If you’ve ever wondered what kinds of problems a worker at a sex store faces on the job, we talked to one owner who shared the not-so-ordinary challenges he faces in an ordinary day of work.
Narcity Canada recently chatted with Jack Lamon, one of the worker-owners at the iconic Toronto adult shop Come As You Are, which is located in Kensington Market.
The adult store has been around since 1997 and offers "a fundamentally anti-capitalist and feminist approach to sexual pleasure, health, and education," according to the co-op.
From how he starts his day to some of the more particular aspects of working in a sex store, Jack broke down all of the details for us.
What does a day in the life of a sex store employee look like?
According to Jack, everyone's day looks a little different, but his starts out when he arrives at Come As You Are at 7 a.m. to answer all customer inquiries that have accumulated overnight, noting that they get somewhere between 60 and 150 legitimate emails every day.
Next up is surveying the store to assess what's low in stock.
"I am the senior purchasing manager for all things related to toys, safer sex, lubricants," Jack told Narcity.
After that, he'll place orders to replace those items and explained that they focus a lot on "local independent makers as much as possible."
After that, it's all about working the floor.
"It's a combination of you helping customers who walked in the store, processing pickup orders from online, and then also we have a pretty regular cleaning routine," Jack says of the role.
"So everything in the shop gets cleaned once a week, including the shelves and the demos. Especially with COVID, we're quite meticulous about our cleaning schedule."
The unexepected problem
Jack explained to Narcity that while answering customer inquiries by phone or email, the same problem keeps cropping up.
Come As You Are operates North America's only sex toy recycling program, which leads to a common inquiry involving one particular product.
"Someone needs to have an amnesty for sex dolls over 30 kilograms because there are many people out there regretting their sex doll purchasing decisions," he explained.
Jack said that they get three or four inquiries every day from people who are looking to recycle their sex doll, but unfortunately, they don't accept them into the recycling program as they are "too large for our in-house process."
That leaves people in a bit of a pickle.
"I can tell that they are full of angst because they realized the only way that they can throw them out was to roll them in a carpet and throw them in a dumpster, which makes it look like they've killed someone, which, obviously, you'd like to not appear as though you've murdered someone," Jack shared.
What advice do you have for someone starting their journey into sex toys?
"Our recommendation is that whenever anyone is starting a new genre of sex toy — whether it's a first toy, or is say, a first toy in a new product category — our recommendation is to start with something inexpensive," Jack said.
He explained that everything Come As You Are sells is good, "even the stuff that's kind of cheap."
"We've tried it, we make sure it does what it's supposed to do, that it's high quality, that it's not going to break the first time you use it," said Jack.
After you've given the cheaper option a whirl, it's time to figure out what you liked and disliked about it before you invest in something a bit more fancy or luxurious.
For instance, Jack thinks it's a myth that everybody loves vibration, so if you try it and it doesn't work out for you, you're not alone.
"So don't feel badly," he advised. "If you get a vibrator and you're like, 'oh actually you know I don't love this,' you're in good company for sure."
"But if you start small and inexpensive you won't have that kind of buyer's regret, and then it gives you more budget to experiment with other kinds of toys."
What's your favourite part of the job?
"I love everything," Jack said, sharing that he's been with Come As You for about 22 years.
"The thing I love most about this job is that I get to do so many different things in a day," he said. "No two days are identical as much as the structure of the day."
Jack also said organization is a huge part of his life and affects the way he feels at work, and so he’s always staying on top of inventory management and deals with stock.
"The stockroom — both in the store and in the warehouse — are just the most organized, meticulously labelled... we've had people down there who don't work at the shop and just say 'this is like the most soothing place I've ever been,'" he shared.
As well, Jack explained how two of his favourite things come together at Come As You Are.
"I worked at a Radio Shack in my early 20s [...] and I really fell in love with small electronics," he explained.
"And I, as a trans person, a person of queer experience, have a real affinity for anything related to sexuality and gender. So for me, this job is a perfect combination of those two passions."
Come As You Are
Address: 254 Augusta Ave, Toronto, ON
Hours: Sunday and Monday - 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday - 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Why You Need To Go: To get expert advice on all things related to sexual pleasure from people who pride themselves on having "solid ethics and amazing sex toys, books, and DVDs."
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
A Toronto Sex Shop Owner Shared Customers' Most Common Regret & What A NSFW Day Of Work Is Like
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