Big-time buyers of sex toys
NEW DELHI Indians may be perceived as shy about their sex lives, but their demand for sex toys and aides, a nascent and as yet clandestine industry in the country, is spreading across the country.
While the metros of Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore top the list of buyers across e-commerce platforms that sell adult products, the “business of pleasure” is gaining popularity in smaller cities such as Ahmedabad, Chennai, Faridabad, Pune, Roorkee and Hyderabad.
The share of orders from nonmetro big cities and small towns is going up, vendors say. While across-the-board average is not forthcoming as the industry is fragmented, websites say that for some products demand from small towns is as much as three times more than metros.
Massage creams, lubricants, male performance products, women’s arousal and pleasure enhancement products, lingerie, masturbators, personal grooming products and handcuffs are among the most popular items in these cities. According to sources in the industry, sales in 2016 are likely to hit ₹2,500 crore.
These are not cheap products by any means. Last year, for instance, IMBesharam, one of the popular e-commerce websites in this line, delivered a custom order of a product called Sybian, a masturbation device for women, worth ₹4.5 lakh to a customer in Bilaspur. In April 2016, a customer in Warangal, Tamil Nadu bought a gold-plated version of Lelo, a vibrator, worth ₹74,000.
Raj Armani, co-founder of IMBesharam, which was set up in 2013, told HT: “Indian men and women are now far more in tune with the western lifestyle due to the easy availability of the internet. There has been an overall acceptance of a lifestyle that is more liberal and less judgemental.”
Said Ruchira Goswami, sociologist and teacher at National Institute of Juridical Sciences: “A section of educated women coming from urban pockets is exploring their sexuality and independence like never before”.
“It’s safe and adds spice to life,” Neha Acharya (name changed), a middle-aged Kolkata housewife, said. “I don’t need to take the risk of a relationship or pregnancy.”
About 37% orders at IMBesharam, which is endorsed by actor Sunny Leone, are from nonmetros, which contribute 46% of the company’s revenues. “Orders from these cities are generally of higher ticket size and they are more adventurous with their shopping,” said Armani.
IMBesharam is on pace to cross ₹36 crore sales this fiscal, compared to ₹29 crore last year.
Six-month old Naughtyme gets 60% of its orders from small cities. “We are generating ₹4.5-6 lakh monthly sales with an average increase of 15% to 20% every month from small cities,” said VS Harikumar, CEO, Naughtyme, which has filled 2,106 orders so far.
At ThatsPersonal, another popular startup, orders from small cities have grown more than 300% over the past year. These cities contribute almost half of the company’s revenues.
“Our strategy is to educate people so that they understand how these products can help them enrich and spice up their sex lives. Educating via interesting content is the key,” says Vishal Lodaya, director-marketing at ThatsPersonal.
The popularity of the products aside, the business is not exactly legal — nor illegal.
According to section 292 of the India Penal Code, activities including sale, distribution, public exhibition and circulation of anything obscene is a punishable offence. But the definition of obscene itself is a grey area.
“The market is unregulated and undercover and so one can buy these toys online and maintain secrecy,” Goswami said.
So most e-tailers are careful. “Products on our sites do not resemble any body parts,” said Lodaya. Naughtyme, which has actor Poonam Pandey as brand ambassador, deliver products in discreet packages and is mulling tie-ups with stores from where people can pick orders.
“The government must liberalise policies related to sale of sex toys, and sexual health and wellness products to help people access these products at lower prices,” said Amit Sharma, senior manager at Masala Toys, another popular website.