- Title: Colombia sex toys sales spike amid coronavirus quarantine
- Date: 14th April 2020
- Summary: BOGOTA, COLOMBIA (RECENT - APRIL 10, 2020) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS NUDITY*** BOX WITH SEX TOY FACE MASKS DISPLAY CASE SHOWING VIBRATORS CLOSE-UP OF VIBRATORS VARIOUS OF OWNER OF ONLINE SEX SHOP, GERSON MONJE, LOOKING AT HIS WEBSITE ON HIS MOBILE PHONE
- Embargoed: 28th April 2020 12:18
- Keywords: Colombia Sex toys coronavirus food food medicine medicine
- Location: MEDELLIN AND BOGOTA, COLOMBIA
- City: MEDELLIN AND BOGOTA, COLOMBIA
- Country: Colombia
- Topics: Human-Led Quirky,Human-Led Stories
- Reuters ID: LVA001C9GQ91J
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Gerson Monje holds up his cell phone to proudly show off his online sex shop. A red banner reading "sold out!" is plastered across half of the products.
While most Colombian businesses suffer during a five-week lockdown meant to curb the spread of coronavirus and the government warns of a contraction in economic growth, one online industry has seen an explosion in sales: sex toys are flying off virtual shelves.
Monje said that sales started increasing on the fourth day of the quarantine.
"It took a few days for people to calm down, to be at home locked up and begin to feel, think and find themselves with their partner or alone and the need for people to buy this type of product was born. The increase has been considerable, approximately 50% of what we were ordinarily selling," he added.
Monje is still able to have products delivered to customers amid the national lockdown.
''They realise this is a time we are going to be here, what are we going to do? We are going to have fun, especially when one is part of a couple," he said.
Reuters spoke to six online shops in Colombia and all said they have seen a swell in sales since the quarantine began. Colombians are meant to remain at home until Apr. 27, except for outings to buy food and medicine and visits to banks.
Inside the Sixth Sense sex shop in Bogota, manager Adriana Marin watched Pope Francis give a Good Friday mass on her computer as she sprayed boxes of products with disinfectant, surrounded by strappy lingerie and a wide variety of sex toys.
Her online shop sales have taken off even though her storefront is closed and there is stiff competition. There are about 30 other sex shops in her neighborhood alone.
At the Bali Sex Store in Medellin, sales are up 140 percent.
"I think that the issue of innovating in the relationship and intimacy can generate breakdowns and not be good for the relationship; therefore people may look for sex toys as a complement to ignite passion or everything related to the sexual issue so that it does not become so monotonous with confinement," said Katty Gonzalez, the store's marketing director.
The most popular products are those with associated mobile phone applications, which can allow separated partners to control toys for one another, Gonzalez said.
Toys could help people keep their spirits up during long isolation, psychologist Dr. Carolina Guzman said, and might lead to a loosening of sexual mores.
"It is good to open your mind to different recreational ways to integrate sexuality, so let's take advantage of this time to jump into curiosity and then find this consumption as something healthy for your well-being, for your life as a couple. In short, for everything that is your life," she said.
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