Page 38 - AVN July 2018

BUSINESS
PRIORITIZING PLEASURE
To truly help customers, sometimes it takes a little education
CASE STUDY | By Eldorado Trading Co.
Eldorado Trading Company offers up a
“case study” that delves into the business
realities faced by one of its clients. One
Every month in its Eldorado Edge newsletter,
recent case study, which focused on
Pleasures Romance Boutique in Huntsville,
Alabama, provides inspiration for any
retailer who has set up shop in a more
conservative region of the country.
Pleasures Romance boutique was established in 1995 and
operates as a brick-and-mortar story, though it also has a
presence on the web at MyPleasureStore.com.
Toni Kennedy, the store’s training and education director,
utilizes Eldorado’s Elevate U series as a sexual health educational
resource to help her clientele and grow the store’s customer
base.
Kennedy wants customers to prioritize pleasure. “Ten years
ago, I started working at Pleasures Romance Boutique. I thought
it would be a really fun part-time job for a college student,” said
Kennedy. “One day, a customer came in and made me cry—the
woman confided to me that she had never had an orgasm. She
needed help. This is when I realized that this is what I needed
to do—to help these people who have never realized their full
sexual potential. It made me aware of how many people aren’t
prioritizing pleasure in their lives.”
In order to truly help customers, Kennedy needed more
education. While she was familiar with the various products sold
throughout the store, she realized she needed more information
than just basic product knowledge. She wanted to be an
educational resource and to answer the myriad sexual health and
wellness questions their clients asked day to day.
Kennedy also faces the challenge of working in an adult store
in a very conservative military town. “Getting people to open
up to us wasn’t easy,” she said. “And we felt very discriminated
against, like we were sexual deviants.” She realized that the only
way she might change local perceptions and attitudes about adult
pleasure would be through formal staff trainings.
Kennedy discovered Elevate U, the free e-learning program
that provides sixteen different sexual health and wellness lessons
designed to prepare adult retailers with essential knowledge
that supports customers buying pleasure products. “I could tell
this series was unique and very special,” Kennedy said. “It fills
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the gap between retailers and manufacturers and how to use the products. We needed to know the
tips and tricks to deal with the personal issues our customers are experiencing and sharing with us
when they visit our store. Elevate U has helped us have better conversations with customers and
normalize the value of pleasure products.”
According to Kennedy, Elevate U provided her with essential information that wasn’t available
anywhere else. “There was a lot of useful information I never came across before, like sex with
disabilities and dexterity issues,” she explained. “Funny enough, as soon as I finished that particular
lesson, a couple came into the store and both suffered from sexual disabilities and I was able to
really help them. I felt prepared to speak to them intelligently about their frustrations and after
helping them find the right products to meet their needs, I felt very accomplished!”
Instead of cowering from the discrimination she kept facing in her conservative setting, and
empowered with Elevate U knowledge, Kennedy decided to become the friendly neighborhood sex
nerd. She developed a strong social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. She posts
daily sex topics, tips and pearls of advice that offer snapshots into her daily life at the store, which
helped build a loyal following and strong customer engagement.
“Utilizing social media helped reduce the stigma about pleasure,” Kennedy said. “I’m letting
people know that I am a confident, knowledgeable person and I enjoy my job! And now people are
reaching out to us and getting our advice. That’s a beautiful thing to see.”
Pleasures Romance Boutique has two other locations—in Nashville, Tennessee, and Decatur,
Alabama—and Elevate U inspired Kennedy to offer educational classes to customers at the
Huntsville location. The first few classes were such a success that customers need to sign up
through an app on the store’s website to reserve their place in future classes.
“We had to start taking reservations for crowd-control reasons,” Kennedy said. “We’ve had three
events this year and we’re halfway booked for an event I haven’t even organized yet!” To learn more,
visit MyPleasureStore.com.
“GETTING PEOPLE TO OPEN UP TO US
WASN’T EASY. AND WE FELT VERY
DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, LIKE WE WERE
SEXUAL DEVIANTS.”
—TONI KENNEDY, PLEASURES ROMANCE BOUTIQUE
Kennedy has this to share with other adult store owners: “If you want to grow your clientele
and become a resource for all things sexual, Elevate U is critical to your success. You can sell a
product’s features, but with Elevate U, you can talk about the product in a way that is empowering,
professional and encompassing. It’s like a little friend on your shoulder, navigating the questions
you get bombarded with daily.”
She is looking forward to completing the 16-lesson series: “Once I get my certification, I’m going
to post selfies with my certificate!” She is also a member of the Elevate U Facebook group where
enrollees can collaborate and discuss sexual health topics with other learners.
Oh, and the woman who made her cry and started her down the path as the friendly
neighborhood sex nerd? “She still comes to see me!”
This article originally appeared in the adult distributor Eldorado Trading Company’s monthly newsletter. To
sign up for the newsletter, email marketing@eldorado.net.