Online purchasing has emboldened more people to buy sex products because of the anonymity the transaction involves. Gone is the embarrassment of ordering condoms from pharmacies in front of other people who would know the buyer’s planned activities that night.
Besides condoms, sex items frequently purchased by Chinese consumer from popular shopping websites Tmall and Taobao are sexy underwear and inflatable dolls, according to a report released on Monday by AliHealth, the online medical and health provider owned by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.
GBtimes reported that sales of sex toys in Taobao increased yearly by an average of 50 percent since 2011, while that of sex dolls doubled and exceeded 10 million yuan ($1.53 million) in 2015. Wang Ran of Shenzen Feida, a manufacturer of sex dolls, attributed its popularity to China’s one-child policy which resulted in gender imbalance as more parents preferred boys. Now, adult males find it difficult to find girlfriends, so some opt for sex dolls as partners, at least in bed.
As expected, males comprise the bulk of the buyers of these sex products and accounted for 64 percent of purchases of products in 2015 on the shopping platforms. However, age mattered what type of products men purchased.
Those 30 and below prefer condoms, while those above 30 are the buyers of sex toys and perfumes. China Daily explained that older men buy those items to improve the quality of sex which have been less frequent as they age.
Chinese women from Henan. Qinghai and the Tibet autonomous region bought in 2015 a lot of sex products – which they usually purchased for their partners - in the last six months of the year that sales jumped 14 percent compared to the first half.
The boldness of Chinese women in buying sex products online is a reflection of social progress in the Asian giant, said Zhang Zhichao, a doctor of andrology at Peking University First Hospital. He explained, “Traditionally, Chinese women play a passive part in the two-sex relations, but … more are turning to sex products for a more satisfied sex life.”