IamA Founder/CEO of Stockroom.com, which I believe was the first sex toy company on the internet, and is still going after 28 years. My name is Joel Tucker. AMA!

I noticed a few years ago that you were selling some of your slightly damaged and/or irregular merchandise through ebay at fantastic prices. What do you now do with these items?

Followup question: what item do you sell that is deceptively innocent...it is a lot more intense than one would think just looking at it?

We still sell some of our factory seconds on eBay. For locals, we also have our famous Rummage Sales 3 or 4 times each year. We are doing one of those this weekend. https://www.facebook.com/OfficialStockroom/

The rummage sales are FANTASTIC for any connesuir of the erotic.

Thanks for saying it so I don't have to. :-D They really are no-kidding clearance events. I'm looking forward to seeing the crowd tomorrow. There's usually a long line of people waiting at the door before opening time.

A "deceptively innocent toy" ? ... It's actually easier to think of toys that look meaner/scarier but which turn out to have milder & more sensual uses. But in answer to the question you actually asked... There are some mini nipple clamps that look like nothing special, but which have a serious bite: https://www.stockroom.com/chrome-mini-clothespin-nipple-clamps.html There's also a small, inexpensive vibrating bullet that doesn't look like it would do much, but puts out a surprisingly strong vibration: https://www.stockroom.com/dynamo-bullet-vibrator-large.html

It may be my bias but I would venture the violet wand would be "non assuming".

I always thought the wand had a bark worse than its bite.

Than you very clearly have not met me.

Ha! Nicely done.

I mean that it's very flashy, whereas a tawse may not look like much but it will mess you up.

The Neon Wand can produce some very intense sensations using more conductive (e.g. metal) electrodes or points of contact, as opposed to the glass ones, which are more sensual and milder in intensity (although quite visually interesting and beautiful).

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how is that deceptive, or innocent :) it's a catheter, that plugs into electricity, I think it pretty much does exactly what you think it'll do.

Those devices are affectionately known as "sparklers" :-D

What do you think of recent specialty shops like bad-dragon?

It's a big industry, with lots of room for creativity. In addition to designing/making our own products, we try to keep an eye out for interesting new designs and inventions from companies (small and large) from around the world. We have over 200 suppliers!

What is your best selling toy of all time?

That's not the easiest report to pull, actually, since we've changed accounting & web platforms numerous times through the years, but recent best sellers, excluding accessory items like locks, snap hooks and batteries, are the Magnetic Nipple Balls, Spandex Hoods, Under The Bed Restraints, and the VibeRite Cordless Vibrator.

Also... the Doxy Wand vibrator, the CB-6000 male chastity device, and Adjustable Stocks I see trending up this month. :-D

What on earth is a male chastity device? O.O

It's a device, usually with a lock, designed to confine the penis so that erections and/or orgasm are restricted, and/or painful. Over the years, I've found that most men react with something like "Why the hell would anyone want that?" However, to people that are into the eroticism of power exchange (controlling someone else's sexual release or having one's own controlled), which are surprisingly common kinks, it is an attractive thing... and we are one of the world's largest vendors of this kind of gear.

I think we all know the guy whose wife makes him wear one of these when he's out of eyesight.

Yes, that would be another application.

Neato, you entrepreneurs think of EVERYTHING haha.

Sexual fetishes are strong drivers for inventiveness. :-D

Imagine a vape pen and fedora for your dick.

I can imagine it... but maybe won't be rushing those items to the top of our development list. :-)

Favorite toy?

Probably the very first thing I designed/made, which are the basic wrist cuffs we are still making. https://www.stockroom.com/ankle-cuffs-w-d-ring.html :-D

Do you still develop products yourself? How much of the items are things you use, how many are things you find interesting, and how much are they things driven by what people buy?

Yes, I still develop products myself, when I have time. But I've become busier with enterprise management over the years and I actually have a backlog of undeveloped ideas along with the numerous things we've actually developed. We have over 4000 products now, so I definitely haven't had time to use them all myself, and in fact only a fraction of them, maybe 20% or so, would fall within my own range of interests. But it was never about just the things I was into... it was about being accepting of a wider range of human sexual variation and providing people with the gear that they want and need. I do think, though, that I have decent instincts about what is likely to appeal to various subcultures/orientations whether I'm personally a member of every group or not, so that's part of what goes into product selection. But of course we also listen to our staff, our customers, and watch sales trends.

What's the biggest order that someone has placed?

It's not uncommon for us to process wholesale orders in the 10K range, and over 20K from time to time, peaking up around 50K. Then there have been big pulls for Hollywood studios and one film project which totaled over 100K. But you're probably thinking about the retail/consumer side. After a quick search of activity in the last couple of years, we found one that was just under $7000. It included a custom, steel-framed bondage bed, and it went to Florida. 2nd largest order I found went to a woman in South Carolina.

It must have been one good movie to order 100k worth of sex toys

That project didn't involve any sex toys at all. It was all costuming, in latex. But if you want to see a lot of our toys, you can watch "Fifty Shades of Grey," or "Bruno."

1)How is the development of a sexual toy? I mean, how can you predict if it will cater to people's fetishes?

2) Has any relative of yours bought anything from your store?

3) Has your business created any awkward situation for you?

1) I've always relied firstly on my own instincts, followed closely by the collaborative (if not consensus) opinions of key staff from various departments-- design, production, purchasing, and sales/customer service. As I sit typing this, we just finished a product development & selection meeting, where we work on developing our own designs and selecting new products from our select vendors. The development process can be quick or slow, depending on the materials and processes involved... The record quickest development time was an invention idea I had first thing in the morning, to an accepted production sample later that afternoon; It was something that was well within our in-house capabilities and materials. In other cases it can take a year or more, if it's something tech-y, involving electronics and/or exotic materials, and if we decide to source it overseas.

2) Yes, a few of my relatives have procured items from us, something I didn’t necessarily foresee when I first started up in the late 1980s, a time when kink was more taboo than it is nowadays. Also a former professor or two, and friends from college of course.

3) There have been some awkward situations, yes. But over time, as I grew more secure, comfortable, and successful with it, it’s not that much of an issue anymore. I don’t need 100% of the people I meet to like/admire/accept me or what the company does. 80% is plenty of people. :-D

We have dealt with some stigma from time to time with banks, or regulatory agencies, and in some cases that has meant extra costs or delays. Those things are annoying and can make me a little indignant now and then, especially when I know what we’re doing from the inside and I believe in many cases we’re holding ourselves to higher standards than what is expected or assumed. But I remind myself that it comes with the territory, that it was my choice to move into an “alternative” field of business… where I saw needs unmet and opportunities in abundance. It’s been a good adventure and a good business overall, so it helps to keep my eye on the whole picture, not just the negatives.

Do you get a lot of requests for wearable stuff in larger sizes? A pretty good percentage of the kinky people I know are on the heavy side, so I'd imagine the demand would be enough to make it worth your while. (I've been absolutely coveting the Perforated Bolero Straitjacket, but probably wouldn't fit into XXL. On the up side, my husband has promised to buy it for me if I can lose enough weight to wear it!)

i think i have a new fetish. That jacket is hot :o

We not only made that here, but that item was invented by our very creative Stockroom design team. And no, I didn't work on that invention personally (though I have on many others)... My role was to help assemble the team, empower them, and when they brought me that design, to say "Excellent. We're going with that!" :-)

Yes, for the items we produce in-house, we do custom orders for any and all sizes every day. For custom sizing, there's generally a slightly higher cost, which can be more if it requires a new pattern to be made, but we always try to accommodate whatever is within our capabilities.

In your personal opinion, what is the best/strangest toy you sell? And what would you recommend for my GF and I?

Strangest: https://www.stockroom.com/catheter-electrode.html and no I would NOT recommend that product to anyone except the advanced player who knows exactly what this is, knows they want it, and will take the greatest care if they want to use it!

As for what toy is the best, I would probably give different answers to that on different days, but I think the Neon Wand is a great value for something adventurous, different, versatile, and memorable... but still a good value.

Ya, that link is gonna stay blue

Understandable. :-D

That item isn't a best-seller but it's a steady seller... to the select few.

How do you think the recent Federal Circuit decision allowing for trademarks on immoral or scandalous material is going to affect your business?

There was one trademark I wanted to file some years ago, and our attorney talked me out of even trying it because he said the trademark office would likely deny it. I guess we could start that ball rolling now. But none of the marks we have registered have run into problems because we tend not to push the good-taste envelope too much. :-)

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Last year we released a new anal toy, and I called it The Innuendo. I do like that I get to name new products from time to time.

In-your-endo.

(I know - that's the joke, but I had to)

In this line of work a sense of humor is helpful, if not essential.

Do you think the brick and mortar shop days are over? The erotica industry convention has gotten much smaller here in recent years, and a lot of the vendors seemed to blame it on online sales and eBay etc. Are physical stores dying out?

Our shop is doing fine... I think there's still room for brick & mortar shops for those who do it well and offer customers support/interaction that they can't get online. Plus for the kind of specialty products we sell, there's value in being able to see the products and evaluate their quality in person. It's hard to tell those things from a web page sometimes.

VR?

Do you mean Virtual Reality? What about it?

Yes. Have you looked into using this technology for costumer interaction/demonstration? Still early days of course, especially regarding feel.

I've had that in mind for many years, but nothing in development at the moment.... We're busy with a lot of other new developments, like the new website, which we "soft launched" in December without much of an announcement (yet), developing some new lines, sprucing up our retail store, etc etc etc.

I need something that can massage my clit but also give me a deeper penetration. Help?

This one comes to mind... https://www.stockroom.com/alice-violet.html It's relatively pricey, but very well made/high quality and made of high-grade silicone.

Oh my god thank you so much this is perfect:)

OK... you're welcome and gl :-)

Are you guys hiring?

We don't have any active job listings at the moment, but resumes with cover letters are always welcome for future reference. :-)

Great! Where do I send it? [email protected]?

Yes, or mail it "C/O The I Talked With Joel on Reddit.com Dept" :-)

Are you hiring? Im a qualified QC inspector.

We are pretty well staffed at the moment, but things are always evolving, and résumés and cover letters are welcome for future reference. You can find the address on our site and send it "Attn: I Saw You On Reddit Department." :-)

Hi have you ever delivered something in person ?

I've been a vendor at probably 100s of events... conventions, street fairs, private parties, etc. In my early days I did a few toy parties in private homes for people I knew. I've delivered wholesale orders. I don't recall ever personally taking an order to a private residence for someone I didn't know. :-)

Hi Joel, There's a lot of free erotic fiction out there these days but I'm looking for a book. What's on your nightstand?

My oldest favorite is The Story of O. A modern re-work of that story is Master of O, a novel by Ernest Greene which we published last year under our publishing imprint, Daedalus Publishing. I like the Illustrated version. :-)

I haven't seen that yet, thanks! The Story of O was my first and is still my most favorite erotic book. I liked the movie too but would love to see a serious remake of that as well. Who should direct?

Well, it's too late for Stanley Kubrick to do it... He didn't even get to finish Eyes Wide Shut. That leaves Roman Polanski, Sofia Coppola... or maybe Terry Gilliam lol. (I went to the same college as Gilliam.)

Do you still include a Tootsie Pop with your orders? When/why did you start doing that? I was always disappointed when I didn't get a chocolate one ;)

I think I started doing that in 1991, if not before. I was 24. I had a sweet tooth, and I liked Tootsie Pops. I thought it would be a friendly way of saying "Thank you." I started buying Tootsie Pops by the case and including one with every order. Yes, we are still doing the same thing today, 25 years later. We buy them buy the pallet-load now. I'm sure not everyone likes them exactly as much as I did (and still do really), but in 25 years we've only had one negative comment about it, and most people find it whimsical and welcome. The one negative reaction I recall was about 15 years ago... Someone said "Are you trying to say I'm a sucker?" No, we're trying to be friendly. We reassured the client, and then he was fine with it.

Didn't you used to be called JT's Stockroom? I always felt like this was a better name because when my dildos arrived I pictured them having been packed lovingly by Justine Timberlake. Any chance of bringing it (much like the sexy) back?

There's actually a long story to be told about the history of the company's name(s) over time. To make it short, here's a timeline:

1988-1993 JT Toys

1993-1999 The Stockroom

1999-2006 JT's Stockroom

2006-present The Stockroom

1988-1993: In the first year or two, I didn't think it mattered much what the company was called, because I didn't expect it to ever be a full-time job or employ multiple people. I just called it "JT Toys."

1993: By this time, the company was growing, and had a couple of full-time staff and a few part-timers. We decided it needed a cooler name, and we chose "The Stockroom."

1999: I wasn't a lawyer, an MBA, or a business major... and I didn't give much thought to trademarks in the early years. But in 1999 I thought we should try and register "The Stockroom," and learned that someone else had recently trademarked "Stockroom" for use as a clothing mark. Although we never heard anything from that other "Stockroom," I feared a potential trademark dispute. To distinguish the name, I hybridized the first two names (JT Toys and The Stockroom) and we changed to JT's Stockroom. But we still held the all-important stockroom.com domain, which was what mattered most.

2006-present: The other "Stockroom" had by this time filed for bankruptcy, and changed its name. Today, it's called Rue 21. We then filed our federal trademark registration for The Stockroom, and became "The Stockroom" again. But some people still know/refer to us as "JT's Stockroom," and that's fine, because it's the same company, and I'm the same JT, still here. A few old timers still remember us as "JT Toys" too.

There's an even longer version of that story I can tell... with more about the genesis of "The Stockroom" ... maybe I'll post that story here later when I have more time. But that's the basic history.

What is your favorite dinosaur?

Triceratops. Gentle, herbivorous, not trying to start any shit, but ready for battle if someone comes after them. :-D

Herbivorous? Probably. Gentle? Fuck no! That bastard was ready for battle!

As needed. :-)

How can someone work for you? Getting into the sex toy business sounds great honestly.

I think the industry is significantly more competitive across the board than it used to be, but also more mature... Lots of interesting things being developed, good designs, better materials, more tasteful packaging, and a more grown-up approach to all aspects of business. Networking inside the adult industry is probably more similar nowadays to any other industry... cultivating your contacts and relationships, seeing what you're good at and how you can provide real value, and going out and seeking those opportunities. There are industry trade shows, trade publications, and lots and lots of companies. Xbiz.com and AVNOnline.com would be places to start in getting an overview of the industry and seeing what's going on.

As for us, we don't have any active job listings/openings at the moment, but things are always evolving, so you're welcome to send a resume/cover letter if you like. As I've said elsewhere, you can send it "C/O The I Talked To Joel On Reddit Dept." :-)

Do you remember much from the GwenMedia days? Any stories or anything? Thanks!

We've always supplied GwenMedia with a lot of gear and latex/fetish fashions for their productions, probably more than any other company has, and they have been gracious about crediting us for our designs and contributions over the years. Since 2006, the company has been owned & operated by Isabella Sinclaire, who is a friend and an admirable businessperson in the alternative/fetish world. I don't recall being on set for any of their shooting days, but we have certainly supplied a lot of gear, seen it in action, and I've known many of the people involved in their productions.

What is your favorite breakfast food?

I change that up regularly. Lately... granola with fruit; sometimes raw oats with milk/honey/fruit; eggs & potatoes, gluten-free bread with peanut butter & jam... or just leftovers/whatever's at hand while I head out the door to my first meeting.

Oh my god, dude. I still have a bag of crops, paddles, crossbars, etc. that I bought from your brick and mortar location in LA in '95!! Glad to see you're still around and doing well! When did you make the transition to e-commerce and how did you even know about its existence? I'm assuming you did it early, and back then the internet wasn't known to many people at all.

I was online in the late 80s, and made my first "E-Catalog" in 1990. That summer, the internet became our primary market, and has been ever since. 25+ years online. The stockroom.com domain name wasn't registered until 1995, but at that point we'd been doing business online for 5+ years.

Are you creepy? I ask because when I was in college I had that "one female friend" who would go in to sex shops and I would tag along sometimes, and a lot of times the people behind the counter who would be wearing the merchandise would be quite leery and creepy. My friend just liked the kinky shoes (giant stilletto heels) Often the store attendants would say some creepy things to her (and these were females and she was a lesbian) So just gotta ask if you are creepy?

The short answer would be "no," and I say that with some degree of confidence. On the other hand, how many people who are creepy actually know that they are creepy, or would say yes to that question?

Surprise or even initial disbelief are common reactions when people who've gotten to know me a little but don't know what I do ask me what kind of business I'm in, and I tell them I own a kink-oriented sex toy company. I have a low-key and fairly clean-cut demeanor, I went to a good college and graduated (with honors), and I'm reasonably articulate, educated, and cordial. But privately I have an independent mind, I'm a complex person, and of course I have some kinked inclinations that gave me some challenges in wanting to see myself as a normal-ish, respectable citizen in the context of the late 1980s when I was coming into young adulthood in a social context where kink desires were more taboo.

For sure there are times, thankfully infrequent but still every now and then, when people (male or female) find me a little weird for one reason or another. Maybe sometimes I attempt to express a thought that's a little too complex, or perhaps too subtle, or maybe they get a look at one of our catalogs or websites and what they see there stretches their comfort envelope, and makes them think "there must be something out of order with that guy even if he seems kind of normal." :-)

do you sell anything to extend a locking leather collar? i recently bought one thats a bit too small (and not custom made either.)

No... I suppose we could design/make something easily enough. But it would probably be easier to just get the right size... Is it still in new condition? If so we can exchange it. If not, maybe call the customer service team, and if we can find the order we'll give you a discount on the replacement. Just tell them you were talking to me on Reddit.

its been sitting in the box it came in for a few months or so cause i was gonna prolly make one myself sometime, so yeah its still in new condition. i would have contacted customer service or something to get the right size, but on your website it doesn't have size options so i thought i was SOL. ill definitely will go through the proper channels and see what can be done now though.

sorry for the shit question.

Nothing wrong with the question at all.

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First, thanks for the positive comments.

As for advice, I actually wouldn't advise anyone to allow a small-to-mid-sized company become as complex as The Stockroom is... design, manufacturing, wholesale distribution, publishing, a brick & mortar store, half a dozen active brands, mail order, and multiple consumer websites. A monster like Apple can manage all those things, but they are about 10,000 times our size (no exaggeration). To the extent that it is manageable at all, I rely on the passion and dedication of an inspired team... there's really no other way to make it work. I can't do everything or even keep track of all the moving parts myself.

I wonder why the original post/question in that thread was deleted... It was from a friend (I was 98% sure I knew who it was from what he said)... Maybe it looked like company-sponsored spam, but it wasn't. In any case, the response stands on its own well enough.

Have you ever considered changing your first name to Richard?

So I could be the biggest Dick in the kink products world?

No, not really. :-D

Hi Joel - my question for you is this: how do you deal with the potential for the products in your catalog to be used in serious crime? Does your company have a law-enforcement liaison department, given that it may have to provide evidence in cases where its products were used abusively?

We're still a relatively small company, and we wouldn't need a department to deal with something that comes up so rarely. In fact I recall only one time in the company's 28-year history that we got a subpoena to provide information regarding products purchased from us that were believed to have been used in a crime, i.e. non-consensually. (I found news reports on the incident, and it did sound like crimes had been committed and our product could've been used.) Most any product can be used illegally (a gun, obviously, but also a bat, a steak knife, a crowbar, etc.); I think the world's biggest, bloodiest crimes are committed with pens, computers, dollars, LCD screens, airplanes, and socio-political manipulations... not with sex toys, even kinky ones. If someone is determined to engage in kidnapping, harming another person, or other such mayhem, they can find the tools and weapons as readily in a military surplus shop, a hardware store, a WalMart, or Bed, Bath & Beyond as in our catalog. I think people using our products that way is very rare. They're intended for use between consenting adults, who do these things because they want to... and hopefully will do them again and again if they get the chance!

Hi Joel, thanks for the AMA. What is the best fake rubber vagina you have for sale through your haberdashery, and would you send me one, for personal review?

I'm going to assume this is a humorously-inclined inquiry... but as it happens I can comment. This is a category of product which I actually resisted adding to our line in our earlier days, somewhere between 10 and 12 years! But eventually (1) we had more and more requests, (2) the quality of the offerings in this category improved, and (3) I reconsidered my original misgivings. Our mission is not to judge people's interests/desires/requests, as long as what they're doing involves consenting adult behavior and doesn't break any laws... What we do judge is quality and value... So we pick what we think are the best options and go with those. The ones on our site reflect that sensibility.

Why did you resist adding it to your line? What were your misgivings?

Well, look at the original question above... He didn't say "functional, tasteful, realistic silicone vagina replica." He said "fake rubber vagina." Doesn't sound very tasteful, does it? In the early days, I thought what was available was not very classy in terms of quality, materials, design, or packaging, and I thought the idea didn't fit with the tasteful, respectful/respectable collection I wanted to offer. Maybe the quality of what was available at the time influenced my attitude toward the product category in general. But by the late 1990s I woke up to a different landscape where the new products on the market were actually pretty impressive, and I thought also that an artificial vagina can be viewed as sort of the heterosexual-male equivalent of what a realistic dildo might be for a woman... So if we're carrying realistic penises, why would we not carry realistic vaginas... especially when we actually had customers asking for them.

Hey Joel!

Big fan of your products and I always tell girls that I work with about your products and website.

What was your favorite hobby growing up and what did you do before your website took off?

I had a few hobbies growing up (other than imagining kink-oriented fantasies at an unusually-early age)... When I was very young I did magic, then model trains for a while... I read a LOT of books... My father was a math professor, and used cards and dice games to teach me probabilities and statistics... And I got involved in the family business (truck farming) by the time I was 9.

Truck farming eh, I hear it's a difficult crop.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Market_garden

Do you personally test products for quality control purposes? Do you have kids? if you do then do they know about your company or how did they find out?

1) I do occasionally try/test products, or at least examine and test them in our product selection meetings. We just had one of those meetings a couple of hours ago, and I approved quite a few products, both in-house and from outside vendors. But there were also some riding crops sourced from China that looked good, and were half the price of similar crops produced in the USA, but which didn't stand up to our stress tests. So those will be sent back to the factory with our notes.

As for actually using all the products myself... it's thousands of items now, so no, I don't use them all. Some fit within my personal interests, and many don't. But all have to meet our quality standards. It is a large, but definitely curated collection.

2) Although I like kids and I'm pretty good with them and no goddammit I don't mean that in any weird perv way, I don't have children of my own. So while bankers or regulatory authorities may be prejudiced toward the nature of the business, I haven't had to explain or defend my career choice to a judge in a custody hearing or anything like that. I do have a girlfriend who has an 11-year old son. So far I don't think he knows anything about the nature of the business. If I talk about it with him, it's in truthful but very generalized terms.

Where do you source all the stuff? How do you find it?

We design many of our own products, and for outside sources we go to trade shows and events, we look inside and outside the country, and last but certainly not least, often vendors and inventors come to us with their newest items and ideas, since we're a long-established company in our industry, and known for our interest in new/innovative/specialty items (and our discernment in selecting what we think will be good/effective/successful).

Oh man, my boyfriend loves your site. He's a Dom that needs to put his money where his mouth is. Do you have a good wrist\ankle cuffs that you could recommend?

The whole company originally started with me being a young beginner dominant on a college student's budget, looking for good quality, functional, attractive, and affordable bondage basics. The business that would provide that didn't exist (at least not nationwide, and certainly not online, because it was the late 1980s), so I created it. We still make & offer those basics... Look for the early item numbers that start with J, like J005, J010, J029, J024, and J021. On the other hand, if you're out of college, not as broke as I was back in the day, and want something more luxe-y (but still well priced for what it is), the JT's Signature line is a step up in design, workmanship, materials, and stylish accessorizing of your loved one. :-)

We made a short video to introduce the JT's Signature line, featuring the beautiful Stoya. That is actually me at the piano! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6y44i0bbaY

Are you associated at all with The Stockroom in Los Angeles?

Yes, that is where we are located... on Sunset Blvd in L.A. This is the company's 7th location since it started, but we have been in our current spot for almost 11 years now.

Can I get my whip back?

Come and get it, Mr. C. You're always welcome in L.A. I don't make it out to New Orleans as often as I used to, regrettably.

Thanks for doing this AMA!

When people what your job is or what you do for a living, what do you say to them?

I still have some true-but-vague/euphemistic go-to answers, like if someone asked me that question in front of their 5- and 7-year old kids... I can say I do "online marketing," or "leather products," or "import/export" ... all true. But in most situations I'm fairly upfront about it. "I run a sex toy and fetish fashion company." Negative reactions are fairly rare these days, especially in the big city. Most people find it interesting. Some find it funny. If they're offended or think it's wrong, they're entitled to their perspective, and I can just move on. I got over my issues with it decades ago, and decided it was ok for me.

In regards to your impact toys, floggers and the like, have you considered letting buyers post reviews? Or putting the intensity (such as thuddy v. stingy) in the description? I know for a lot of kink beginners buying a 'beginner' flogger at times can be sort of a risky business, not to mention expensive.

I don't mean to sound like I'm criticizing or anything, but I know my first few purchases from you guys weren't the best (basic suede flogger lol). I've seen other sites that have implemented a number system, or categorize thuddy v. stingy, would that change ever roll down to your guys?

Otherwise I have found your products to be satisfactory and have always looked forward to the mail :D

We spent a long time developing our new website, which launched in December, but hasn't actually been officially announced yet, other than in this thread on Reddit. The new site DOES have that functionality; We just haven't turned it on yet. We will do so soon, and roll it out with an announcement.

I designed that basic suede flogger myself, thank you very much... around 1989 when I was 22 years old. :-D It remains in our line because IMO it's a good beginner item and reasonable value for the price. We have much more advanced and finely-crafted options, but the price is also significantly more. But in any case, anytime a situation arises where you don't feel like you got good value for whatever was spent, or a product wasn't as advertised, you can let us know, and we'll see what we can do. I think our customer service team is the best/smartest/most dedicated you'll find. Also, unlike a lot of online companies, if you look for a phone number on our website, you'll see it's easy to find, and if you call it during business hours, you'll get an actual human person on the line who works in the same building where most of our products are warehoused, and where many of our products are produced as well. So you can actually have a real conversation about it with a person who's reasonably empowered to try and take care of the situation. :-)

Do you have any sort of white-label affiliate program available? I run a large erotic photography blog on tumblr and am always looking for accessible partners to offer products to my viewers.

We have an affiliate program, and we run co-branded sites with a few select affiliates, where we can basically add an adult toy outlet to their website using their colors/design. Our affiliate business isn't super huge, but it's there, and we do appreciate the support and collaboration we get from our active affiliates.

What is your stance on selling non-body safe and porous materials like cyberskin? Why not switch to silicone, ABS plastic, metal, etc where there's less of a risk from pthalates leeching out of the dildo?

With respect to third-party goods, we've always tried to select and carry the best-available products to cover all the bases we were trying to cover. In the earlier years of the company, there really wasn't much awareness regarding phthalates or other materials/additives being a potential problem, and some of the more inert/hypoallergenic materials like silicone hadn't become available or risen to prominence yet. Even now there is debate over whether those now-less-favored materials were really all that hazardous, but in any case, more inert/hypoallergenic is always better. In the lasts 10+ years, we have migrated more and more to materials like silicone and stainless steel, and we have retired many products we weren't sure about, especially when more modern options were available. If we still have a few of those debated items/materials in the line, it's probably because there's nothing equivalent available in silicone etc., and we're not aware of them having significant risks. In any case, we were one of the very first national retailers to make the commitment to making a wide range of silicone options available (despite its greater expense and its relative rarity/novelty at the time), and our product line features items made from pretty much all of the materials you mentioned above, along with lots of others. Incidentally, it's also very true that not all plastics are the same! :-D

Is there a story behind the Tootsie Pops?

Yes, but it's posted elsewhere in this IAmA in response to another similar question... have a look. :-)

One major competitor of yours, AdamEve.com regularly advertises through radio, TV, etc. I know that as I became interested in sex toys and such, I already knew of the company so logically that is where I made several purchases.

Your company on the other hand, doesn't seem to spend as much on advertising. Is there a reason you have avoided doing so? It seems to me that winning the business of young adults just getting into this stuff would pay some pretty bug dividends down the road.

By the time Adam & Eve woke up to the potential importance of the internet as a place to sell their products, my company had already been online for a decade or more. However, they were also 20 years older and about 100x our size, so they could afford to spend more money just launching their new website than my company's entire annual revenue... and I think they did. Their pricing structure is different than ours (larger markups/better margins) and they have the scale to do big television ad spends. So far big national campaigns like that haven't seemed within our reach, but still, we may do some experimenting with cable TV one of these days. For now, it's online, pay per click, social media, print ads, general PR, and occasional radio spots/appearances.

Have you thought about streaming online Stockroom University sessions? I think there is a market there very eager to have a resource like that available no matter their location.

Some Stockroom University content has been streamed in the past, and we plan to do more in the future. There are some technical challenges and also we need to make sure the live attendees are comfortable with respect to having their privacy/confidentiality respected, but we'll announce availability through our websites and mailing lists if and when regular streaming becomes available.

There is a distinct lack of items for pet play. Any chance that I could pass along some ideas?

Your ideas are welcome, for sure. We also have quite a few items in the pipeline which should be showing up on our site soon, some of our own design, and some from other artisans.

What would be your top five recommended toys for my wife, specifically heavy into restraint and forced orgasms?

How about...

https://www.stockroom.com/leather-steel-wrist-restraints.html

https://www.stockroom.com/leather-steel-ankle-restraints.html

https://www.stockroom.com/viberite-cordless-7-speed-massager.html

https://www.stockroom.com/adjustable-wrist-ankle-spreaders.html or https://www.stockroom.com/adjustable-stocks-black.html

https://www.stockroom.com/the-g-2-pocket-rocket-vibe.html

https://www.stockroom.com/vibratex-snuggle-puss-g-spot-stimulator.html

I recently heard Venus Prototype is making latex clothes for you. Why would you hire someone who took probably thousands of dollars from her loyal customers and disappeared?

I don't know who that is and to my knowledge it isn't anyone who's working for/with The Stockroom.

It's always interesting to see what bubbles up from the rumor mill... most of it ends up being slanted or false.

Hey there, I was introduced to the store (as well as the kink community in general) by an ex gf and I love the community sense of the actual location. I've been to many of the rummage sales (noticed you have one coming next week, wish I was in town) and now I see friendly faces teaching classes on the mailer.

Would you be willing to teach some of the crafts that go into making the products alongside the bdsm techniques?

I'm someone who is very DIY with my entire life and would love to add leatherwork and crafting to my repertoire.

also, bring the catalog back! it's a great conversation starter among vanilla friends seeing it laying around in my place or car

Yes, Stockroom Hall, which is the large space next to our storefront on Sunset Blvd, hosts Stockroom University classes every weekend, several Rummage Sales every year, photo/video shoots, meetings, and occasional special events (including our own company holiday party every year). The rummage sale is on today (and tomorrow), and as usual we had a long line of people at the front door before opening time. People think they need to get there in the first minute to get the best deals, and I'm sure it helps, but frankly there's so much in there I think there are plenty of cool finds to be found even at the very end. Plus, we normally fortify the offerings with additional goodies and deals for Day 2.

With all of our competing priorities, business units, community outreach, and educational topics, adding leather crafting into the roster is something I suppose we could do, but since that's part of the core business we're already in, it might not rise to the top of our long to-do list anytime soon. Having done it myself, I can certainly say it can be relaxing, fun, creative, and productive. When I started, there was no company like The Stockroom (an easily-accessible, convenient, discreet, established worldwide vendor of BDSM leather staple items at prices that a college student on a budget could afford), which is how I came to start my little cottage business which went on to become that thing). Had there been such sources of quality gear at more reasonable prices, with better economies of scale, as there are today, I might never have picked it up myself, and it's less necessary or cost effective for the average person. But most often people pick up hobbies because they enjoy them, not so much because they expect to make (or save) money, and leather craft can be fun. On occasion we have a friend or employee ask if they can purchase some leather or components from us, and we help them out if we have it on hand and can spare it.

Bringing the catalog back: That is happening. It's a big production, and it's not as big a part of our core business nowadays when all the content can be delivered quickly and economically via the web and mail-order has faded in prominence somewhat. *However," my commitment to doing a new catalog at least occasionally is still in place, and we're working on the new one now. (The last one is still great, and we haven't run all the way out of them, but it's a few years old now and not super up to date.) Photo shoots, product design/selection, layout, etc.

Which toy does you wife/girlfriend likes the most?

https://www.stockroom.com/leather-choker-with-o-ring.html

Where do you get ideas for your toys? Or do you have a creative team to do it (must be the best job ever)?

Some of the ideas are mine, and some come from our design team, who have skills and talents in the aggregate that exceed my own. But I do still have inventive ideas of my own. They come from erotic daydreams, and/or practical ideas about how to solve a problem around sexuality, or make it better. We also keep an eye on trends and what people are requesting, buying, and responding to.

What would be largest dildo you can provide? Including special orders. Asking for a friend.

https://www.stockroom.com/mr-universe-dildo.html Largest solid girth

https://www.stockroom.com/large-inflatable-giganticus-dildo-black.html Expands to a huge size

https://www.stockroom.com/the-champ.html Super long

https://www.stockroom.com/njoy-eleven.html Biggest steel dildo

What is your net worth?

I don't know exactly. Most of my net worth is currently invested either in the company or in the building that it's in. I'd have to sell everything to know the real dollar value. It's more than $1. It's less than a billion. I might be in the "dos comas" club. If I'd won the $1.5B PowerBall lottery, I still wouldn't be "tres comas," because of all the obscene taxes and amortization. (Nevermind the splitting and sharing part.)

Have you ever thought about changing your first name to Richard?

That question was already asked and answered. :-D