Why Sextech is going to be one of the most profitable tech industries in India 👩❤️💋👩
An Indian startup has raised money to make the country’s first locally designed and manufactured vibrator.
“Sangya Project will use the infusion of capital to develop a line of vibrators, some of which will be remote-controlled. It's also developing an app for sexual wellness and has plans to export it products globally — to anyone who wants them”
source: Bloomberg
The irony is despite our conservative nature & the fact that buying or selling sex toys is still considered taboo, sex toys sell like crazy in India. As this article puts it
Social mores are evolving, pushed by big, global employers and hastened by the rise of streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney Hotstar. Google’s YouTube has about half a billion subscribers in India, making it the platform’s largest base, and a swath of short video platforms have made it possible to create and distribute explicit content faster than the government censors can block it.
Our prediction: #Sextech is going to be one of the most profitable tech industries in India.
#sangyaproject is doing a great job ( check out their instagram: creative, engaging and informative) & Raj Armani with ImBesharam has been part of the ecosystem successfully for a while. But there are others like MyMuse India by Anushka Gupta , Bleu Cares BOLDCARE SOLUTIONS LIMITED by Rajat Jadhav Mohit Yadav etc That Sassy Thing by Sachee Malhotra
Opportunities in the sector :
The sector just doesn’t have high sales but High growth and high margin.
More than 36 million connected sextech devices were in use worldwide last year, an 87% Y-o-Y growth
Great Demand, most of it currently untapped
Globally, marketing for connected devices is likely to soar from 3.8 billion USD to 9 billion USD by 2025. North America is spearheading the growth. There are predictions that the region would have one connected sextech device for every 14 adults by 2025. That’s over 21 million devices.
India has the opportunity to build brands for the world, not just for India.
Given that sextech is even evolving in the west & funding has just started flowing in, unlike other sectors we are not far behind the west. While the Indian market is still plagued by regulatory obstacles and terms like ‘no return policy’ and ‘discreet packaging. ; building for the world is possible too.
Challenges :
1. The marketing for the ecosystem hasn't been great.
Either none at all or Extremely massy, hardly classy. Sangya project is changing that, so is Bold Care (check out their website below, a smart way to combine e-commerce with the need for the brand at every step)
But these two-three are exceptions,most startups aren’t realizing the massive opportunity they have by growing a brand in the space. Which will be more important given our cultural sensibilities.
2. Extremist political parties:
If the sector grows ( which it will) , the extremists will react and given their proclivity to ban or destroy that's a financial risk. Startups can be powerful forces but can also be soft targets when it comes to the masses.
But more than anything as a strategist I would bet on the sector because it’s profitable and has a positive social impact.
Also, remember Sextech is also an umbrella term-the potential is huge for different startups. For example here is a mindfulness-based audio app which helps women climax
and here’s the link :click here
Tool Tip:
(In every newsletter we share one great marketing or business tool)
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Written by: Saurabh
Also you're missing TTK Healthcare's venture Love Depot, the first in this space by a listed entity.