By Cara Anderson
IG: @carajojo
Emojibator is a sex toy company based out of Philadelphia. They started off by creating an eggplant-shaped vibrator and then eventually branched out to their chili pepper and banana vibes.
Emojibator’s vibes aren’t just cute and compact, they’re waterproof and powerful with ten different speed settings. The emoji shaped vibes are made of medical grade silicone. On top of vibes, Emojibator also carries vibe cases, condoms, naughty cards, and pasties.
If you’re worried about it, Emojibator ships their products in discreet packaging and their payment processing shows up on bank statements from a different company name. So, no one will know you’ve ordered a vibrating emoji unless you tell them.
Kris Fretz and Joe Vela of Emojibator.
We asked Joe Vela and Kris Fretz a few questions about their business.
When did you start Emojibator?
Joe Vela: We launched in Aug 2016. The idea came to me in May 2016 and I developed the product and brand in the months leading up to our launch.
Just like the cannabis industry, the sex toy industry has a stigma. What are some problems you run into with marketing?
Joe Vela: Absolutely advertising has been a big issue. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, where most of our referral traffic comes from, don’t allow any advertising from our pages, even though you can age-gate ads. These are some of the most powerful ways to reach new audiences and social networks are crippling businesses like ours. I’ve tried to contact Facebook about this, through appeals and emails with their support team, and they have been no help. I’m sure our page has been flagged, though Facebook denies it, because even when we are advertising non-sex toy products or non-sex images and text which abide by their advertising policies, we’re unable to run any ad. We tried to do an innocent Snapchat filter, with just our cute eggplant logo for an event we were a featured speaker for and we were unable to do that too. These companies that say they care about freedom and connecting the world are perpetuating the stigmas that surround sexuality, a fundamental, and beautiful, truth of our existence. I ask quite literally what side of history Facebook would like to be on, the one that censors free speech and sex positivity, or one that can alleviate uncomfortableness, and social and cultural stigmas, instead of perpetuating them.
How do you work around the taboo associated with selling vibes?
Joe Vela: I don’t think anyone should feel uncomfortable talking about sex or masturbation and that’s how we’ve always communicated with our customers. Masturbation is healthy, beautiful, and a fundamental part of sexuality, so it would make sense to treat it that way. We’re lucky to have a product that can open the door to discussion, but Emojibator is just one little piece of the puzzle that’s changing the way people talk about sex.
What’s the most fun aspect of your job?
Joe Vela: Telling people what I do for a living. I pretty much have the most interesting jobs in the world: I am a musician and I sell dildos. Going to events and networking with other open-minded entrepreneurs is extremely rewarding as well.
The CMO and co-founder of Emojibator, Kris Fretz, expanded on the most fun part of their job:
Kris Jandler: I run our in-person events (expo booths, pop up markets) and there is definitely something special about being a humor-first sex toy brand. Many young women in the US don’t feel comfortable enough talking, let alone laughing about masturbation/sex toys. Making our vehicle to orgasms a recognizable, friendly and high-quality toy has helped us break down barriers of judgment and fear that millennial women are taught by our society to innately feel.
What’s your best selling product?
Joe Vela: The Eggplant, of course. It’s the original emoji penis!
Have you noticed a state/country that is the most sex-positive?
Joe Vela: I think our highest sales per capita is California, which makes sense because California has some of most sex-positive cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, and San Jose. We’ve flown out there a couple times already for meetings or conferences in the last year and a half.
Where do most of your products get shipped to?
Joe Vela: Mostly the United States, but we’ve shipped to 38 different countries! The top cities are pretty much what you’d expect with highly-populated liberal cities like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Austin.
Are you planning to introduce other products?
Joe Vela: We’re always working on developing new products and improving our existing product line. We just launched the Banana Emojibator in October, but our focus for 2018 is going to be launching a sister company with similar sexy products, but ones that might not be viewed as adult toys, so we can try to get around some of the advertising obstacles we’ve faced.
And… exciting news! We’ve teamed up with Emojibator this week to do a giveaway! Win three pairs of glittery pleather pasties made by Pastease; we’ve got the cannabis leaf, pizza, and alien pasties for you. The giveaway is running now through 1/1/18. Follow us on Instagram to learn how to enter!
