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SilentKnight · 07-23-2009, 05:50 PM

A little anecdotal analogy:

Back in the late 70s my aunt & uncle got involved in the ceramic industry when it first began to gain popularity - starting out as a family hobby at first and then gradually expanded it to become one of the largest ceramic retailers in Toronto (at the time) - with a coast-to-coast catalogue operation and ceramic kiln sales as a sideline. They became the go-to people for folks jumping into the ceramic hobby.

As they expanded, so did their personal spending. Nice cars, a lavish condominium in an upscale area in the suburbs, a big yacht, vacations in the Caribbean and exotic hotspots...etc, etc. On the surface they appeared to be the beacon of success and all the relatives were proud of their accomplishments. They'd taken a gamble, worked hard, invested all their savings...and it appeared to be paying off nicely.

Unfortunately, they didn't seem willing to admit (or understand) that ceramics was a fad hobby - the pet rock or Rubik's Cube of its era. In an effort to maintain the illusion of success, their spending remained excessive and unchecked while public interest in doing ceramics waned dramatically. By the time the bubble finally burst in the mid 80s, they were in debt up to their eyeballs with financial commitments they couldn't handle.

As you can imagine, one thing led to another and they shut their retail doors with little notice and temporarily vanished...leaving a lot of angry creditors on the hook for their debts.

I see an aspect of that happening again today in the adult entertainment industry. Not to say that porn is a fad, of course...we all know different. But the business model is changing, the ground rules have grown fuzzy - and everyone's scrambling to figure out where we've all gone wrong.

I'm dismayed when I see producer and webmaster colleagues who I've gotten to know and grown to respect over the years suddenly throw in the towel and halt operations. It's unsettling to see people who I thought were examples of innovative ideas and good business practices vanish with little more than a whimper.

I wish I had more answers to the dilemma.

07-23-2009, 05:50 PM
SilentKnight Megan Fox's fluffer Industry Role: Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: shooting pool in Elysium Posts: 24,818	A little anecdotal analogy: Back in the late 70s my aunt & uncle got involved in the ceramic industry when it first began to gain popularity - starting out as a family hobby at first and then gradually expanded it to become one of the largest ceramic retailers in Toronto (at the time) - with a coast-to-coast catalogue operation and ceramic kiln sales as a sideline. They became the go-to people for folks jumping into the ceramic hobby. As they expanded, so did their personal spending. Nice cars, a lavish condominium in an upscale area in the suburbs, a big yacht, vacations in the Caribbean and exotic hotspots...etc, etc. On the surface they appeared to be the beacon of success and all the relatives were proud of their accomplishments. They'd taken a gamble, worked hard, invested all their savings...and it appeared to be paying off nicely. Unfortunately, they didn't seem willing to admit (or understand) that ceramics was a fad hobby - the pet rock or Rubik's Cube of its era. In an effort to maintain the illusion of success, their spending remained excessive and unchecked while public interest in doing ceramics waned dramatically. By the time the bubble finally burst in the mid 80s, they were in debt up to their eyeballs with financial commitments they couldn't handle. As you can imagine, one thing led to another and they shut their retail doors with little notice and temporarily vanished...leaving a lot of angry creditors on the hook for their debts. I see an aspect of that happening again today in the adult entertainment industry. Not to say that porn is a fad, of course...we all know different. But the business model is changing, the ground rules have grown fuzzy - and everyone's scrambling to figure out where we've all gone wrong. I'm dismayed when I see producer and webmaster colleagues who I've gotten to know and grown to respect over the years suddenly throw in the towel and halt operations. It's unsettling to see people who I thought were examples of innovative ideas and good business practices vanish with little more than a whimper. I wish I had more answers to the dilemma.