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BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 2:56:31 PM   
teensub


Posts: 135
Joined: 7/18/2007
Status: offline 		Doing a little bit of research on BDSM shops and so on.

I personally find it increasingly difficult to find a good BDSM shop, not a website, but a shop. It seems that the only place to find a good variety of bondage gear is online. But sometimes its nice to touch, feel and see the thing you are buying before you spend your hard earned cash on it. Anyone else agree?

Do you feel that BDSM gear is easily available in shops? Do you think your needs are catered for?

Also what kind of things would you like to see on the market that arent currently there and what do you think is missing?

Thanks for the time in reading this.

Lexi Pickle x

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:02:44 PM   
Rover


Posts: 2634
Joined: 6/28/2004
Status: offline 		We have several fine fetish wear/gear shops here in Pittsburgh.  No problem.
 
John

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:05:18 PM   
CalifChick


Posts: 10717
Joined: 10/28/2007
From: California
Status: offline 		You can't find good fetish shops in London? 


Cali


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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:06:11 PM   
Coupleofwhats


Posts: 280
Joined: 6/4/2008
Status: offline 		I was just talking to someone about this last night.

I live in New York City, which is supposed to be some sort of horribly expensive den of debauchery, yet I have to order the more interesting toys online. Oh, I can get latex outfits and simple things like canes and such. But when I wanted nose hooks, no one physically had a set. And I'm ordering a proper singletail from somewhere in the Midwest, I think.

It would be wonderful if they started selling antimicrobials and needles. And suspension equipment. Latex/leather sheets would be cool too. And furniture! If there was a way to get a horse directly from a store, that would rock. Also, I don't think I ever see quality electrical equipment in stores... though I might be mistaken.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:20:12 PM   
Venatrix


Posts: 2238
Joined: 11/28/2007
Status: offline 		I get catered to like mad at Mr S.  One of their staff even dropped his trousers for me so that I could take a cane for a test drive.  You can't ask for better customer service than that.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:24:35 PM   
RCdc


Posts: 8674
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: CalifChick

You can't find good fetish shops in London? 


Cali



Honestly?  No.
Not quality ones anyway.  There are sex shops.  And there are 'alternative' clothing stores, but for good quality gear it pretty much sucks.  The major stores like harmony or ann summers are pretty vile.  Over priced, cheap, tat.
 
Unless you know where to look.
 
Coco De Mer in Covent Garden is lovely to browse around(has website).
And check out CoffeeCake&Kink in Endall Street (yes they are supposedly closing at some point - who knows when?) they have a range of small items but their art and books are a great selection.
I prefere London Fetish Fair for quality to the London Alternative Market personally, but each to their own.
 
You can google them for the address or feel free to contact us if you have issues finding out about them.
 
the.dark.

< Message edited by Darcyandthedark -- 10/8/2008 3:25:00 PM >

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:25:57 PM   
CallaFirestormBW


Posts: 3651
Joined: 6/29/2008
Status: offline 		A lot of the things that we purchase for WIITWD are things that I would consider "artisan" items. Floggers, crops, furniture, leather goods... to me, all of these things are at their best when they're crafted by someone who knows the art, not mass-produced and stocked in shops from here to Timbuktu.

Before the Internet, we had mail-order. Many of the quality items weren't purchased in a local store -- they were ordered by mail-order from someone one learned about through word-of-mouth.

In many places, there are some things that just can't be sold publicly, for legal or liability reasons. Needles are a good example. Sometimes, you have to go someplace other than a BDSM-oriented shop to get things. I get antimicrobials from a local tattoo shop, for example. Sometimes, it's just a matter of knowing where to look, but things haven't changed that much--most of the high-quality gear and clothing are going to come from artisans spread out over the country or the world, who produce a small amount of product and for whom the overhead of keeping up a physical storefront, plus the work involved in it, would seriously eat into the time that they have to be Master Craftsmen.

Calla Firestorm


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thank you - 10/8/2008 3:30:07 PM   
teensub


Posts: 135
Joined: 7/18/2007
Status: offline

thank you for your replies so far x

< Message edited by teensub -- 10/8/2008 3:37:47 PM >

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 3:35:19 PM   
RCdc


Posts: 8674
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: teensub

Doing a little bit of research on BDSM shops and so on.

I personally find it increasingly difficult to find a good BDSM shop, not a website, but a shop. It seems that the only place to find a good variety of bondage gear is online. But sometimes its nice to touch, feel and see the thing you are buying before you spend your hard earned cash on it. Anyone else agree?

Do you feel that BDSM gear is easily available in shops? Do you think your needs are catered for?

Also what kind of things would you like to see on the market that arent currently there and what do you think is missing?

Thanks for the time in reading this.

Lexi Pickle x


Well duh.
I just realised you are doing market research!  Very sneaky (and clever).
Have you attended LAM or LFF?  It's pretty cool for networking and gaining some contacts.  You will find that these are much better than the high street stores.  It's not practical, nor really finacially doable for a store to be able to cater across the board.  If you want quality, then you have to go small and specialise.
 
the.dark.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 4:04:55 PM   
Usako


Posts: 697
Joined: 7/29/2006
From: NYC
Status: offline 		I haven't been to EVERY sex shop in NYC but so far it's been a bust. I went to the two big names I hear always dropped when discussing the subject (Purple Passion and Leatherman) and both were so-so. PP had more fetish outfits than anything else and only had a small wrack for paddles, floggers and the like. Leatherman was better but all the gear was black, no variety or anything. Plus, the good stuff was downstairs and not easy to access. But they did have nice things, but not the same zest I'd see on line. And nothing for the more extreme arts.

Normal sex shops just focus on porn so I don't hold much hope for them either. But I'm still hunting around, hoping to find a nice spot. I haven't given up hope yet, NYC is too big of a city to not have at least ONE good shop. Though nothing will ever beat the net I suppose.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 4:08:06 PM   
LadyLupineNYC


Posts: 618
Joined: 12/14/2006
From: NYC
Status: offline 		Try Demask, Usako- personally haven't been, but I hear good things.  I might have someother ideas if you cmail me on the other side if you are looking for something specific (but, yeah, online is where you are gonna end up). PP is also good for thier little workship (I will be attending one in two weeks with my boy ) 

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 4:16:16 PM   
peppermint


Posts: 5171
Joined: 10/18/2005
From: Montana
Status: offline 		I've never tried to find gear in a shop.  There are great vendors at all the events we attend.  I can touch and feel the quality of the goods that are being sold. 

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 8:45:15 PM   
akisha


Posts: 2071
Joined: 6/25/2005
Status: offline 		Amazingly enough we have a few really decent shops. The one in Edmonton you can either buy off the rack (leather gear, furniture etc) or have it custom made. We just had my locking leather collar made this summer and my gf was completely outfitted there, all custom made to fit her.

They have a good selection.

Up in a little town even farther north then where I am, my gf and I went in to the local sex shop and she had some basic BDSM gear. I had a chuckle when the owner had the dummy made up as a Dominatrix infront of the door.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 8:52:25 PM   
Lynnxz


Posts: 4813
Joined: 10/3/2006
From: Atlanta
Status: offline 		In the county I live in... you can't even buy dildos. Buying anything kinkier than a fuzzy handcuffs, and a blindfold is bound to fail. 

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 8:54:24 PM   
giveeverything


Posts: 348
Joined: 9/4/2007
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Lynnxz

In the county I live in... you can't even buy dildos. Buying anything kinkier than a fuzzy handcuffs, and a blindfold is bound to fail. 
When dildos are outlawed.... then .... only outlaws will have dildos.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 8:56:57 PM   
UmbraDomina


Posts: 491
Joined: 7/22/2008
From: SE Michigan
Status: offline 		we have very limited shops in our area, a few "sextoy" shops that sell vibs, porno, and cheap fetish clothes and crappy attempts at a few very poorly made S&M toys. There is not much I want for, but anything I do spot that simply must be added to the toy closet, I order over the web now. I do miss the shops in New England and California, where abundent amounts of quality S&M toys, and clothing seemed to be easy to find.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 9:00:49 PM   
Racquelle


Posts: 600
Joined: 4/21/2008
Status: offline 		I guess we are lucky in So Cal - we have all kinds of shops from mild to wild, even the one we call "The Discount Dildo Store".  Mr S in San Fran is pretty damned great, I have to admit.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/8/2008 9:07:40 PM   
VampiresLair


Posts: 1307
Joined: 9/3/2008
Status: offline 		Nashville is lacking in quality BDSM stores. Unless there is a store we dont know about, the Lions den is about it, and well... they sucked.

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/9/2008 12:23:41 AM   
zakkan


Posts: 606
Joined: 4/15/2008
Status: offline 		In my country there are a few such shops, but they are either full of creepy old men or giggly teenagers.  And you can't even buy a pack of condoms here without the entire convenience store staring at you like you're naked. 

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RE: BDSM shops and you. Are we catered for? - 10/9/2008 2:17:04 AM   
colouredin


Posts: 4279
Joined: 2/2/2007
Status: offline 		Shopsnot so much (fairy goth mother in London does rock for corsets and then there is liberdex near ish coffee cake and kink which yeah is shutting down but its dependent on the landlord)

How weare lucky is fairs there are so many as the.darkness pointed out londen fet and LAM also BBB and swamp and numerous others around the country there is at least one every weekend somewhere and to be fair the UK is pretty small so travel isnt that hard. Personally I dont think we need much else in terms of shops, I prefer the fair feel anyways and if as it seemsyou are doing martet research then I would suggest having a stall there is better than opening a shop. I dont feel as comfy in a shop as a fair.

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