Today we’d like to introduce you to Miyoko Fujimori.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
By the age of 19, I was married, had my real estate license, owned a home, and was embarking upon my first business. That’s when it all imploded. I realized I wasn’t happy, and was suffering from a nervous breakdown. I self-admitted myself into a psychiatric hospital for care and soon realized that I was in the wrong place. While it was a necessary experience to know that the world didn’t rest on my shoulders, the idea that I “would never truly be happy, but learn to get through life day-by-day” wasn’t enough for me. So naturally, I decided to become a stripper. Being inside the sub culture of the adult entertainment industry was exactly what I needed to understand my worth, be in an honest environment, and of course, make some serious money. The financial freedom I gained from dancing enabled me to decide the next stages of my life. I wanted to travel, understand what truly made me happy and live an honest life. For the next year I didn’t need to worry about what other people needed or wanted from me outside of a 3 minute lap dance. I began to understand the needs we have as humans and the range of what we all have to offer.
In the real world, things can be confusing and vague. In a strip club, you can push the limits of your interactions without fear of judgment or the consequence of sex. You are truly free to be naked, stripped down, seen, and adored for whatever it is you bring to the stage. For someone who grows up thinking they are only worthy of love if they are perfect, this is a game changer.
So my game changed. I traveled the world dancing, began a career in live television hosting for Playboy TV and began to give sex advice. I heard many different stories of sexuality, desire, longing, and pleasure. I saw that people are all capable and deserving of love and pleasure, and it sparked a passion in me to help people pursue it. I become a sex toy expert and educator, offering information about what toys are and how they can be used.
I shared my experience as a stripper, and wrote a book on the Practical Striptease so women and couples could benefit from my time on the couches. I started a direct sales company for sex toys and educated distributors around the country to share these devices and help women and couples achieve more pleasure and more intimacy. I opened a fitness studio in Agoura Hills to give women a place to get in touch with their feminine side, get fit, and feel sexy. And then I discovered AcroYoga.
AcroYoga has been an amazing additional to my life, as yet another world of sensual touch, fitness, and exploration. As a certified Yoga Instructor, I loved the physical benefits to partner yoga, and as a sex educator I loved the non-sexual touch, communication, and trust it inspires. I blended my passions and currently teach sexy fitness and partner yoga worldwide at retreats, sexual health expos, and The Pleasure Chest LA. I love introducing people to the world of AcroYoga and Inverted Play through lectures and performance art.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Sex is often offensive!? People are afraid of anything that resembles inappropriate touch, and being a toy educator and intimacy coach has its bad days. I have been scolded by other parents and lost a few friendships for what I do. While all adults are having sex, many of them aren’t satisfied with their sex lives and resent other people who are. They condemn those who like to engage in activities outside of the norm, without having even tried it.
Opening a public studio space is also challenging, especially when you do it during a recession! I was lucky enough to find a small space that was affordable enough for me to do what I love and pay the rent. It took a few years to finally make money, and even then, it wasn’t much. It’s a far cry from the fast cash I made in the strip clubs, but my passion and drive haven’t wavered. I still love helping people love themselves. Seeing the look in their eyes when they tell me how they finally feel alive, and happy. Helping women who have had breasts removed due to cancer feel like they are sexy again, and worthy of love and desire, gives me such a sense of gratitude to be able to do what I do.
Please tell us about AskMiyoko.
As a speaker and educator, I specialize in lectures and workshops focused on sexuality, sexual health and fitness, and pleasure. I hear often that I present information in a way that is non-threatening, and empowering, and I pride myself on nonjudgmental consultations.
My clients range from body builders who need to move in a more feminine way for competitions, to women wanting to perform a sexy striptease for their partners, to men and couples who want to enhance their love live and create more intimacy and pleasure.
What were you like growing up?
I was a good kid. I wanted to be the perfect child, get good grades, and be virtuous. I imagine many of the people who went to church and school with me would have never thought I would end up this way! I was polite, respectful, obeyed the rules, and hard working. I had horses and loved to play endlessly, digging dirt forts and dirt skiing behind tractors with my brother and my neighbor kids. I was involved with my school as a cheerleader and student council representative.
Contact Info:
- Address: 5739 Kanan Rd., Ste 430
- Website: http://www.askMiyoko.com
- Phone: 888-294-9048
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/askmiyoko
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/askmiyoko
- Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/askmiyoko
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/domestic-goddess-studio-agoura-hills-2
- Other: http://www.invertedplay.com
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
