Why do people frequent sex shop booths? A few regulars have agreed to shed some light on the subject by sharing their point of view and their experiences.
In this second part, here is what Thierry thinks, who has kindly agreed to answer my questions.
I’m 52 and have been in a relationship for over 28 years. I’ve been going to sex shop booths regularly for over 20 years.
Porn cinemas
At sixteen, I went into a porn cinema for the first time. There were still some at the time. I looked much older, so they didn’t ask if I was of legal age, while one of my mates, who was nineteen, had to show his ID.
I went back quite often, on my own or with friends. The room was usually full of men, masturbating in front of the screen on their own, or trying to go down on guys, discreetly, in the corners.
Sex shop booths for watching X films
Frequenting sex shops came later, as the porn cinemas closed one after another. Married and with children at home, I didn’t want them to come across X-rated cassettes, so I watched some in sex shop booths. I went there about two or three times a week.
Even though it was very exciting, the place itself was fairly grimy. At the time (late 1980s and 1990s), the places were mainly frequented by men who came up to peer into the booths while you were masturbating, and sometimes tried to join in. The floors and walls were often littered with Kleenex and semen stains, there were no toilets, and the lighting was rather dim, if not non-existent. That has improved since.
Exhibitionism and voyeurism
Around the same time, I was corresponding with couples who practised exhibitionism. I met them through ads they placed in specialist magazines. They liked being watched and I adored watching. We arranged dates at a specific spot, or I followed them in my car to a quiet corner. There, they did their exhibits and I ogled while masturbating.
Most of the time, I didn’t take part. It wasn’t their wish, and that suited me fine; they just wanted to fuck in front of me. I pretended to hide, but they knew I was there. Often, I saw them looking in my direction. Other times, but much more rarely, the couple wanted me to jerk myself off right in front of them, or the woman would finish me off with her hand or mouth.
A friend’s exhib at a sex shop
As an anecdote, when I was working far from home, I used to frequent a sex shop with several screening rooms and individual booths. A work colleague, also a very close and intimate friend, knew about it. One day, she asked me what I did there. After explaining it to her, she asked me to take her there to show her that.
Surprised by the request, I decided to grant her that favour. After all, we already slept together, so why not. One afternoon, I took her to that sex shop. She chose a film to have screened in the room, and we went to watch it together.
There were several men in the screening room, who watched us come in. I began to exhibit my friend by showing her breasts, then pulled up her skirt to jerk her off in front of the film. Men came up, holding their genitals, and masturbated in front of her. I jerked myself off in front of her, like most of the people present. She later admitted she had been a bit scared at the time, but had loved it. It remains a very fond memory.
No sex shop booths with my wife
The first time I went into a sex shop with my wife, it was to buy her a sex toy. She knew I occasionally went to this kind of place to satisfy myself on my own, but when she saw me shaking the salespeople’s hands and being on first-name terms with them, she was still surprised… I should say I was almost a daily regular there…
But she never wanted to go to a booth with me. We share other activities, she and I, and although I accept her touching other men (ed. note: Thierry and his partner practise candaulism), she can’t stand other women touching me.
The evolution of the places
Since then, I’ve regularly frequented sex shops and I’ve seen the places evolve, rather for the better, actually. Going from places frequented mainly by men to a much more varied clientele. Over the years, sex shops change; they are less inclined to stay hidden in dark alleys, they show themselves in broad daylight, they advertise in mainstream newspapers, and the clientele is becoming more female.
These days, it isn’t unusual for a couple, or a woman on her own, to arrange a date for a hook-up or a gangbang. Most of the time, everything happens with respect for the people present. If someone isn’t in the swinging spirit, they are quickly sidelined.
Sex shop booth attendance is increasing and encounters are getting hotter, but the regulars have stayed pretty much the same for years: older men on their own, occasional cross-dressers, men looking to try gay sex, rare couples looking for a thrill, and me, who found there a way to satisfy my libido without feeling guilty and without feeling I’m cheating on the woman I love, because in 90% of cases, I use only my hand… just like many men in their bathroom or in front of their computer.
A huge thank you to Thierry for taking the time to answer my questions.
See also:
- The interview with Ms. Misslady, for whom sex shop video booths are swinging venues that are convenient, safe and inexpensive.
- The testimony of a swinging couple, who tell us about their exhib session in a sex shop.
Source of the illustration: Denkrahm’s Flickr gallery.
Edit: Come discuss exhibitionism and voyeurism on the Sexuality forum!
