Jun 012014
 

GiVe

Pioneering Sex Positive Retailer Makes a Difference for Pride

Good Vibrations, the trusted San Francisco-based sex-positive retailer, announces its new nonprofit partners for the summer months, including Pride Month in June. The company is partnering with Planned Parenthood Shasta Pacific, Asian & Pacific Islander Wellness Center, and El/la Para Translatinas in San Francisco; AIDS Project of the East Bay in Oakland; the Billy De Frank LGBT Community Center in San Jose; and Fenway Health in Boston from May through July. Partnerships with these organizations were formed because June is Pride Month and each of the organizations has a strong commitment to serving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities.

From May 1st – July 31st Good Vibrations’ customers can support these regional nonprofits in Good Vibrations’ San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland, Palo Alto and Brookline stores by making a financial gift at the time of their purchase in any Good Vibrations retail stores. 100% of your contribution goes to the nonprofit of your choice. Online shoppers can contribute directly to our web partner, Planned Parenthood Shasta Pacific, at checkout and learn more about the donations program on the GiVe Partner page.

Staff Sexologist Dr. Carol Queen says, “We are delighted to partner with local nonprofit organizations that serve LGBTQ communities. For over 37 years Good Vibrations has partnered with hundreds of nonprofit and grassroots groups, including organizations that support LGBTQ health and sexuality. By donating products, advertising and sponsorship for fundraisers, along with a percentage of retail sales, we have provided much needed support for HIV/AIDS research, art programs, LGBTQ benefits, sexuality education, and much more. We are proud of that legacy and glad to continue.”

Summer GiVe Partners:

  • Planned Parenthood Shasta Pacific provides over 100,000 individuals with health care and education services at more than 30 sites throughout 17 Northern California counties. They reach people through health care services, education programs, and advocacy initiatives.
  • El/La Para Translatinas is an organization for transgender Latinas that works to improve the quality of life of TransLatinas in the San Francisco Bay Area.
  • The Asian & Pacific Islander (API) Wellness Center’s mission is to transforms lives by advancing health, wellness, and equality for people of all races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities, and immigration statuses. They believe everyone deserves to be healthy and needs access to the highest quality health care.
  • The AIDS Project East Bay is a community based organization, dedicated to preventing the spread of HIV and supporting individuals infected with the virus through programs targeted at some of the most vulnerable and marginalized individuals in Alameda County.
  • The Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center strives to be the LGBT community’s premier resource hub and a recognized leader in promoting health, strength, diversity and inclusiveness.
  • The mission of Fenway Health is to enhance the wellbeing of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and all people in our neighborhoods and beyond through access to the highest quality health care, education, research and advocacy.

 

To learn more about Good Vibrations GiVe program and to see this year’s beneficiaries, visit Good Vibrations’ GiVe Donations Sponsorship Page.

ABOUT GOOD VIBRATIONS
Good Vibrations is the San Francisco Bay Area based retailer trusted for more than three decades to provide a comfortable, safe environment for finding quality products, trusted information and educational materials to enhance one’s sex life. Visit online at, goodvibes.com. Please follow us on Twitter @GoodVibesToys

RESOURCES:
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/shasta-pacific/
http://ellaparatranslatinas.yolasite.com/
http://www.apiwellness.org/
http://www.apeb.org/
https://www.defrankcenter.org/
http://www.fenwayhealth.org/

May 052014
 

masturbation month

 

SAN FRANCISCO (April 29, 2014): Good Vibrations, the legendary San Francisco-based retailer that takes pride in providing accurate information on sexuality and toys for grown-ups says, “It’s International Masturbation Month! So, give yourself a hand! Or a vibrator, or something else stimulating, and don’t forget the lube!”

With masturbation and sex toys being featured in shows such as Girls and talked about by stars like Jennifer Lawrence on the late night television show Conan, one can easily forget how taboo the idea of self-stimulation once was. Good Vibrations founded International Masturbation Month in 1995 in the wake of the controversy surrounding the firing of former Clinton administration Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders, who evoked conservative wrath when she stated that discussion of masturbation might have a place in sex education curricula. Realizing that one simple, sensible mention of solo pleasuring was enough to lose this prominent woman—the country’s first African-American surgeon general—her job convinced Good Vibrations staff that this most basic and accessible form of sex needed a serious image boost.

Some things have changed since 1995, but International Masturbation Month is still a necessary reminder that self-satisfaction is a healthy, accessible form of pleasure engaged in by almost everyone, of every gender and relationship status, at some time of (or throughout) their lives: It’s relaxing, allows people to learn more about their own sexual response, is a basic recommendation of sex therapists that can help people with many different sexual concerns, relieves menstrual cramps, and helps keep the genitals fully functional. On top of that, it’s the safest form of sex a person can have.

“Masturbation is fun and pleasurable, it teaches you about your own unique sexuality, and it’s a great way to postpone partner sex if you’re not ready for it,” says Good Vibrations staff sexologist Carol Queen, Ph.D., one of the originators of the International Masturbation Month concept. “Why on earth isn’t everybody celebrating masturbation?”

“Why on earth isn’t everybody celebrating masturbation?”

Good Vibrations will be celebrating International Masturbation Month with workshops in local stores and online through social media. The company invites the community to attend a local free class and to celebrate their self-satisfaction on social media via #MayWeRub.

Over the years Good Vibrations has done hundreds of press interviews about masturbation, encouraged other like-minded retailers and organizations to help celebrate IMM (formerly known as National Masturbation Month), engaged customers’ creativity in compiling lists of favorite masturbation euphemisms, places to masturbate, and stranger-than-fiction masturbation stories, and curated a show of video clips from the great masturbation educators, like Dr. Betty Dodson, author of “Sex for One.”

Though any toy can be used during sex with a partner, depending on what kind of activities are being enjoyed, certain toys are especially suited or frequently-chosen for solo sex: the Original Magic Wand, favorite of masturbation expert Dr. Betty Dodson the Rabbit Habit and other twice-as-nice styles, the Pure Wand, and the G-Twist, to name a few very popular items. Men can enjoy a range of sleeves and pumps designed especially for their self-pleasuring enjoyment, like the Cobra Libre stimulator for men and Tenga Eggs .

Most importantly, however, Good Vibrations continues to celebrate masturbation as we have always done: as a basic pleasure that is the foundation for our sexual health experience. Visit Good Vibrations www.goodvibes.com for information (in books, videos, and from our trained Sex Educator Sales Associate staff members), pleasure products of all kinds (vibrators, dildos, and of course lubricants), and inspiration (erotic books and movies). Whether shared with a partner or kept as a solo secret, self-love is accessible to, and good for, everyone.

ABOUT GOOD VIBRATIONS
Good Vibrations is the San Francisco Bay Area based retailer trusted for more than three decades to provide a comfortable, safe environment for finding quality products, trusted information and educational materials to enhance one’s sex life. Visit online at, goodvibes.com. Please follow us on Twitter @GoodVibesToys

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Good Vibrations — the women-friendly sex toy store promoting quality sex toys, vibrators, sex education, and pleasure since 1977.

Dec 112013
 

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Good Vibrations Opens Eighth Store in San Francisco’s Union Square

Downtown Shoppers Enjoy Upscale Version of Classic Sex Positive Retailer

Good Vibrations the trusted San Francisco Bay Area based company that takes pride in providing accurate sexual health information and quality sex toys, is set to open its eighth location just steps from San Francisco’s Union Square and the Financial District. Just steps from the Montgomery BART stop, the upscale lifestyle boutique will feature premier pleasure products and an enticing array of lingerie and accoutrements to explore, educate, and empower one’s sex life and sexual health.

Founded in 1977 by a couples’ therapist who wanted to help pre-orgasmic women, Good Vibrations has long insisted that pleasure is everyone’s birthright and that adults should have access to quality products and sex education. The elegant new Union Square location is a far cry from the small, utilitarian vibrator store of the seventies, but the philosophy and commitment to “pleasure to the people” is the same. The elegant presentation of quality products curated by knowledgeable staff makes it a welcome addition to this and other upscale neighborhoods, and marks a major shift in cultural trends.

Situated on Kearny Street near Sutter Street, Good Vibrations will showcase their design-centric, forward-thinking vendors in a stylized boutique setting where comfort and ambience are key. Good Vibrations has always been a destination retailer for adults desiring a safe, well-lit, comfortable and well-stocked place to shop for quality pleasure products.

Executive Vice President Jackie Strano says, “It feels fantastic to bring our unique brand of quality products and sex education to the Financial District and Union Square neighborhoods of San Francisco. World renowned as an epicenter of culture, theater, restaurant, hotel, and shopping destinations we proudly take our place alongside some of San Francisco’s old world charm mixed with modern sophistication. Locals and tourists alike will be able to engage with our brand of sex positivity at this prime location.”

Stay tuned for more details about the upcoming grand opening reception set for early February. Featuring free sexy prizes, promotions, and tasty bites and sips

ABOUT GOOD VIBRATIONS
Good Vibrations is the San Francisco Bay Area based retailer trusted for more than three decades to provide a comfortable, safe environment for finding quality products, trusted information and educational materials to enhance one’s sex life. Visit online at, goodvibes.com. Please follow us on Twitter @GoodVibesToys

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Good Vibrations — the women-friendly sex toy store promoting quality sex toys, vibrators, sex education, and pleasure since 1977.

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Dec 032013
 

Print

Good Vibrations QUICKIES Erotic Shorts Competition Comes to the Castro

Erotic Film Fest Keeps it Short and Sweet with Sexy Cinema from Around the World

SAN FRANCISCO: Good Vibrations invites you to enjoy some lively loving at the 8th annual QUICKIES Indie Erotic Shorts Competition on Friday, December 6th at the Castro Theatre where filmmakers from around the world show their stuff in 7 minutes or less. Funny, serious, explicit, romantic, straight, queer, kinky, and more, the Quickies celebrates the range of sexuality with a fun and sexy party and screening.

Don your gay apparel and come early for the NSFW debauched holiday pre-party in the Castro Theatre mezzanine where film goers warm up for a night of sexy cinema with festive cocktails, live music by the Undulations, inappropriate burlesque by Red Hots Burlesque, and sexy give-aways from the Good Vibrations Wheel of Pleasure. Then it’s onto the erotic short film competition where the audience decides who gave it best, and the film with the most applause wins $1,500.

This high-quality collection with a comedic bent includes a wide variety of tastes and budgets, reflecting a more diverse and entertaining sexual range than in mainstream media. Awarded SF Weekly’s “Best Place to See Your (Talented and Attractive) Neighbors Naked,” this year’s finalists include neighbors from Denmark, Spain, Australia, Germany, France and the United States with films like “I Fucking Love IKEA,” “Biodildo,” and “After Midnight Bedtime Stories,” exploring everything from sexy furniture assembly to sci-fi three-ways and erotic historical fiction.

A panel of saucy queens MCs this collection of sexy films, including Good Vibrations’ own Staff Sexologist Dr. Carol Queen, and San Francisco drag legends D’arcy Drollinger, Trixxie Carr, and Hugz Bunny, lending insight and laughs to the unusual experience of watching erotic cinema with strangers.

Good Vibrations QUICKIES Short Erotic Film Competition
When: Friday, December 6th
Time: Pre-party 7:00pm – 8:00pm, Screening 8:00pm – 9:30pm
Where:Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St, San Francisco, CA 94114
Tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/508203
More details: www.goodvibesquickies.com

Sponsors & Partners:
Good Vibrations would like to thank and acknowledge the following sponsors and partners for their friendship and support: LELO, Stockroom, Pink & White Productions, Leather Etc., San Francisco Bay Guardian, East Bay Express, Bay Area Reporter, Speakeasy Beer, Hot Cookie, The Sausage Factory, Evolution Fresh Juice, the Phoenix Hotel, and the Center for Sex and Culture.

ABOUT GOOD VIBRATIONS
Good Vibrations is the San Francisco Bay Area based retailer trusted for more than three decades to provide a comfortable, safe environment for finding quality products, trusted information and educational materials to enhance one’s sex life. Visit online at, goodvibes.com. Please follow us on Twitter @GoodVibesToys

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Good Vibrations — the women-friendly sex toy store promoting quality sex toys, vibrators, sex education, and pleasure since 1977.
Aug 272013
 

Quickies-Logo-2013

The Quickies!

Good Vibrations Quickies Erotic Shorts Competition

Funny, serious, romantic, cynical, straight, gay, queer, documentary, international, etc. – if it’s 7 minutes or LESS send it our way! (extra points for early entry)

WHO SUBMITS

Independent film makers of all kinds are encouraged to send in their short erotic films.  Whether you’re an established indie filmmaker, an art student, a budding filmmaker, or just having fun with your Flipcam, we want to see your stuff!

WHAT IS EROTIC, ANYWAY?

The term is as broad as the number of people considering it, so whether it’s an arty narrative, stand-up comedy, soft lovemaking, or hard core fucking, if it turns you on, it’s erotic. Funny, serious, romantic, cynical, straight, gay, queer, bring it on.  Animation, documentary, short fiction, music video are all fair game.  See official Submission Rules.  Submissions must be 7 minutes or less.

PRIZE MONEY

Our 2013 Audience Choice Award Winner will receive $1,500.  Finalists will receive VIP passes to the pre-party and tickets for friends and family for a screening at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco on Friday, December 6th, 2013.

Submission Deadline

New Extended Deadline! All films must be received by September 30th by Good Vibrations. Films may be submitted by mail or delivered by hand to Good Vibrations / QUICKIES, Attn: C. Lombard at 1404 Franklin Street, Oakland, CA 94612 or delivered to any Good Vibrations store.

Checklist:

The following documents are required with every Entry (download from the drop-down menu above):

  1. a completed Eligibilityform and Submission App,
  2. and IF THERE IS NUDITY (bare groin and/or breasts): a completed and signed copy of the “2257Release
  3. Format: please send a quicktime file in an NTSC frame rate (24p, 60i, 30p etc) on a DL DVD or thumb drive.
Jun 282013
 

SAN FRANCISCO (June 28th, 2013): Good Vibrations, the trusted San Francisco Bay Area based multi-channel retail company that takes pride in providing accurate information on sexuality and quality sex toys for grown-ups, is delighted to announce a new partnership with Tristan Taormino. Taormino is an award-winning author, sex educator, speaker, filmmaker, and radio show host.

 

Good Vibrations and Taormino have joined forces, inking a one year deal to collaborate on several projects including Good Vibrations as the exclusive sex toy retail sponsor for the second season of Taormino’s popular radio show, Sex Out Loud.

Taormino will act as a brand ambassador for Good Vibrations for the next twelve months. In this role, Taormino will promote Good Vibrations during public appearances and college events, write original content for the Good Vibrations online magazine, promote exclusive kits and her favorite recommended toys for the stores and website, and spearhead Good Vibrations’ annual campaign about ‘backdoor’ pleasure- Anal Pleasure Month in August.

“Good Vibrations is the original sex-positive sex toy store that dramatically changed the sex education landscape. I’ve recommended them for years because of their commitment to quality products and exceptional customer service. I’m thrilled to have Good Vibrations be the presenting sponsor of Sex Out Loud, and excited to represent such a wonderful company,” says Taormino.

Good Vibrations Executive Vice President, Jackie Strano had this to add: “We are so pleased and elated to be working together. This is a perfect partnership of two brands that deeply care about people’s pleasure and sexual health. Besides being a wonderful human being, Tristan is a powerhouse sex positive feminist mover and shaker. It’s going to be a fun year!”

About Tristan Taormino®
Tristan Taormino® is an award-winning author, sex educator, speaker, filmmaker, and radio host. She is the author of seven books and has edited 25 anthologies. Taormino is the producer and host of Sex Out Loud®, a weekly radio show on the VoiceAmerica Talk Radio Network. She has directed and produced twenty-four adult films that have won more than a dozen awards. She has appeared on Melissa Harris-Perry, Joy Behar: Say Anything, HBO’s Real Sex, The Howard Stern Show, Loveline, MTV, CNN, NBC, MTV, Oxygen, Fox News, and The Discovery Channel.

Sex Out Loud premiered in 2012, and is the top-rated show across the entire network. It airs live every Friday at 5:00 pm Pacific time and 8:00 pm EST.

ABOUT GOOD VIBRATIONS
Good Vibrations is the San Francisco Bay Area based retailer trusted for more than three decades to provide a comfortable, safe environment for finding sex-positive products and educational materials to enhance one’s sex life. Good Vibrations offers its products through its retail stores and website. Stores are located in San Francisco, Berkeley, and Oakland, CA and in Brookline, MA.