To outsiders, the adult entertainment industry might seem to relegate women to the bottom of the food chain. To those not intimately familiar with its inner workings, adult seems like a vast cesspool of abuse that makes its money by degrading women of less-than-stellar intellect and then tossing them aside. Women on the inside—who, by the way, are strong, intelligent, and ambitious—say that stereotype is far from accurate.
“I have learned more, grown more, and achieved more in this industry than in any other,” says Reena Patel, vice president of marketing for Kink.com. An adult industry executive for five years, Patel has degrees in medicine and business and worked in the biomedical and financial industries before joining adult. “When I started, there were fewer women in the industry [than there are now], and some companies tended to hold on to a ‘boys’ club’ mentality, which could, at times, be hard to break into. However, this is something I saw in finance more than in the adult business. Today, for example, Kink.com employs about 60 to 65 people, half of whom are women at various levels of authority.”
Kink.com is not alone. A quick look behind the scenes at today’s adult entertainment companies reveals that, although women remain the majority of the “talent” pool, that’s not their only involvement: They also write and direct movies, provide photographic excellence, serve within every level of corporate hierarchies, and own online affiliate programs and ancillary businesses like promotion and marketing firms and content sales companies. Their reasons for working in a so-called misogynistic industry are as varied as the women themselves, although they share a common thread: Like Patel, many distaff adult industry workers say the adult industry gives them opportunities they can’t find in other places.
“Working with cutting-edge technology in an emerging industry was a dream come true,” says Rainey Stricklin, a nine-year veteran of the adult industry who now serves as vice president of marketing and webmaster relations for gay affiliate program PrideBucks. “Those are still the main reasons I continue to work in the business: the people, the technology, and, of course, the money. This business also allows me the freedom to work from home, live wherever I want, and enjoy a more casual lifestyle than dealing with the stress and chaos of a 9-to-5 über-corporate environment.”
Emphases on artistic and technological creativity are aspects many women say they enjoy about the adult entertainment industry. “PrideBucks gives me the creative freedom to implement many of my marketing ideas without a lot of hassle and red tape,” Stricklin says. “They hired me to handle their marketing, and they actually let me do it. That’s something I’ve found to be rare in any marketing position, and it gives me tremendous job satisfaction. I’m thrilled to be part of a team that continually challenges me and provides me with opportunities for professional growth.”
Of course, ambitious women in any industry often mention challenges and opportunities for personal growth as reasons for their longevity and success. For women, it seems, money is not the root of all personal satisfaction.
“I’ve worked in a variety of capacities, consulting for friends’ companies along the way,” says 10-year industry veteran Amber T., chief executive officer of ARG Enterprise Inc. and a program specialist for XonDemand. “My first and main job in the industry was webmaster, programmer, designer, and marketer for my own video sales, membership, [thumbnail gallery post], and free sites. With XonDemand, I continue to wear many hats, providing video-on-demand solutions and helping fellow webmasters tweak sites, drive traffic, and make more money. I’ve pretty much done a little bit of everything along the way, except for actually model.”
Many women who work in the adult industry find the experience to be liberating rather than demeaning. That’s certainly what consultant and DMC Inc. President Leslie Sharp discovered. “I was working for a top [Los Angeles] radio station when my assistant insisted I was too uptight and suggested I go to a cool fetish party with her,” she says, reflecting on the eight-year span of her adult career. “She wasn’t kidding! It turned out be a cool, underground fetish party scene called ‘Naked Hollywood,’ and even Hugh Hefner was in the upstairs VIP section that night. My girlfriend introduced me to this guy she knew who was an [information technology] recruiter. He discovered I was a closet computer geek at heart, and months later he contacted me for what he thought would be my ‘dream job.’ Needless to say, he got an earful when he called offering me an interview with a porn company—but the man is good, and he persevered and got me to meet with Greg Dumas, who was president of iGallery at the time. We hit it off, so I stayed.”
According to female executives in the adult industry, personal relationships are important to business success, and the industry offers an unprecedented, almost familial sense of camaraderie. “My co-workers and I all have remarked on the fact that I’ve been welcomed into our industry with open arms, and that the people I work with daily have treated me with nothing less than respect and consideration,” remarks Mary Gillis, business-to-business product marketing manager for Maleflixxx. With less than two years “on the inside,” she’s a relative newcomer to the industry. However, industry veterans share Gillis’ enthusiasm. “Everyone was so very nice and all seemed like they were family,” Badpuppy Enterprises Inc. Marketing and Advertising Manager Lisa Turner recalls of the day more than 10 years ago when her nephew not only revealed to her that he is gay, but also invited her to tour his new place of employment: a porn studio. “I thought to myself what a wonderful job my nephew had, working in an environment that he was comfortable in and where there was laughter and obvious camaraderie.” Turner took a job there herself, and in the 10 years since has worked her way up from receptionist to the owners’ right arm. “It really is like a big family, and I’ve watched this family grow over the years, as well as the company, and I got to play a part in all of this,” she says. “I not only feel good about what I do, but also who I am. I guess if you love your job, love the people you work with—both in the office and the industry—and have found a comfort level that I’ve found, it’s really quite simple to market and promote something you have faith and believe in.”
While women in the industry realize their livelihoods revolve around objectification of the fairer sex, they say that objectification is supported by the women involved. “If you look at any industry, it’s almost entirely dominated my men,” says Lisa Jamsran, president of Traffic Titan and director of marketing for XXX Key. With six years under her belt, Jamsran says adult’s attitude about powerful, ambitious working women is refreshing.
“As a woman, I can’t say whether my sex has served as an asset or a liability,” adds Sharp. “I can only say that I continue to surpass my goals and gain new perspective in an industry that has accepted this woman as someone who gets things done right the first time. Men need to think they live in a ‘man’s world,’ and I’m OK with that. It’s just that sometimes they get punished for their ignorance in thinking that a woman isn’t as capable as they are. In my world, it usually consists of me walking away with a much better deal. I think it’s funny that men often can’t control from which head their thoughts actually emerge.”
Lori Z., founder and owner of The Adult Broker and an adult industry insider for what she calls “a lot of years,” looks at it this way: “I think more negative challenges lie outside the industry for [adult] industry women. It’s easy for people to have a misconception about what we do, and that creates a whole domino effect. It just comes with the territory.”
“In any industry, not just adult, there’s always going to be some sort of [discrimination],” adds five-year adult veteran Lizz, owner and president of Cashcore. “There are bigger things to worry about, like increasing your profits at the end of the day.”
“[In any other industry,] it would have taken me a career of fighting to prove I was as good as any man for the job,” remarks Beth, a partner in TwistysCash and an adult industry worker for 10 years. “The open-minded nature of our biz and the ability for anybody to start their own company and run it is what gave me the chance of a lifetime. I took it, and I'd do it all over again.”
