Wow. Yesterday was the 7th anniversary of Early to Bed and I failed to mark it in anyway besides drinking vodka and eating cheese, so I thought I’d take a minute to share a little of what I am feeling today…
I am so grateful for the amazing opportunity I have had to run this little shop for the past seven years and hope that I get the chance to keep doing it for years to come. If any of you were fans at the beginning you’ll know Early to Bed, while still very much the same, has grown a lot over the years. For the first whole year I was the only employee and the person behind the counter every day (although I did have friends help out from time to time so I could enjoy a day away). From the first day, I knew I had made the right choice and no matter how often I cried that first year, all it would take was one great customer interaction to remind me why I was doing this. If it weren’t for all the kind & supportive feedback I got from customers that first year, I might have given up.
And while I am so glad I got a chance to really get to know the customers of the shop, I was incredibly relieved when my first employee started. Carolyn just happened to come into my life at the very right moment and I will always be grateful to her for the experience and support she brought me. She worked here for years (and we even made two dyke porn movies together) but she has now moved onto a new, more academic life where she seems to be thriving. Rebecca was the second employee to work here and she stayed for years until she took her amazing ability to help people to grad school and is now working towards a social work profession. She is still here often, teaching workshops and pitching in from time to time. She has not only been a constant help and an amazingly reliable go-to-gal, but without her, 100’s of women in Chicago would have never been exposed to her uniquely wonderful feminist take on the blowjob workshop. Both Rebecca & Carolyn were the only other folks to work in the shop for years, until I finally had to get more help as my duties took me more frequently away from the sales floor and into my pink dungeon of an office. Today we have a full staff of amazing women who are here to help our customers. Lee, Eden and Jinx have all been around for a long time now and have made themselves invaluable to me. Their input and individual experiences have greatly shaped how EtB has grown. Lara, Rachel, Mari and Kayo are newer to the shop and are probably some of the best employees a person could ask for. All of the staff here are kind and responsible. As much as I sometimes miss my job being the shop-gal, I trust my staff to treat each customer as I would and they do a great job of it.
Of course, there are many, many more people who have helped Early to Bed thrive and survive for what feels like a LONG time. D started our PleasureWare Party Program, Salon Series and Book Group. She is a fabulous educator and has been a good friend to me and EtB. We have had terrific workshop leaders, PleasureWare reps and past employees in the fantastically talented Margo, Elizabeth, Karen, Ambryn and others who I maybe forgetting at the moment.
It probably goes without saying that I & Early to Bed would so not be here if it weren’t for the support of my family and friends who never, for one second, doubted me (at least to my face). I am sure there were skeptics in the group eight years ago when I announced I was dropping out of grad school to open the first woman-owned sex shop in Chicago, but no one let on and MANY of my friends and family pitched in to paint the walls, hang the ceiling, make the furniture in the shop and listen to my endless list of stresses and fears (as well as many, many stories that are not suited to the dinner table). My partner of 10 years has born the brunt of any downsides to owning this store (crazy work schedule, lots of freak-outs, endless product testing) and I will never be able to thank her enough. And if she never suggested I buy a dildo back in 1998, I would have never even known Chicago needed a place like this!
Most of all though, I have to thank you - our customers and fans. For obvious reasons, I would not be here if it weren’t for people shopping at Early to Bed, but more than just shopping here, you all have taught me so much and given me reason to keep doing this, even when it is really, really hard. For all the extremely candid conversations I have had with people about their personal, intimate lives I am grateful. I have learned so very much about how people from all walks of life with all kinds of experiences deal with sex and sexuality and it has been an education I could have never had any other way and I have tried to pass on that knowledge to others to help more people have healthy sex lives. Folks have also been very generous with product suggestions and feedback, helping us to shape the content of the store. And I especially want to thank every person who has ever let us know we are doing a good job. Those emails and notes end up in a special file I look at when I have a rough day.
Seven years ago, when Early to Bed opened the doors for the first time, I don’t think I knew what I was getting myself into, but it just felt like something I had to do. I have struggled on many levels throughout the years as I tried to figure out to run and maintain a business while at the same time try to make it a part of a community and not just a nameless commercial endeavor. I hope I have succeeded. Today, I feel like I have. And today, like everyday I sit in front of this computer in the back of the shop, I am grateful that so many people, in so many ways, have made it possible. So thank you.
xoxo,
Searah
