profile

WIA Profile: Shaliza Somani

What is your role and responsibility at your company?

My main role is to oversee the Toronto sales and marketing department. We focus primarily on expanding our distribution as well as management and support for ePassporte business accounts. My department also is responsible for constructing new products and updates, so we spend a lot of time on creative design and development.

My main role is to oversee the Toronto sales and marketing department.

Give us a typical Monday at your desk?

I usually start the day off by hitting the snooze button four or five times. LOL! Mondays are mad. Everyone at our company uses Monday as a way to lay out the action items for the week to come. It’s a busy day, lots of meetings, progress assessments, deadlines and all the usual stuff. Having a solid Monday is important to ensure our week is as productive as possible.

What do you think is your greatest challenge or asset being a woman in the adult industry?

I don’t think my challenges are any different than anyone else’s in the industry. In the end, all of us are working hard to achieve the goals we have laid out for ourselves. My mentors in business are both male and female, and whether I follow in Michael Dell or Ruth Parasol’s footsteps, it’s all the same to me.

What strategies do you use to maintain balance in your life?

After a hard day at work, I like to go home, put up a picture of Chris Mallick on my wall and have a fun game of darts. It helps me unwind. All joking aside, it’s hard to find the right balance between your career and your personal life, but I think a little planning goes a long way. I schedule my social life and my alone time in advance, and I try to stick to it. Most of the time this works but there are instances when emergencies come up or deadlines must be met.

What advice would you give other women who want to enter your field?

Commit yourself and look at the company as if it is your very own. EPassporte is my little baby, and I take pride in knowing I make a difference on a day-to-day basis regardless of whether I’m offering help to an account holder or presenting an idea to the CEO. For me, really understanding the business means you get hands on at every level. This philosophy has helped me understand the business from the ground up and with much more detail.

Each month, industry news media organization XBIZ spotlights the career accomplishments and outstanding contributions of Women in Adult. WIA profiles offer an intimate look at the professional lives of the industry's most influential female executives.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More Articles

opinion

What France's New Law Means for Age Verification Worldwide

When France implemented its Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law on April 11, it marked a pivotal moment in the ongoing global debate surrounding online safety and access to adult content.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
opinion

From Tariffs to Trends: Staying Resilient in a Shaky Online Adult Market

Whenever I check in with clients these days, I encounter the same concerns. For many, business never quite bounced back after the typical post-holiday-season slowdown. Instead, consumers have been holding back due to the economic uncertainty around the Trump administration’s new tariffs and their impact on prices.

Cathy Beardsley ·
opinion

Optimizing Payment Strategies for High Ticket Sales

Payment processing for more expensive items, such as those exceeding $1,000 per order, can create unique challenges. For adult businesses, those challenges are magnified. Increased fraud risk, elevated chargeback ratios and heavier scrutiny from banks and processors are only the beginning.

Jonathan Corona ·
profile

WIA Profile: Lexi Morin

Lexi Morin’s journey into the adult industry began with a Craigslist ad and a leap of faith. In 2011, fresh-faced and ambitious, she was scrolling through job ads on Craigslist when she stumbled upon a listing for an assistant makeup artist.

Women In Adult ·
profile

Still Rocking: The Hun Celebrates 30 Years in the Game

In the ever-changing landscape of adult entertainment, The Hun’s Yellow Pages stands out for its endurance. As one of the internet’s original fixtures, literally nearly as old as the web itself, The Hun has functioned as a living archive for online adult content, quietly maintaining its relevance with an interface that feels more nostalgic than flashy.

Jackie Backman ·
opinion

Digital Desires: AI's Emerging Role in Adult Entertainment

The adult industry has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to embracing new technology. From the early days of dial-up internet and grainy video clips to today’s polished social media platforms and streaming services, our industry has never been afraid to innovate. But now, artificial intelligence (AI) is shaking things up in ways that are exciting but also daunting.

Steve Lightspeed ·
opinion

More Than Money: Why Donating Time Matters for Nonprofits

The adult industry faces constant legal battles, societal stigma and workplace challenges. Fortunately, a number of nonprofit organizations work tirelessly to protect the rights and well-being of adult performers, producers and industry workers. When folks in the industry think about supporting these groups, donating money is naturally the first solution that comes to mind.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
opinion

Consent Guardrails: How to Protect Your Content Platform

The adult industry takes a strong and definite stance against the creation or publication of nonconsensual materials. Adult industry creators, producers, processors, banks and hosts all share a vested interest in ensuring that the recording and publication of sexually explicit content is supported by informed consent.

Lawrence G. Walters ·
opinion

Payment Systems: Facilitator vs. Gateway Explained

Understanding and selecting the right payment platform can be confusing for anyone. Recently, Segpay launched its payment gateway. Since then, we’ve received numerous questions about the difference between a payment facilitator and a payment gateway. Most merchants want to know which type of platform best meets their business needs.

Cathy Beardsley ·
opinion

Reinventing Intimacy: A Look at AI's Implications for Adult Platforms

The adult industry has long revolved around delivering pleasure and entertainment, but now it’s moving into new territory: intimacy, connection and emotional fulfillment. And AI companions are at the forefront of that shift.

Daniel Keating ·
Show More