KATY, Texas – Once upon a time, a certain mustachioed American composer and satirist said of a musical genre he enjoyed experimenting with that “Jazz isn’t dead; it just smells funny.” That quote has been reverberating in my head this morning, the result of reading that Hustler Hollywood has just opened its 58th U.S. Location – in Katy, Texas, no less.
Located just west of Houston, Katy touts itself as a place where the “old town heritage is still alive, but new ideas, businesses and families are growing and thriving.”
While there may well be some among those families the city references on its website who aren’t thrilled about one of the new businesses being a Hustler Hollywood store, the very fact the store is opening is another indication that the long-ago proclaimed ‘death’ of brick-and-mortar adult shops may have been more than premature; it may have been simply wrong.
The Katy location is Hustler Hollywood’s ninth location in Texas, joining stores in Austin, El Paso, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Killeen, Tomball and Houston. According to Hustler’s announcement, the store “will carry an expansive selection of products that cater to any desire or budget, including lingerie and fashion-forward apparel, along with a wide range of accessories, bath and body items and unique gifts, including games and party supplies for bachelor/bachelorette parties, bridal showers, festivals and more.”
If you’ve followed developments coming from the Texas legislature in its recent sessions, then you know the state hasn’t exactly made itself the most adult entertainment-friendly business environment over the last couple years, making Hustler’s expansion there all the more remarkable.
Hustler isn’t exactly cruising beneath the radar with respect to opening its Katy location, either. According to the announcement, the shop will be holding a “celebratory grand-opening event on Saturday, June 10, 2023, from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., where attendees, while listening to a live DJ, will have the opportunity to mingle, shop, and enjoy desserts and drinks, plus have the chance to win prizes throughout the evening.” The event, free and open to members of the public aged 18-years and older, will feature adult performer and Hustler Honey Skye Blue as a special guest, who “will be on hand for a meet and greet with fans.” One attendee of the grand opening party will win a $300.00 in-store shopping spree.
When Hustler Hollywood opened the doors of its first store in 1998, the online adult entertainment industry was just building momentum. Still, that momentum was significant enough to lead many people within the industry to proclaim that the days of adult brick-and-mortar were numbered. Twenty-five years later, Hustler Hollywood is still counting – not the days remaining in its business model, but the number of stores it launches around the country.
