Photo credit: Fetish Map London

I have featured Fetish Map London plenty in this column. A regular contributor to all things kinky and fun, spreading as it has for the past few years, to an ever more global perspective, this is the one fold-over-put-it-in-your-pocket-go-out-sightseeing pamphlet I feel no self-respecting kinkster or even the mildly curious tourist should be without. I was lucky enough to get a sit down with James Drury, the head honcho for the Map, the creator of its design agency/publishing company, PictureRama, and an all-around super dude to discuss all things Fetish Map.

How do you gather information? 

We see ourselves as kinky detectives, active in the scene for many years, so we hear through all those we know and have worked with. Our existing collaborators, advertisers, sponsors, inform us of their ventures and new trends. We also have researchers in the various niches of fetish, kink, BDSM who keep us informed. Most kinky businesses are in contact with us, and we also have some presence on most social media, so there are always ways for us to be found or for us to find others.

What have you seen as a rising trend in the fetish/alternate community of late…if any?

Trends come and go, new toys and gadgets pop up occasionally, but generally, the niche persistently cruises along just below the level of mainstream. A high profile club like Torture Garden surfaces kink into the mainstream from time to time, and so becomes the fetish club that non-fetish people attend, just to see what all the fuss is about. Occasionally the odd accident or scandal is stoked up in the tabloid press and so generates the negative balance.

You certainly have a global ethos to the Map these days. When did that shift occur, and how hard has it been coming into other countries/markets and gathering info on their particular scenes?

Global ethos has always been in our minds and with each release of the Map it manifests a little more on the page; Fetish Map has always been very popular with foreign visitors. Maps are ordered daily through our web site and sent by mail all over the world to travelers visiting London who want to plan their trip to coincide with events that suit their kinks and to plan shopping trips, dungeon visits, accommodation, etc. UK readership loves to travel too and will search far and wide for events to attend and combine with a cultural visit to a foreign city.

For the past two years, we have a new member of the Fetish Map team who is also a professional dominatrix. This has extended our reach further into the international pro-domme community, and as a consequence, further into dungeon rental enterprises. Dommes love to travel, of course, so a presence in our international publication affords them some global exposure, which helps to fund their international tours through advance bookings.

Following from the above, has any one country been more difficult or conversely, easier than any of the rest in getting info from, making a connection with?

Not really. The nature of fetish/kinky enterprises is to be inclusive and open. Usually, when they learn of our history and reputation, they are very open to collaborating with us. Sometimes language can be an issue, but within the Fetish Map team, we can cover about 15 languages. Countries like Germany and America, with their extensive scene, have associates that we are in regular contact with. With places such as France or Spain, with their scene a little further underground, we are here to promote them in ways that we feel are best appropriate.

Have you ever been approached by a company, dom, event who you would not post or allow to advertise in the Map? Do you have some hard and fast rules of what you will (and will not) accept?

It does happen. But there are no rules, it is all about quality and integrity, across a broad pan-sexual agenda; we seek variety wherever we can find it.

Each edition of FML is a personal recommendation of around 250 of the current, best options of the lifestyle from my company, PictureRama Publishing. The duration of each full edition is around 18-20 months. We present a varied collection of options in each edition. We support our most prolific sponsors, and in each edition, donate some ad space to a new and upcoming club, which we consider valuable and, or ground-breaking. In each edition, we donate space to a charity that is doing valuable supportive work to the community.

FML is a map, so the core of our lists needs to have a physical presence, shop/venue/location to be included on the map plan. Those that are working up to this status may also find a place on our various social media pages, as well as some one-off events and happenings.

Some of our team members are ‘under-cover.’ This allows us to conduct detective work more effectively. These researchers are active members of the scene who report back to us on new events, conducting their research, unknown that they will advise FML on quality, integrity, validity of new ventures, clubs, designers, dommes, etc.

PictureRama is a design agency, so in cases where new advertisers require creative support to create advertisements for a suitable quality, we offer guidance, advice, and a nearly free creative service. In cases where we have inquiries from those who wish to be included and who is not yet ready or their events/services have come into question, we do not include them – but we always maintain contact to see how things develop.

How does one contact you if they want to be included in the Map?

To be included on/involved in FML please contact us:

www.fetishmap.co.uk

Contact James Drury on: james@fetishmap.co.uk

Via social medias linked from web site.

Studio phone: +44 (0)20 7099 3692

Mobile phone: +44 (0)7766 563244