A Cobb County judge last week upheld the Marietta city council’s decision to revoke the business license of the prominent sex shop chain Tokyo Valentino’s location at 345 Cobb Parkway South.
The shop initially applied for a business license in 2018 to sell “general merchandise” but later disclosed to the city that it would also be selling sexually explicit items, assistant city attorney Daniel White said.
“They don’t want to obey the regulations of the local government where they want to open, so they come in, and they file an application that just says they’re a general retail establishment,” White said. “Then a few weeks later, they’ll send a letter saying, ‘Oh, actually, by the way, we’re going to start stocking some adult-themed items.’”
The attorney for Tokyo Valentino did not respond to requests for comment.
In its appeal of the city’s decision, the store argued that the city “deprived Tokyo of its free speech interests” and that city code did not specify selling “sexual devices” makes the store an adult establishment.
In the order dismissing the store’s petition, the judge said the city ordinance is “designed to regulate the whole range of sexually oriented businesses” and that the store “knowingly operates in violation of those requirements.”
The city of Marietta amended its ordinance regulating adult establishments in August. The city tightened rules for applying for business licenses as an adult establishment and requires the applicant to disclose whether any prior court rulings found other locations of the store to be operating illegally. It also details various reasons the city can use to deny the license.
Tokyo Valentino also filed suit in an ongoing federal case against the city of Marietta and is seeking to challenge the new amendment, White said.
The chain also has a location in East Cobb, and the county revoked its business license in 2020 for not fully disclosing the nature of its merchandise. The store faced similar backlash in Gwinnett in 2017, Sandy Springs in 2019, and Atlanta in 2021.
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