Sexuality has quickly emerged from what was once taboo to something as acceptable as having an opinion. Behind this emergence is a constantly growing sex toy industry racking in the profits from society’s new-found sexual freedom. The size of the global sex toy market is set to exceed 29 billion US dollars by the end of 2020. This number will double by the end of 2026 according to the industry’s market trends. Meanwhile, more and more people are exploring how to start an online sex toy store, indicating that the gap between supply and demand might be short-lived.
Learn how and to whom you can sell dildos, anal-beads, HD porn DVDs, fleshlights, etc. before you turn your basement into a stock room. Despite the industry’s growth, nearly 50% of new sex toy businesses don’t last longer than a year. A majority of these set themselves up to fail well before they buy or sell anything. This article is your in-depth guide on how to create a profitable sex toy business before you open its doors.
Benefits of Starting a Sex Toy Business
Demand
Society’s increasing demand for sex toys ensures your new business (i.e. Supply) has room to grow within the industry. Your buyers are already there, and growing in number. It’s just a matter of reaching them.
Modest start-up costs
Starting a successful sex toy business doesn’t have to drain your bank account. Depending on its scale, opening up shouldn’t set you back any more than your average small business. Sometimes the only major start-up cost is that of building a good website. With an efficient business plan and the reinvestment of profit, the business can grow itself from within.
Unrestricted target market
According to studies, sex toys appeal to just about every demographic. Your potential customer can be anybody 18 years old or older. Male, female, trans, educated, uneducated, upper-class, middle-class — everyone buys your products.
Dropshipping
The sex toy industry takes all of the advantages of the revolution in e-commerce. Finding a sex toy dropshipper takes you about 5 minutes —try it yourself. Dropshipping sex toys eliminates all storage and shipping worries. Not to mention, online dropshipping shops keep the buyer anonymous. As a result, you can explore stocking niche products some won’t buy over the counter.
Starting a Sex Toy Business
Relying solely on increasing demand won’t get your business far. Sure, it helps, but face the facts — you are no pioneer in this industry. Doc Johnson, a US-based sex toy manufacturer, has been around since 1976. Given this, it’s safe to say businesses have been selling their products for some time. This particular manufacturer produces 5 million dildos a year. That number is dwarfed by the fact that 70% of the sex toy products are manufactured in China. The competition is experienced and stiff, so treat yourself and your new sex toy business for what they are — new to the game.
Research Your Market
Before stockpiling your basement full of sex toys, find out who you are selling them to. It takes you 5 clicks to open up the demographic statistics of your city. Analyze and compare them to the market trends in the sex toy industry. Find out what a certain demographic tends to buy more. Look for niches within demographics. These tend to be small and often ignored by the competition. A good example of this is the LGBT demographic.
The LGBT community has been growing worldwide. Take advantage of that. This part of the market is relatively new and can be considered a niche of its own. Research their consumer trends and even reach out to the LGBT members of your community. Successfully tailoring to their specific needs can help your business develop exclusiveness. As a result, growing your business in a field that may be overlooked by competition gives you a much-needed edge.
Don’t always trust the internet—research your city’s market on your own. Make an online survey and post it on social media. Even handing out a paper survey to big businesses can give you surprising results. This industry is changing so fast, most of the statistics online are outdated. Due to this, you can find yourself stocking up on products that are already technologically obsolete.
Know Your Products
Now that you know who you are selling to, research what it is that you are selling. It’s not all dildos and sex dolls. Research the manufacturers and what they make. These are the top 5 sex toy manufacturers in the world:
- Ansell
- BMS Factory
- Church & Dwight
- Doc Johnson
- LELO
Learn about their products and compare them to the needs of your consumers. Knowing a lot about your products can make your business unique. For example, most sex toys contain latex, a common allergen. Take advantage of this; search for a latex-free sex toy manufacturer such as EdenFantasys. These latex-free products can give you an edge over your competition.
Finally, make sure to research the details. Just knowing the different types of toys is often not enough. Most people know what a dildo is. Yet, few can name the 20 dildo subtypes. Be that guy — know the difference between a glass and rubber dildo. Learn why gay men tend to prefer inflatable dildos. Product knowledge is an integral part of the creation of a unique and exclusive business.
Marketing a Sex Toy Business
Unfortunately, social media can only do so much in terms of marketing a sex toy business. Terms and conditions on most social media platforms prohibit adult content. Ultimately, that means a website is your best bet to market your business online. However, you can still use social media to promote your business by promoting your website to friends. You can also share links to your website in forums, groups, and chat groups.
Website-oriented marketing is the quickest way to grow your business. Nevertheless, it is not always easy on the budget. In short, you want to increase the traffic of your sex toy website — more traffic means more sales. To achieve that, your website needs SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Simply put, your website needs to be highly visible in search results and it needs to load fast when clicked on. For this reason, you need a good hosting provider. Unfortunately, they aren’t cheap.
If you are on a budget, your best bet is an affordable local hosting provider. As a result, you will have to compensate for their poor SEO scores by running Google ad campaigns. Subsequently, another alternative is outsourcing your SEO and investing in an adult SEO company.
It is not impossible to market your business the old-fashioned way. Be creative, make cheeky business cards, flyers, and most importantly interact with your community.
Conclusion
A successful sex toy business starts before you start selling sex toys. Above all, your dedication to detail in your research will greatly influence the course of your business. Know what you are selling before you sell it. Take time to analyze your competition, and set your marketing strategy accordingly.
Also, success in the sex toy business greatly depends on new owners knowing what to avoid. Stiff competition, buying in bulk, untrusty payment rails, and unreliable dropshippers can often be mines for sex toy shops just starting up. Steering clear of these can considerably improve your chances to succeed. The sex toy industry is growing, with or without you. By the time you have finished reading this article, Doc Johnson has made 500 dildos. Now, no one expects you to sell 500 dildos in 15 minutes but set your sights high. Most importantly, believe in yourself. Start your research, devise your strategy, analyze your competition, and start selling sex toys.