Despite being the land of Kamasutra, for ages, conversations around sexual pleasures have been termed a taboo in Indian society. However, with social media, it seems such conversations are part of the new norms, thanks to rising interest in sex toys. “Sex is possibly the biggest and most pleasurable activity adults indulge in, not once but time and again. The market is therefore big, the subject however is kept indoors and within the confines of private bedrooms. While sex toys have been around for ages, Covid was possibly a tipping point moment when conversations became more open and the YOLO (you only live once) mindset came to the fore in this domain,” Harish Bijoor, business and brand-strategy specialist, founder, Harish Bijoor Consults, told BrandWagon Online.
The global sex toys market size is expected to grow from $34.95 billion in 2021 to $75.73 billion by 2030, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.97%, as per a report by Spherical Insights & Consulting Interestingly, the report suggests that post-Covid, the market has flourished. Till 2021, the global market for sex toys was valued at 1,482 million toys, and it is projected to increase to 3,508 million toys by 2030. Additionally, the sex toy market grows at an average annual rate of 18% and doubles roughly every eighth year.
To be sure, the conversation around sex toys is more than vibrators and includes a host of other products including dildos, penis rings, and sex dolls, among others at an average price of about Rs 2,500. In addition to this, brands available in India are Sangya Project, That Sassy Thing, My Muse, Leezu’s, Besharam, and Love Treats, among others. Interestingly, industry experts point out that they prefer calling their products as massagers and refrain from listing them as sex toys.
Mapping the market!
In India, even though most of these products are purchased by men, the intended recipient of the product is a woman. “Massagers are used by everyone, irrespective of their gender identity. However, analytics gives us data in the form of binaries, we see a customer split of 55:45 among women and men, respectively. Our brand has been very actively supported by folks from the queer community and we have created a repository of content keeping all genders and sexualities in mind,” Sachee Malhotra, founder, That Sassy Thing, explained. Similarly, Sahil Gupta, co-founder, MyMuse, said that the brand has six massagers for vulva owners that cater to different stages of the intimacy journey. Amongst massagers, the company claims that ‘massagers for vulva owners’ are most in demand.
Moreover in a world, which is extremely diverse, it is interesting to note that some brands have created massagers which are gender-less. For instance, Pyaari, a clitoral stimulator from Leezu’s, can work as both suction and vibration and can also be used on the nipples or scrotum. “The binary framework of ‘biological sex’ that many of us assume to be the ‘natural’ categorisation of ‘male’ and ‘female’ and the idea that men and women are entirely disparate categories, determined solely based on whether you have a penis or a vagina,” Managaldas explained, adding that people may identify as man, woman, trans, nonbinary, genderfluid, agender, regardless of what genitals they have. Thus, people of diverse sexual orientations and relationship structures can also use toys, these are not just for heterosexual people or single people.
When it comes to distribution, typically most of these brands operate through the direct-to-consumer (D2C) model besides third-party e-commerce and quick commerce which remain the other two prominent channels of distribution. “Leezu’s is currently only available on D2C however we hope to expand to select marketplaces and perhaps eventually even retail,” Leeza Mangaldas, founder, Leezu’s, said. For That Sassy Thing, the company claims that D2C accounts for 85% of its revenue, while the rest 15% comes from third-party e-commerce platforms. “We sell Pan-India to over 220 cities and we also offer same-day delivery in Delhi NCR, Mumbai and Bengaluru. We are also present on Nykaa, Amazon, Swiggy MINIS, Tata 1MG, among others,” Malhotra added. Meanwhile, Shweta Sangtani, co-founder and CEO, Sangya Project, believes that products such as supplements, condoms and lubricants can be sold in brick-and-mortar shops whereas sex toys cannot.
The marketing!
While the conventional format of advertising is off-limits, most of these brands claim Instagram does the trick. As a matter of fact, Leeza Mangaldas, founder, Leezu’s, who has been a content creator for almost seven years believes that it is a social-first brand and an extension of her work as a sex education content creator. “Social media is where I have built my community, and so my social media handles are where my community first learns about what I’m building with Leezu’s. Social media platforms, search engines and e-commerce marketplaces have ever-increasing red tape around sex, sexuality, sexual health and advertising sexual wellness products– so that is, unfortunately, something all brands have to work around,” Mangaldas added.
However, for the Sangya Project, both influencer marketing and surrogate advertising serve different purposes. “To drive consistent and instant sales, surrogate or performance marketing is the way to go, but what influencer marketing brings to the table is people getting to know about the brand, granting it legitimacy and increasing the brand following, which translates into sales at a later stage,” Sangtani said.
Rolling over ROI……..
When it comes to generating return on investment (RoI), brand owners believe that firstly it is about creating a category. As a result, the initial two years are spent on categorisation of products and building brand awareness. “Advertising in this category is not easy with the number of restrictions placed, but we have been experimental in what we do and it has worked for us. We shared a message, you do you, with a strong brand of humour, and we did it without being sleazy or talking about sex. This appealed to a massive audience across tier-1, tier-2 and 3 markets,” Gupta said.
Meanwhile, the co-founders of the Sangya Project are of the opinion that advertising in this space goes a long way as there are challenges. The duo believe that as time goes by more brands will be able to advertise openly thereby the returns on ad spending will go up.
Sexy Future?
Industry experts opine that the market in this space will grow in the years to come as sexual wellness and pleasure become more gender equal, inclusive, and accessible for all. “Our goal this year is to strengthen our omni-channel presence and scale distribution operations nationally. We have a range of products planned and a lineup of campaigns to boost our brand awareness,” Gupta said.
For Aashish Mehrotra, co-founder and COO, the Sangya Project, technological implementation and scaling of sex toys is yet to happen. “We haven’t even scratched the surface of what could come under the term sex-tech. We aren’t a marketing company but rather a sex-tech brand which aims to push the boundaries of technology, innovation and design for the sexual wellness industry, in the form of physical products and more,” he added.