LOS ANGELES — Execs from all sides of the adult retail industry gathered virtually today for XBIZ’s town hall meeting, where they shared insight on COVID-19’s impact on business and an outlook for the future.
“While the road ahead might be bumpy, we hope this meeting provides some guidance,” said XBIZ Publisher Alec Helmy, who moderated the discussion, before kicking the Zoom session off with a moment of silence for those impacted by the global pandemic.
From dealing with grocery store lines and having to maintain a physical distance from loved ones and co-workers, COVID-19 has caused an upheaval in various aspects of life.
“From the regular everyday pattern of my life spending about 50 percent on the road typically, to now shifting to not only being home, but being restricted to my home,” COTR founder Alicia Sinclair said. “It’s affected my day-to-day interactions — the amount of people I meet, cooking, exercising and how I shop.”
Satisfyer’s Jerome Bensimon said he is embracing the time at home to reconnect with his children, while adjusting to business being conducted strictly online.
“I’ve been amazed by the changes — from one day to the next, we went from being in the office every day to being on our laptops all day — the kids too; all of a sudden they’re doing Zoom meetings,” he said. “It’s amazing to see that we all have the ability to adapt, but I can’t wait to get back on the field.”
With COVID-19 putting a pause on industry events and business travel, this could be a good opportunity to be more present and de-stress.
“I found that I’ve never gone this long without traveling,” Honey’s Place’s Bonnie Feingold said. “A part of me misses the traveling and hustle and bustle; but a part of me likes feeling settled. It’s a challenging time, but we can really find the good in it and learn to take that extra moment and sit with it and learn to enjoy some things more.”
The town hall discussion then shifted to the industry’s response to the pandemic — which had to be done swiftly with shelter-in-place orders being implemented overnight in many regions.
“We’re a manufacturer with 300-plus people,” Doc Johnson’s Chad Braverman said. “Being within Los Angeles County, we’ve been really strict. As soon as we heard there would be a shelter-in-place order, we acted on it.”
Braverman discussed the stress of having to come into work on a Friday and figure out how the company would shut down its entire operations for an undetermined amount of time.
With locations in four different states — including in some considered hotspots for the pandemic, such as New York and San Francisco — Good Vibes’ Joel Kaminsky said his stores were heavily impacted, particularly since they’re known for establishing a visceral connection with their shoppers.
“It’s part of our DNA,” Kaminsky said, adding that the pandemic has made him more aware of expenses and how the company does business.
“It reminds me of back in the day when things were tight at home, maybe I didn’t need HBO — it’s kind of like this in business,” he said.
In order for retailers to get back up and running, they have implemented many new safety protocols, such as constant disinfecting of commonly touched areas, facemasks and store capacity limits.
“Being a primarily brick-and-mortar business, Pleasure Chest stores all closed their doors on March 17,” Pleasure Chest’s Phoebe Grott said. “It was such a personal experience because our staff is like our family; we’re a community, so shutting down meant that we were impacting so many people’s lives and those people are still being impacted.”
The Pleasure Chest in Los Angeles and Chicago are now open for curbside service, and like other retail stores, each must adhere to local guidelines.
Likewise, Adam & Eve franchisees across the country have reopened at different capacities following the closing of about 63 of the chain’s 78 stores.
“While they’ve been doing good, something it taught us was finding new ways to reach our customers,” Adam & Eve’s Chad Jenny said, noting the prominence of online sales and praising the support of manufacturers that enabled Adam & Eve’s shipments to not fall behind.
“We were in a unique position because we were able to see both sides of the pendulum swing in this pandemic,” he said. “In a lot of aspects, the industry has come together to help each other.”
As most online e-tailers saw an increase in business, CNV’s Ann Houlihan compared the online traffic to a swarm of bees looking for their queen.
“There was a wave of traffic looking for a home,” she said, noting that everyone — including customers — are highly sensitive during this time, and it’s important for retailers to assure their customers that they can continue to rely on them.
Adjusting to online business has been a challenge for some, including home party consultants that are used to conducting their presentations in person.
“It has been particularly challenging to train consultants to take their home party on Facebook and Zoom,” Intimate Tickles’ Virginia White-Brown said. “We’re teaching consultants that the new home party is Zoom. Our workday has increased trying to shift our in-home events to virtual in-home events. Our sales have increased 43 percent — some people that have signed up [as consultants] during the pandemic, their sales are skyrocketing.”
According to Deja Vu’s Megan Swartz, the pandemic allowed the company — which operates various businesses besides retail, including strip clubs and restaurants — to improve from within the walls that they’re confined in.
“A lot of our team is working even though we’re closed down,” Swartz said. “Hustler Club is a 90,000 square foot location and it’s getting a complete remodel — we want customers to come back and see something new.”
Town hall panelists discussed the many measures retailers are taking to keep their customers and staff safe, including providing protective gear, hand sanitizer and taking temperatures. Feelmore’s Nenna Joiner pointed out another level of sensitivity for retailers to consider.
“I think right now everyone is just stressed out in America,” Joiner said. “You have to be delicate with everyone’s social ego and racial ego. Have a greeter at the door and make the same rule applies to everyone.”
As the pandemic increasingly became an issue on the heels of the Chinese New Year, several manufacturers were already prepared, as they already expected the holiday to affect production.
“It was shocking to all of us that in early 2020 we saw a lot of manufacturing plants being shut down overseas — none of us could’ve imagined that they’d be shut down for so long,” CalExotics Susan Colvin said. “In our case, we plan ahead for Chinese New Year, and we do keep a good supply of inventory and yet we still encountered some issues because it was longer than expected. The new good news is that the factories are up and running now and while there have been a few glitches our inventory levels are really good.”
Braverman said that the coincidence of the pandemic starting while most overseas factories were already closed was somewhat beneficial.
“For us being a U.S. manufacturer, we got put into a difficult position because we had to close everything down overnight without being sure of when we would be coming back,” he said.
Before shelter-in-place orders were issued, Braverman says that Doc Johnson’s departments were not allowed to intermingle.
“There was a pause on all in-person meetings,” he said. “Meetings were done on Zoom or on the phone, even while in the office. In times like this, people get it done. It’s amazing to see what we’re capable of doing when our backs are to the wall.”
COVID-19 has affected manufacturers' product release schedules, as well as marketing campaigns. Sinclair said it’s been somewhat of a moral dilemma deciding whether now is an appropriate time to debut new items.
“A lot of our marketing has shifted to being supportive — like with coloring pages and IG livestreams,” she said.
Offering a positive outlook, Nalpac’s Steve Craig said that after a shutdown period, the distributor is back and 99 percent of its orders are being shipped on the same day or the next.
“Yesterday was our most significant sales day since I’ve been involved with the company for three years,” he said. “I think a lot of our retailers are starting to reopen and they’re placing substantial orders. The dropship business has exploded and in some cases customers have tripled their business.”
Studying other industries, Bensimon says that the uncertainty surrounding business is being experienced throughout — nevertheless, he believes that the stay-at-home period is inspiring the exploration of sexual wellness products among consumers.
“It’s a new era for sexual wellness,” he said. “I don’t think it was just the stimulus checks that resulted in people buying more — people now have more time to think about themselves.”
XBIZ’s virtual town hall wrapped with participants sharing their optimism along with a dose of realism.
“We’re preparing for the worse and hoping for the best,” Braverman said. “We’re focusing on support, and on new and unique ways that we can help. Now is not the time for 10,000 new products from different manufacturers.”
Braverman said that companies should take this to reflect and plan for the future without being caught up in production or travel.
“Now’s the time to internalize and focus on how you can get your company to be as strong as possible for 2021,” Braverman said.
Jenny echoed the sentiment, urging companies “to learn from history or be doomed to repeat it.”
“This has showed us that things happen in this world — this year it’s a pandemic, it could be something else next year,” he said. “There are things we can do to get ahead of the wave to make sure we don’t get crushed by it. It’s going to be less about a focused game plan, but keeping your head on a swivel.”
Find XBIZ's Virtual Adult Retail Town Hall here on XBIZ.net.
