The Nookie

About

The Nookie's a sensuality shop that intersects psychology, art, and sexuality.

Story

The Nookie isn’t your typical sex shop. We think it’s so different that we don’t even consider it a sex shop. We call it a sensuality shop. And we don’t think of our products as sex toys. We see them as pleasure products. We're new, founded by award-winning social psychologist and former healthcare executive Veronica Kazoleas in 2016. But our foundations were laid in 2002 when she was researching sexual fantasies at the University of Alberta.

It struck Veronica how few women felt empowered to assert their desires. She thought this stemmed from both the social expectation that women don't have sex for the sake of their own pleasure and the lack of accessible resources for sexual exploration.

To address the first factor, Veronica advocated for a change in dialogue around female sexuality. Her innovative views resulted in an invitation to speak on the need for sex research reform at the 2006 annual meeting of the Canadian Psychological Association. For the second factor, she envisioned a welcoming space that supported people throughout their sexual journeys.

Veronica believed her vision was an important step in promoting sexual wellness, but she didn't think the business would reach its potential under the social climate of the early 2000s. So she left academia in 2006 to pursue a career in healthcare reform, all the while dreaming of one day opening The Nookie.

Flash ahead to the wild success of the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise. Veronica viewed this as representing a widespread change in women’s openness to exploring their sexuality. This shift led Veronica to end her career as a healthcare executive and move across Canada to launch The Nookie. After a year of research and planning - involving everything from attending European sex toy conferences to inadvertently signing up for an orgy - thenookieshop.com was born. Retail space in Toronto is expected in the fall of 2016.

Mission

Our mission is simple: The Nookie strives to foster human connection. That might be as straightforward as helping someone pick out a new favourite vibrator or as complex as supporting a sexless couple as they redefine their version of intimacy. No matter the need, in every interaction we have with our customers, we’re working to provide them with the knowledge, tools, and confidence necessary to explore their sexuality.

Products

Pleasure Products, Jewellery, Personal Lubricants, Books, Accessories, Bath & Body Products