How is the recession hitting the SF sex industry?
The following piece was originally commissioned by the Spot.Us community but purchased by Boulevards Media. The original donors were reimbursed and SF Station has first publishing rights.
By Bonnie Ruberg, Special to SF Station: a report funded by the Spot.us community.
At Good Vibrations, the iconic white “Rabbit Habit,” a five-inch dildo paired with a friendly, bunny-shaped vibrator, sells for $90. Compared to other items available through the high-end sex toy company that has become a Bay Area institution, this piece of sculpted silicone seems like a bargain. The “Eleven,” for example, a curved rod of stainless steal advertised for both vaginal and anal play (two in one!), bears a price tag of $300. Even the most basic items don’t come cheap. The “Laya” vibe—plastic, compact, discreet—rings up at $46: enough to buy a week’s worth of groceries, or for that matter, 100 condoms.
Still, on a Friday night at the Polk Street store on Nob Hill, business appears to be booming. Despite the recession, which has pressured consumers into tightening their budgets for everything from clothing to entertainment, there’s no shortage of customers browsing the rows of multicolored butt plugs and strap-on kits, smiling optimistically as they place them down on the counter in front of the cash register.
In an airy, white back room covered with tasteful, sensual art, Good Vibes is hosting an erotica reading. Those who stay until the end receive 15-percent-off coupons for anything in the store. As the listeners file out of the reading, they don’t hesitate to mull over massage oils and classic porn DVDs, prepared to pull out their already strained credit cards.
Before the economy took a nosedive last year, accepted business sense said that certain industries would always be recession-proof. If anything, so the thinking went, those industries should be bolstered by tough economic times—when people down on their luck want to block out reality and curl up with their vices.
Alcohol, tobacco, and of course sex: they’ll always sell.
Apparently not. Pornography, the most visible sector of the sex industry, has taken a hit across the board. In January, Larry Flint infamously called for a porn bailout bill, and traditional porn studios report revenue is down 20 to 30 percent. Even online porn, free from the risky cost of printing magazines or DVDs, is feeling the crunch. Hit hard by pirated content, tube sites, and a new generation of consumers who don’t want to pay for their kicks, subscription-based sites are finding it hard to stay afloat in an age when a few Google searches turn up enough free material to get viewers off from now until the end of the economic crisis.
Using the porn industry as a measure, the answer would seem simple: sex + recession = no sale. The reality on the ground, however—business-to-business and person-to-person—makes for a much more complicated equation.
More Donors Get Refunded!!!
The title says it all: More Spot.Us community members have been refunded.
Let me be the first to congratulate the funders of “How the Recession is Hitting the SF Sex Industry.”
You know how to pick em!
This piece has been refunded by Boulevards.com who in addition to owning several city websites lay claim to the Metro papers around the Bay.
They will most likely run the piece next week at SF Station. When they do – I will be singing their praises (and alerting the original donors). As outlined here – they helped to create a win-win-win situation.
But for now – I must sing the praises of Bonnie Ruberg – the reporter behind this pitch. This pitch posed a lot of lessons for Spot.Us and Bonnie was nothing but professional, understanding and in the end produced quality work that caught the attention of news organizations.
I’m certain that the original donors of this story are also very happy. So on behalf of them. THANK YOU BONNIE!!!!
What first attracted me to this story was Bonnie’s obvious specialty in the subject matter. One look at her blog and you’ll see that she is all over the subject of sex in a professional but entertaining way. I’ve seen the finished work and it is both informative and tells a story that brings the reader along for a good ride.
Looking forward to announcing when this story is published. I also hope to follow up with another blog post about lessons learned from this story which, truth be told, could have been disastrious if Bonnie weren’t already a respected and known writer on issues of sex. But more on that in the future. For now – it’s a celebration.
Reporting on the SF Sex Community Begins
Without a doubt Bonnie Ruberg has pitched one of the more interesting stories we’ve had on Spot.Us.
“How is the Recession hitting the SF sex industry?
It has already proven to be a learning experience for Spot.Us and I suspect it will be informative for the readers as well. Bonnie is a great young journalist who blogs at Heroin-Sheik and as such has given us an update on the start of her reporting.
I’m very interested in seeing how this turns out. I know Bonnie is excited about this piece and she is the write person to work on it, as this is her beat and she knows the community well.
Let’s wish Bonnie luck!
Does Sex Industry Deserve a Bailout? Lets Find Out!
Larry Flynt’s gesture in asking the federal government for a porn industry bailout is in part just that – a gesture. I’m sure he knows good and well that in fact the government won’t give them a few billion dollars to ensure that American’s sexual appetite remain quenched.
This is the kind of story that the traditional media would never take seriously. The only time we will give this story media attention is if Larry Flynt makes a stunt. I think we can do better – and if we raise another $200, we will.
The headline “World’s Oldest Profession Not Recession Proof” was brazened through the blogosphere. This is partly because the headline (and sex) sells. Hey – I realize this is a funny story and kudos to Larry for making a scene with sex (again) and proving a point about the bailout.
But the truth is: We have no idea and this is a serious question that deserves a real and serious answer. Some reports suggest that sex as an escape thrives during hard economic times. A recent study says the sale of sex toys and lingerie are up since the economy hit bottom. Others show it in decline.
While sex workers might be overlooked – they are a real community that deserve serious media attention beyond mere giggles and jibbing headlines. Just as illegal aliens in the United States require thoughtful, fair and thorough coverage of issues that pertain to them, so does the sex community.
In San Francisco that community, lead by BaySwan, Desiree Alliance and others have lead an effort to change the laws around prostitution or speak out against violence on sex workers.
This is a story that needs to be localized, especially here in San Francisco where the sex industry ranges from prostitution to strip clubs and large porn makers like Kink.com or sex shops like Good Vibrations.
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So what is the situation of the sex industry here in San Francisco, a city with a sexual concious that is traditional ahead of the curve?
All we need is to raise another $200 and a reporter on Spot.Us will do a long-form 2,000 article on this very topic. I don’t suspect the SF Chroncile will write this story – but somebody should.