‘Sex doll brothel’ would be first to open in this city
But business licence application has yet to be filed by operators, officials say
As Vancouver’s first “sex doll brothel” prepares to open its doors in November, an economist at the University of B.C. says similar businesses and future versions of the nascent technology it plans to rent by the half-hour could soon be commonplace.
But the would-be brothel could find itself in a battle with the City of Vancouver, whose staff say they have received no business licence applications from any company seeking to operate such a business.
Posters for a company called Bella Dolls recently appeared taped to street lights around town, depicting a well-endowed, silicone looking doll in a too-small shirt and the teaser statement: “Make all your sexual fantasies a reality … pre-booking available now.”
The business, which has a target opening date of Nov. 1, would be the first in the province to rent relatively realistic sex dolls to customers at prices that start at $60 for 30 minutes.
There is no municipal bylaw that would prevent such a business from operating in Vancouver, according to a statement from the city. But standard zoning rules would apply for it to operate legally in a commercial area, and permits and licences would be required. Property-use inspectors would ensure that safety and licensing regulations were being met, according to the city.
Marina Adshade, a professor at the University of B.C.’s Vancouver School of Economics, who recently wrote a chapter in a book titled Robot Sex: Social and Ethical Implications, said that while the existing technology is more blow-up doll than sex robot, she expected to see shops that rent them proliferate.
“We will see it all over the place. Right now, the dolls are very expensive, so it’s kind of prohibitive for somebody to buy one to use in the home,” Adshade said.
The cheapest dolls are somewhere around $7,000 and those being used in “brothels” are as much as $12,000, Adshade said. If those costs go down and the technology improves, the dolls could see widespread adoption.
“I think we will see some very real societal shifts happen about the way that we kind of view relationships, (and) about the way that we view our interactions with technology,” Adshade said.
Meanwhile, sex doll brothels could offer a service that is safer and less exploitative than traditional sex work to patrons who may not have access to intimate relationships with other people, Adshade said.
“These might be people who normally would use sex workers, but they’re going to try sex dolls — maybe because they’re worried about risk of disease, maybe they’re worried about exploiting real live women,” Adshade said.
Asked whether use of sex dolls encouraged objectification of women, Adshade replied that “objectification of women is absolutely everywhere.
“We have so much online porn, we have all of these cam girls that have appeared in the last couple of years — literally thousands of women performing that function — and we have a strip club in downtown Vancouver . ... So, to get upset now that there’s a brothel that has a handful of dolls, I don’t really think it warrants any additional concern beyond how we already feel about women being projected and perceived.”
Bella Dolls’ website offers photos and descriptions of “featured women.”
Among them is “Deja,” who is characterized as “naughty, kinky, rough” and who “doesn’t care if (you) hurt her.” The site tells patrons they are in complete control and encourages them to “forget the restrictions and limitations that comes with a real partner.”
Ally Chan, a marketing director at Bella Dolls, said those words and sentences were written by a creative director to attract men to their website and give the dolls a realistic feel.
“I think we’re not trying to promote aggression or anything. … (They are) just words for you to kind of imagine your fantasy,” she said.
Chan said the founders of the company wished to remain anonymous, but that the Vancouver location would be their first such brothel. The “Bella Dolls mansion” address will be given to those who make bookings, but Chan would not disclose it. It is “not necessarily a residential mansion,” she said.
Chan said she is aware there is a negative stigma around the industry, but hoped people could see the positive aspects to it.
“People don’t know how many other men, females, whatever they are, are actually very deprived when it comes to sex,” she said. “We actually are here to bring happiness.”
The company has been “flooded” with pre-bookings, she said.
Sex doll brothels made headlines recently in Toronto’s North York area, where a company called Aura Dolls had sought to open shop.
That business was shut down before it even opened after protests by residents and a city councillor who ultimately found an old bylaw that prohibited “adult entertainment” parlours from opening in the area.
Part of the concern over Aura Dolls was with objectification of and violence against women.