Good Vibrations was the first sex-positive and women-friendly store in the United States, founded in 1977 by sex therapist and educator Joani Blank. Initially established with the goal of being a sex-positive and woman-centered alternative to the 'adult' bookstores of the time, Good Vibrations offered sex information and education, featured erotica and books about sexual health and pleasure, and pioneered the concept of the "sex-positive, clean, well-lighted place" to buy sex toys. A notable part of the store was the display of antique vibrators, which were initially developed as a treatment for female hysteria. This became a tourist draw known as "the antique vibrator museum", which was listed by Frommer's in the category "Best Free Things to Do in San Francisco". In 1992, Blank sold Good Vibrations to the workers incorporating it as a worker cooperative. In 1994, Blank left the company to pursue other interests. In 1995, Good Vibrations declared May to be National Masturbation Month, to raise awareness of masturbation and sexual health across the country and in response to the firing of then-Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders for saying that masturbation "is part of human sexuality, and perhaps it should be taught." In 1998 it launched the Masturbate-a-thon as part of National Masturbation Month; this strategy to get people to discuss masturbation by getting pledges from their friends later inspired a live event developed by the Center for Sex and Culture. The cooperative voted to become a California corporation and did so in February 2006. In 2007, the company required an infusion of capital to stabilize its finances to help it overcome recent losses related to a drop in its Internet sales and was sold to GVA-TWN, a company based in Cleveland, Ohio, with a chain of novelty sex stores throughout the Midwest. Barnaby Ltd bought the company from GVA-TWN. In 2009 Jackie Rednour-Bruckman, a former worker-owner from the original co-operative, returned to become Chief Operations Officer and then Executive Vice President. In 2006, Good Vibrations purchased and re-branded the Grand Opening! sex shop in Brookline, Massachusetts, as Good Vibrations' first location outside of the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2010, they opened their fifth location, a larger store on Mission Street in San Francisco, across the street from Bloomingdales. The formal grand opening celebration was pushed to 29 January 2011. The sixth retail location opened its doors on Lakeshore Avenue in Oakland, California on January 2, 2012. The company is a notable sponsor of LGBT events and organizations, groups that support sexual health, and other charities, most recently via its GiVe donations program. The company is a leading employer of transgender people. The founders of Grand Opening! and Babeland interned at Good Vibrations before opening their businesses, and many sex-positive retail toy companies have been inspired by Good Vibrations. The company has also influenced the sex toy and adult movie industries to create and market new products that reflected changes in the demographics of consumers. As part of their recognition as a leader in sex-positive culture and education, the company received a Certificate of Honor from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, a Certificate of Recognition from the California Legislature Assembly, and a Certificate of Recognition from the California Legislature. The company has also received widespread recognition from the pornography industry, including an O Award for Outstanding Online Retailer 2009 at the Adult Entertainment Expo, Best Sexuality Retail Chain 2011 from AVN, and Boutique Retailer of the Year 2011 from XBIZ. In August 2017, Good Vibrations purchased Babeland. Babeland continues to operate as a separate brand.
Good Releasing
Good Releasing offers various lines of adult titles and educational films:
Reel Queer Productions
HeartCore Films
PleasureEd Series
Several Good Releasing films have been nominated for or have received awards, many from the films by director Courtney Trouble, who helped develop the Reel Queer Productions studio: ;2010 Feminist Porn Awards ;2010 AVN nominations ;2009 Feminist Porn Awards
