Holiday season is about to set in & it reminds us of fun, frolic, entertainment and most importantly leisure and relaxation. It’s that time of the year where people let loose and breakaway from the monotony of life. It is also that time of the year where people start shopping to gift or to consume. Not surprisingly the most common gifts are the ones associated with sexual orientations.

With the growth of digitization and penetration of Internet there has been a sharp surge in the demand & consumption of the merchandise with Sex & Wellness. This has also been coupled up with the demand from females (buying & consuming) in this category which was previously dominated by men (either buying or consuming). Major factors which are driving the demand and growth in this sector can be attributed to;

Acceptability: Sex is normal and the need of a human body & it is the key factor driving the change. This change in the land of kamasutra came in late but surely a positive one. Acceptance to talk about sex and sexual preference is the new normal and no longer considered a taboo.

Experiential: The changing mindsets and the exploratory acceptance is inducing trials of many SKU’s as introduced in the market. This is being driven by both genders and the consumption is showcased in accordance.

Internet & Knowledge: Learning and information sharing has been like never before and the power of internet has ensured that people are gathering information from all possible sources. This has also encouraged the exploration.

Changing Cultures: The changing psychology of women feeling for themselves are also consuming a lot of products.

E-commerce: One of the biggest reason that could be attributed to the growth is the surge in the e-commerce site. The discreet purchases & non disclosure is accentuating the buy.

Drive for Feminism: The growth in self-care is no longer restricted to toys, lubes, lingerie but it has also extended to personal care, mensuration & masturbation too.

Statistics show that about 32% of the visitors on sites like Porn Hub are females which have grown from a 24% in 2 years shows the shift. The industry is expected to grow at a 10% YoY and touted to be a USD 38 Bn by the year 2022 and USD 110 Bn by 2027.

What started with a small experiential trade of selling accessories have largely flourished with the increase in the consumption of wellness products. Increasing influence of BDSM and the consumption by females have also given the categories a big boost.

It is interesting to notice even the retailers are investing heavily in this category, churning wellness pages dedicated to these products. Deodoc The perfect V, Fur – product edits for women are a few references.

Back in the days a T-shirt Via-Agra was rage and certainly the world has moved beyond Viagra.

Retailers are willing to explore opportunities and the cultural changes have seen a venture into multiple categories;

Consumers are willing to experiment and the retailers are being experimental in their offerings. The most popular ones currently being consumed are the ones with catch phrases apart from the ones that can be used during the act. India has seen a buying pattern which are skewed towards a few key days of the year;

• Valentines Day
• The Indian festival seasons
• December (Christmas & New years)

However year 2020 is an exception where the consumption during the lockdown has seen such shift that there was a scarcity of products like condoms and contraceptives. According to ET during Covid 19 the market has seen a 65% growth in the sexual wellness products. (Top 3 cities Mumbai, Bangalore & Delhi).Bad time became bed time.

The Retailers are now looking to create more opportunities popularising & generating awareness via special days :

• Feb’ 12th as International Condom Day
• May 18th as International Orgasm Day
• Sept’ 4th as World Sexual Health Day

Since most of the porn sites are banned in India, the cases of the sites as in the west exploring branded merchandise sales have been unheard. Anything that’s available is being sold through not so popular channels and through grey market.

While Rekit Benckiser with Durex have tapped the niche market with some differentiated offering, but captures nearly 2% of the Indian market. A brand that has made a successful franchise model in the given space is the brand Playboy. A brand which started with a publisher successfully ventured into multiple categories;

Wellness

Cosmetic & Fragrances

Apparel & Innerwear

Content

With the change in lifestyle and social acceptable of sex as an important requirement of a human body. There will be an upward trend in the category and it would continue to grow in the years to come.

Nishant Poddar

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