Vic Thomas, American Hardcore co-owner and sales director, will spearhead Doghouse’s sales and distribution efforts in the states, while T.J. DiReda, co-owner and marketing director, will helm Doghouse’s public relations and marketing efforts.
Prior to his work with Thomas, DiReda spent several years in marketing capacities for both Vivid Entertainment and Pure Play Media, where he marketed Ninn Worx, Seymore Butts and SCORE. Thomas previously worked in sales at both Vivid and Private. In their last joint venture, the duo partnered to form Vertigo Video, which was then sold to Caballero Home Video.
Doghouse is the exclusive Canadian distributor for Vivid, VCA and Lethal Hardcore. The studio also shoots gonzo titles such as “Black Bros and White Hos,” “Girly Gang Bang,” “Bubble Cum” and the foot-fetish series “Eat My Feet.”
“Doghouse is seeking greater penetration into the U.S. market in wholesale and retail,” DiReda told XBIZ. “We had talked to Jon [Blitt, Doghouse general manager] about doing something together for a while, and finally we agreed to a working relationship that everyone approved.”
Terms of the contract were not disclosed, but DiReda told XBIZ that it was open-ended and renewable on a yearly basis.
The partnership calls for American Hardcore to distribute all of Doghouse’s titles in the U.S., including its entire movie library, which numbers 88 titles. The company currently releases three new wall-to-wall titles, 12 compilations and one feature title per month.
“Doghouse puts out great product,” DiReda said. “Vic and I have an established studio and a lot of knowledge of the U.S. marketplace that Doghouse was seeking. They’ve got the lines and the library and now it’s our task to make sure their product moves and assumes a prominent spot in the marketplace.”