SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Clad in a short black dress and high heels accentuating assets that have made her one of the most famous adult film stars in the world, Tera Patrick signed autographs at the adult DVD and toy store Galleri for its sixth anniversary celebration on July 19.
With a line flourishing into the parking lot for the majority of the afternoon, owner Kerry Wong was pleased with the event’s 400 attendees.
“Tera’s reputation is matched by no one else in the industry,” Wong said of the actress, who is of Thai and English heritage.
The Galleri’s conception dates back 30 years to Wong’s parents, Kong and Millie Wong, who opened a home electronics warehouse called Laser City. The store also sold VHS movies; at the time adult films comprised only 10 percent of the product line and were located in a corner room hidden behind a red curtain.
But in the late 1990s, they noticed the adult section getting more business. “So we decided to head in another direction,” Millie said.
In 2002, Millie handed over the business to Kerry, and he had the 3,000-square-foot warehouse remodeled and branded as an adult film store. To expand the product line, Kerry built relationships with industry moguls such as Vivid, Evil Empire and Red Light District. For genres outside the mainstream, Kerry reached out to smaller studios. The store currently houses over 10,000 products with over 20 different film sections and has recently expanded its adult toy section.
Longtime employee Jenna Mason said the store environment is just as important as its products.
“The layout and presentation of the store is clean and not dangerous, which makes our customers feel safe,” Mason said.
Business at the Galleri has been stable, although Kerry can’t ignore the changes the industry is undergoing.
“We have been taking a hit because of the free porn that is downloaded through the internet, and we have lost customers because of this,” he said.
But Wong can always rely on his particular customer base.
“Most of our customers seem to be Asian [males],” he said, attributing that fact partly to the store’s Bay Area location. “A lot of them are connoisseurs of the industry who look for big names to buy.”
With reticence toward matters of sexuality still prevalent in the Asian Pacific American community, many may be surprised at the existence of an APA-owned adult novelty store frequented by APA adult film connoisseurs.
Patrick, however, who noted that more than half of her fan base comes from the Asian community, sees it differently, “Asian communities stick together — we take care of each other.”