As a local business, how do you stop a salacious rumor circulating about your store? You double down. At least that’s what Smitten Kitten, an adult store in Uptown, decided to do.
Located next to the Up-Down Arcade Bar, Smitten Kitten is what Racket calls “an incredible community education center disguised as a sex shop.” In March of this year, owner JP Pritchett saved a woman from overdosing by administering Narcan, which they keep on hand at the store. The community also turned out to support the shop after Pritchett announced they were on the brink of closing in May.
But onto the rumor: for some reason, people seem to believe Smitten Kitten is running a glory hole out of their store. In fact, if you search “glory hole” in Google Maps around the area, Smitten Kitten shows up. The problem? They don’t have one. Anne Lehman, their social media curator, assured me the rumor is decidedly untrue.
“ People have been coming into our store every once in a while, it's usually an older white man, and he'll come to the counter eventually and be asking for 'services.' We obviously don't do that. I cannot direct people to 'services,'" Lehman said. “No, we don't have a glory hole.”
"Glory hole" Google maps search returns Smitten Kitten result. (Google Maps)
So what’s an adult store to do? Not only do people seem to think they’re a pet store, but now they have a new misconception to deal with. Well, the Smitten Kitten team decided to have some fun debunking the rumor. They took to social media to announce they'd be hosting “Glory Hole Games,” a twist on the beloved Midwestern sport of cornhole.
Instead of bean bags, you try to throw a sex toy into the board's hole (or, stick it straight upright on the board.) It’s just as difficult as it sounds, given the…uh, shape of the projectile. The winner of the recent competition (who scored an impressive 25 points) received a ginormous zucchini donated by a customer, and a plaque to let everyone know who they’re dealing with.
City Cast Creative Producer Adam Sage and I documented this night of cornhole and community. Enjoy!
