Live webcams are within easy reach of nearly everyone these days, no matter where in the world they live or their financial wherewithal, making the business an accessible and attractive option for anyone — especially those who find themselves facing temporary life difficulties and needing a way out — and up.
Beyond camming the industry also offers other opportunities for performers to grow in their careers and to develop businesses of their own, making the live cam arena an equal opportunity employment path.
While many women are in director/management roles in the adult video market, there are relatively few female owned cam studios today.
XBIZ recently discussed today’s camming scene with Sin City Vixens Owner Nikki Lotus (@SinCityVixens), who offered considerable insights into how camming can empower models, and more.
“Models can be anyone they choose on cam! They can be themselves, an inflated version of themselves, anything... They get to explore new things and learn something new every day — all of these things help with self discovery and are a huge confidence booster,” Lotus explains. “They are in total control of their room and can choose to decline anything they wish.”
“They are alone in their own room and don’t have to worry about anyone touching them, being creepy, or following them home,” Lotus adds. “This is especially empowering for women that have been through any type of abuse.”
Lotus told XBIZ that some of camming’s success stories are due to the higher-caliber performers being drawn to the industry and to the healthy competition that results.
“We have a message board in the studio that gets updated daily with their favorites, paid percentage, their weekly goal and their actual money,” Lotus reveals. “We have some girls that ding a little bell after shows, and a few others that keep running out to check the board. It’s fun!”
As for what inspired her to get into studio operations, Lotus told XBIZ that in her former life she was the director of surgery at a large New York hospital for 11 years before moving to Las Vegas and becoming a stay-at-home mom.
“I started camming out of necessity and actually loved it. I was able to buy a house within eight months of living here,” Lotus confides. “When I started camming, I had a lot of my mommy friends asking me if they could rent a room in my house to cam from, and I thought it was silly to charge someone that was trying to make money.”
“When I suddenly became a single mother left with $16, no place to live, and had a two-year-old to take care of, with all of my family back in NYC, I got back on cam,” Lotus explains. “During this time I found out the horrendous things that local studio managers/owners were doing to models [such as] trafficking, getting them addicted to drugs, charging booking fees to work, charging them monthly for their rooms, [paying only] 20-23 percent, and then supplying them with nothing.”
Lotus says she knew there had to be other options, and being a single mom, thought it was terrible that guys were doing these things to girls that were in a bad position, who felt like they had no other options.
“I also wanted to provide more than one platform for models that had a six month non-compete (or for the ones that were told they do not, but then the studio owner decides to hold on to their account),” Lotus explains. “I didn’t like that studio managers weren’t allowing these girls to work and to keep a roof over their heads and food in their children’s mouths.”
As the sole owner of her studio, Lotus says that Sin City Vixens is not a Streamate studio, but notes that Streamate is her preferred platform for a number of reasons. She also says that she goes over and above to provide a comprehensive, high-quality, profitable, and safe environment for models.
“I have the highest speed internet available, and all of my computers are hard-lined and not using Wi-Fi. There is professional lighting and models can use their Logitech cams on a tripod or however they wish,” Lotus reveals. “I provide bedding, lingerie, clothing, shoes, makeup, wigs, toys, toy cleaner, condoms, baby wipes, Spunk lube — pretty much every prop that could possibly be requested for a show — and if I don’t have it, we figure out how to make it on the spot! We also have a shower that models can use for shower shows or for personal use.”
All Lotus asks of her models is that they strip their beds/futons and any lingerie they used, and put it in the laundry bags, and then take their little bag of trash and leave it by the back door — making the cam process as easy as possible.
“That’s all they need to do,” Lotus says, adding that in exchange, she gives models the opportunity to make more money.
“If they make their weekly goal, they get an extra 10 percent. I also run studio contests weekly or every other week for a cash bonus that they get the same week (instead of having to wait for the following week for the money), or a contest for toys or whatever it is they’re currently in to,” Lotus says, adding that “When all the Pokemon GO madness started, I did competitions for PokeCoins for certain levels — it was a huge hit!”
“I am very transparent with all the models and want them to know everything. I don’t hide anything from them,” Lotus adds. “There is plenty of money to go around, and I want us all to be successful.”
As to any unique issues with operating a studio in “Sin City,” Lotus says that “everyone loves Las Vegas — sometimes a little too much...”
“There are too many shiny things in Vegas that can easily be distracting, and lots of temptations,” Lotus explains. “I love that I get models that are trying to get their life back on track, and they have a very safe and secure place to do that. I have to trust everyone that comes to work at the studio.”
Lotus told XBIZ that she loves diversity and gets models from all walks of life in her studio.
“[For example,] we are the first studio to allow T-girls to work in the studio,” Lotus explains. “I met one beautiful soul that reached out to me and told me how other studios would let her be part of the studio but she had to provide her own space and equipment, because they weren’t comfortable with her being in the studio — and that hurt my heart.”
XBIZ wanted to know if there are other locally-based female-led studios in Las Vegas, or if studio ops are a male-dominated arena — and to what extent these studio chiefs network and share information.
“Many of the studios here are owned by Streamate or other larger companies,” Lotus says. “Streamate’s largest studio here is Sin City Studio. Sage Montana runs it. We met at the Adult Webcam Conference last year and I wanted us to be able to contact each other regarding new models, which we’ve been able to do over the past few months.”
“The male studio owners/managers hate me because of what I’m doing and how I’ve changed things,” Lotus adds, “I’m putting an end to their scams and what they are putting these girls through.”
While many women are in director/management roles in the adult video market, there are relatively few female owned cam studios today. Despite this, Lotus says that camming offers more opportunity for female performers seeking to advance their careers, and this is a factor in why so many adult stars cam.
“Some have simply had enough, and want to stay in the industry, but they don’t want to make videos anymore. [Instead, with camming,] they see that they’re getting paid by the minute, and that it’s not being recorded — they are in total control,” Lotus says. “They can make and market their own content, they work for themselves, and they can do it from the comfort of their own home or a studio.”
“Not having to wear pants to work is a huge plus,” Lotus concludes, underscoring the many levels of appeal that draw performers to camming — and cammers to studio life.
For more information on camming in Las Vegas, visit TheSinCityVixens.com.
