Cora Perkins, Assistant Spectrum Editor
Vintage lingerie, leather bondage and toys for pleasure of all shapes and sizes fill the embellished and glowing boutique. Books detailing tips and tricks for the bedroom and an array of sexual health topics are stacked on the shelves.
Field Day Boutique, a queer-owned sex shop in downtown Richmond, opened their doors to the community in October, an expansion from their original Charlottesville location.
Maggie Flanary, owner of Field Day Boutique, began their business through pop-ups and selling mainly online before opening their store.
“I have been to very cool, educational kinds of sex choice stores, as far as I know there wasn’t really anything like that in Virginia or at least in Richmond, Charlottesville, Central Virginia area,” Flanary said. “So I wanted to be able to be that person for people.”
Although some may assume that the boutique is like any other sex store in Richmond, many other products are sold. From books on sexual and vaginal health and queer identity, to menstrual products and “pay-what-you-can” Plan B, it is important for Lanary to have their items accessible to the public.
“The store is like a little bit of a combo …” Flanary said. “You know, we have vintage lingerie as well and then it’s also almost like a pharmacy-type vibe.”
It’s important to cater to queer audiences and queer identities in the sexual health and education space because queer identities should be visible and celebrated, according to Flanary.
“I think that when we make environments that specifically cater to queer people, it also opens up space for everyone,” Lanary said. “If you’re saying we accept all identities and celebrate all identities here, then whatever self-consciousness people have about whatever they think is shameful or ‘weird’ about themselves and their sexual desire and experience, they have space to exist in queer spaces as well.”
Jay Dubois, a leather-worker in Richmond who collaborates with Flanary to sell their products in Field Day, shares a similar sentiment.
“I think it’s just really important to have these queer safe spaces because they are opening the conversation,” Dubois said.
Field Day Boutique is one of these spaces, according to Dubois.
“It’s just like an inclusivity issue that a lot of places don’t cater to brands or queer individuals, so it’s really nice to have a sex shop that has that in mind,” Dubois said. “They have tons of packers, they have tons of strap-ons and it’s really nice to see an all-inclusive sex shop.”
The store is also contributing to kink education by hosting rope nights with KnotYourTypicalRVA, a rope group in the area that promotes safe and inclusive rope education.
“Sex is not a bad word and it’s really important that we destigmatize it,” Dubois said. “It’s really a shame that so many people are afraid of sex and afraid to talk about sex … it’s just better for everyone, you know, make people feel more comfortable about the unknown and the taboo.”
For Rianna Aquino-Richards, a customer of Field Day, she was drawn in by the safe space the store creates.
“I’ve never been in a sex store where I had felt safe and comfortable,” Aquino – Richards said. “Being in a sex store where it feels like a safe space is really important, especially for queer people.”
The environment created while shopping in and visiting the boutique is something that should be felt everywhere, according to Aquino-Richards.
“Everyone deserves to feel safe with sex and around sex, unfortunately a lot of people are made to not feel that way,” Aquino-Richards said. “Maybe the norm for sex stores needs to be shifted, because maybe sex stores should feel like [Field Day Boutique.]”
Field Day Boutique is open 1-7 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1-8 p.m. on Fridays, noon-8 p.m. on Saturdays and noon-7 p.m. on Sundays. The shop is located at 11 E. Grace St.