Articles by Colleen Godin
Kix'ies Founder Samantha DeMartini Aims to Revolutionize Sexy Fashion
“I was 17 years old and getting in a boy’s truck for a ride home,” she recalls. “The most popular boy at school! But as I climbed in, my skirt got stuck in my backpack, exposing my ‘nylon butt.’ You know, when a girl’s rear end is smushed into a pair of high-waisted nylon tights.”
Hamed Bossett-Allen, Jorge Solorzano Take Sink or Swim Distribution to New Heights
Seven years ago, two dudes were marveling over the impressively giant cheese-and-crackers spread at the ANME trade show, eyes wide like a couple of teen boys walking into an adult store on their 18th birthdays.
Family Keeps the Kink, Commerce Coming Behind the Scenes at XR Brands
As company founder and CEO at kink- and BDSM-focused manufacturer XR Brands, Ari Suss has built his one-room-office ecommerce outfit in Maryland into a national household name in pleasure products.
Carly S. Serves Up NYC-Style Sex Education, Toy Expertise
New Yorkers have a reputation for not f-ing around, and pleasure advocate Carly S. brings that no-holds-barred NYC attitude to her unabashed brand of sex education. An adult industry freelancer-of-all-trades, Carly is brashly unafraid to throw the realities of sexuality straight into your face.
CC Wellness Marks 20th Anniversary With Fresh Outlook, Amplified Strategy
On Jan. 1, the team at CC Wellness rang in more than just another new year. The start of 2023 marked a huge milestone for the veteran lubricants manufacturer: the company's 20th anniversary.
Beloved Entrenue Frontman Joe Casella Announces Retirement
Somewhere in Arizona, there’s a newly retired guy buried in a pile of books, trying to hold an awkward yoga pose while contemplating which hiking trail to hit this weekend. To the surprise and sadness of many pleasure industry veterans, that guy is Joe Casella.
XR Brands President Rebecca Weinberg Keeps Kink, Curiosity at the Global Forefront
Full-body restraint benches, handcuff-bedecked sex couches and dragon-shaped dildos once seemed like the stuff of dimly lit, back-alley porn stores, but not so much anymore — and definitely not if XR Brands has anything to say about it.
Adam Lewis Reflects on Vision That Spawned Hot Octopuss
Of all the homemade masturbation devices created by many a crafty young lad, very few have what it takes to see the light of day as a viable consumer product. Luckily for the men’s pleasure product sector, one such lad had business chops to match his teenage experiments.
Kit Richardson Creates Interactivity, Intrigue at NYC's Museum of Sex Retail Store
As 2022 has become something of a Grand Reopening for store owners across the globe, retailers have understandably faced new anxieties. Kit Richardson, however, remains undaunted.
EP Products Takes Pride in Focus on Canadian Retailers
Yet another “accidental sex toy career that spun itself into an industry success” story? It’s beginning to seem like the best way to create a thriving pleasure products business is to avoid trying too hard to make it happen.
Signe Jarvis Eyes Trends, Promotes Sex Ed as HustlerHollywood.com Buyer
Unlike many of her colleagues, who stumbled upon fulfilling careers in pleasure product sales or marketing, Hustler Hollywood’s Signe Jarvis began her journey hoping to become a sexuality professional.
MyHixel Empowers Male Pleasure With Online Therapy App, Masturbator
It's rare to find a powered penis stroker that isn't focused on the “big finish,” but that's exactly what the MyHixel I sets out to prevent — at least when it happens too soon.
Exsens Expands Global Reach With Flavorful Formulas, Marketing
French sensual body product and lubricants maker Exsens is a brand with a plan: to provide and empower women with a sexy, superior experience in the bedroom and bathroom.
Deja Vu Love Boutique Brings Las Vegas Touch to Adult Retail
It’s not a genuine trip to Sin City without popping into an adult store. Nothing concludes a night out at the clubs, casinos and bars quite like giggling at a wall of dildos with your drunk friends.
With South American Sensuality, Orgie Company Sets Sights on US
Sensual cosmetics and body products are creating their own special sector of the pleasure industry.
Rouge Garments Co-Founder Farah Shaikh Bonds Kink With Quality
When BDSM is a lifestyle, consumers trust industry experts like Farah Shaikh of Rouge Garments to provide them with the quality to match their cravings.
Sliquid Celebrates 20 Years of Success, Friendships
When Team Sliquid is in the house, you know there’s bound to be a party, and the party doesn’t start until Dean Elliott walks in.
OneUp Innovations Founder Louis Friedman 'Liberates' Brands With Clever Approach
As niche and specialized as the pleasure industry may be, some of our best-known brands don’t just succeed because their founders know sex; they triumph because they also know business.
Creative Conceptions Reflects on Surprising Successes, Maps Goals for 2022
By now, we’re used to hearing that COVID kicked up sex toy sales around the world. While plenty of pleasure businesses struggled, many more reported an enormous upswing in consumer activity — including the British team of big thinkers at Creative Conceptions.
PriveCo's Tom Nardone Specializes in the Business of 'Do Not Disturb'
If it doesn’t happen under lock and key, Tom Nardone isn’t interested in selling it. From the bedroom to the bathroom, Nardone is the king of capturing consumers who could use a little assistance in their most vulnerable moments.