Myfreeimplants.com: Arguably the most ethical way for men to buy women new jugs
The first time you cast your eyes upon MyFreeImplants.com, a fundraising website for cosmetic surgery, it is immediately apparent why it gets a lot of shit. The homepage, featuring a man in a suit with two attractive women on his arm, gazing longingly at a seductive, bikini-clad juggernaut, is enough to make a feminist blow a gasket. The handful of doe-eyed selfies at the bottom of the page of women with usernames such as ‘missboobymoon’ and ‘dreamgyrl’ make the site look like nothing more than a tacky dating site.
Yet, after interviewing the brains behind the breasts, site co-founder Jay Moore, who has a Masters in Business and Marketing, I discovered that I am completely and utterly for it, as far as tit funding goes.
When I initially heard about the site, a few things ran through my mind. First, since I am personally lacking in the breast department, I considered signing myself up for a few minutes. Then I became sceptical. I became uncomfortable at the thought of rich men funding the inflation of the melons of perfect strangers. I assumed, as you would, that there would be something in it for them. However, when I speak to Jay, he makes it explicitly clear that any relationships outside of the site are strictly prohibited: “We don’t allow off site relationships. Relationships are allowed only online in a safe, monitored environment. No exchange of personal email addresses are allowed. That would violate our terms of service as we’re not a dating site. The last thing we want is people meeting up. If they violate our terms of service, they are suspended and removed.”
So what is it that the men get from helping perfect strangers? You would be forgiven for assuming that those receiving donations would return the favour with at least a flash of nipple to ease the sting of a sexless marriage, or provide a little bit of escapism from a repetitive and monotonous desk job. But by talking to these women, the users get to know each other. The men on the site are making a difference to the women, and begin to feel as though they are helping out a friend. Some have been on the site for six or seven years, and they’re interacting with people all over the world.
The average donation is $30. They would spend as much money in bars
OK, you’re still sceptical. Seedy men talk to lots of women and flash their cash, and are then exploited by women for jugs. However, when Jay talks about where the concept of the site came from, it begins to make a little bit more sense. “My partner and I, who is a childhood friend, went out in Las Vegas for a bachelor party. A woman was helping us at our table pandering for a bigger tip for a breast job. They explained that in the industry that they worked in, everyone has boobs. We took that concept and created a site for her. In four months we raised $5,500. We decided to open a full social network that anyone could use.” I address my concerns directly with Jay, and ask him whether or not he thinks it is a case of rich men being rinsed for tits and noses, (not in so many words). He puts across a compelling argument: “I would agree to some degree, but rich men don’t make up a big percentage. We have users from all kinds of different social economic levels, from 70 different countries. Some are men with money, yes, but the average donation is under $30 (£27), most women’s surgeries are funded by a lot of small donations. The majority of donors are not particularly wealthy. They would spend as much money in bars, and they are just doing the same thing on the site, they’re meeting women and talking to them.”
He’s not wrong. I myself once worked as a shot girl (don’t judge, times were hard), and often had to suffer long conversations with congregations of men on stag do’s who were often dressed in women’s clothing with whistles around their necks, and who were old enough to be my dad. They would usually start slipping me £5 notes after we had been speaking for 20 minutes. I quickly realised that I didn’t really want to be doing the job, that I wanted the ground to open up beneath me, but I needed the extra money. To be perfectly honest, I think that funding a women’s breast augmentation after a lot more communication, and spending less money than they would on 10 disgusting shots, is not entirely unbelievable or something that should be frowned upon.
Furthermore, there is a system in place so that women are unable to spend the money on whatever they want. I did consider this to be a possible problem, but Jay explains: ”We do not allow women to just use the money for what they want. Donations are held in an account in the woman’s name and given directly to the surgeons they choose.”
Women should have the choice to use the site, just like they have the choice to do anything to their body
Surgeons are usually on board, but the site has had some negative feedback from a group of surgeons in the UK and it’s easy to see why. They think the site trivialises the surgery, which, from my description of the homepage, is an understandable first impression. However, Jay points out: “Our thinking is we’re allowing people to take months or years to make their decisions, they talk to other women, learn about pitfalls. It’s a lot more informative than going into an office and having it done the next week. They may jump and not have the time to think about it, but the site lets them.” The site has also had a lot of criticism from those who call themselves feminists. “We get strongly criticised by people that call themselves feminists. We believe the service is there as a choice. Women should have the choice to use the site, just like they have the choice to do anything to their body.”
I have a few more issues with the site that I decided I need to pull Jay up on. I wonder whether he thought that surgery could become an addiction, as after funding breast augmentations, members can fund other procedures. He says that: “It can be an addiction but we want to monitor that, we try to be as ethical as possible. We want to empower people to be able to better themselves if they feel that’s important, without going into massive debt.”
I guess I agree. The site at least allows women to avoid debt by letting them find external funders, but I can’t help but feel a little bit sad when I think about the focus on aesthetics nowadays. However, if it’s what they want then at least users are, as Jay points out, avoiding the massive debt that they might get into by taking out loans, etc. Also, the men donate to the women after getting to know them. While it may be that they are more likely to click on the profiles of women more aesthetically pleasing, if they are generally a complete arsehole and can’t hold a conversation, they aren’t likely to build up a friendship that could justify the funding. And it’s not all aesthetics. Some of the main reasons for women seeking funding are issues with existing implants, fixing or replacing implants, and breast reconstructions for women that have suffered from breast cancer. There has also been one or two transgender users on the site seeking breast augmentations.
In terms of profitability, Jay and his co-founders take 10% of all donations from the site after credit card fees, and they seem to be doing well. 10% of all of these proceeds go to breast cancer charities.
Despite my reservations, it seems as though the site is doing its bit. Its tacky appearance is sparking up the controversy that the site needs to reel users in. If the site looked more conservative, I don’t think it would get as much attention, and considering the money not only helps women, but goes towards a charitable cause, I think it’s alright the way it is.
It’s a shame that women feel the need to enhance themselves aesthetically in order to be happy, but at the end of the day, it’s their choice. My Free Implants is helping them to think long and hard about their new jugs without ‘racking’ up debt.
Image: parimalaarchana via Flickr, inset Myfreeimplants.com, inset Tessa Ann’s Buttons via Flickr
The post “Invest in breasts”: Meet the founder of the site that lets men fund plastic surgery for women appeared first on Planet Ivy.
