We've come a long way when it comes to talking openly about sexuality. What was once hushed and taboo is now out in the open for everyone to see (and embrace!). This can be seen clearly in the explosive growth of the sex toy market. Research shows that 37% of Americans say they own at least one sex toy, demonstrating just how mainstream these products have become.
If you've been considering starting your own sex toy business, you're in the right place at the right time. Entrepreneurs selling adult toys online have more opportunities than ever. And when it comes to creating products, you're bound only by your own creativity. However, success in this industry requires navigating unique challenges, from payment processor restrictions to social media censorship.
Let's take a look at the essential steps you should take to start your own sex toy business and build a thriving brand in this evolving market.
9 steps to start selling sex toys online
Of course, no two businesses will be the same or have the same process. But there are some key points to hit as you build your adult toy empire.
1. Find your niche and identify your customer
Some entrepreneurs enter the sex toy industry knowing exactly what they'll sell and who their audience will be. But many don't.
If you're not sure what your niche will be, that's your first to-do. You'll need to make sure that, in addition to some great sex toys, you're marketing them to an audience that actually wants to buy them. Strong product-market fit is essential before investing significant capital and resources into an idea.
Here are some considerations:
- Who's your target audience? Try getting specific, like the LGBTQIA+ community or BDSM community. The more targeted the group, the easier your marketing and sales can be. Some successful brands focus on underserved communities who have been largely ignored by traditional adult retailers.
- What's your product type? The sex toy industry is massive. Do you want to offer devices like vibrators and dildos, or other types of items and accessories like lingerie, lubricants, and condoms?
- What themes or trends will you follow? You might consider fantasy products, innovative tech products, emerging trend products, or sexual health and wellness, to name a few. Brands positioning themselves as part of the self-care and health wellness industry are reaching new markets with less stigma attached.
Keep an eye on emerging trends and cultural relevance. Products that tap into current movements or popular culture often find easier paths to market success. When you offer something with strong differentiators compared to competitors, it becomes much easier to market your idea in compelling ways.
2. Build your brand identity
Once you know what you want to sell and who will want to shop with you, you can bring your sex toy brand to life. Don't be afraid to make it personal—ask yourself questions like what you stand for, what your goals are, and what value you'll bring to your customers (and even the world).
Your brand is critical in influencing customers to buy from you. It should tell a story, connect with your target audience, and have a clear mission. When you sell sex toys, brand is also a crucial tool for building trust with customers who may feel vulnerable making intimate purchases.
Ask yourself these essential questions:
- What do I stand for?
- What value does my brand bring to the market and customer?
- What is the voice and tone for my brand communications? Are we informative and professional? Daring and playful?
- What are my brand values and business goals?
- Is my personal story critical to the brand story?
Use these points to set the tone and voice for your brand, as well as the core messaging you'll communicate to your audience. Build a connection that really resonates.
These elements will then go into building your full brand identity, including your logo, color palette, fonts, product packaging, and brand visuals like photography and graphics. Successful adult brands often position themselves as approachable and relatable—adjectives not usually used to describe traditional sex toy companies.
3. Choose how you'll make or source your sex toys
You have several main choices: create your sex toys yourself, outsource production to a manufacturer, or resell existing products. Before you choose, consider the pros and cons of each approach and how they align with your business goals.
Making sex toys on your own
Many sellers choose to create their own sex toys for consumers. First, they come up with an idea. Then, they turn this idea into a design. After designing, they move on to production. You can make these toys by hand, but there's also special equipment that turns 2D designs into 3D products.
In places like the US, where there aren't many rules for making sex toys, it's important for sellers to make sure their products are safe. This means choosing the right materials and checking the products well. The lack of regulation places extra responsibility on manufacturers to ensure safety standards.
A lot of helpful information on making and selling sex toys is available online. There are guides and communities where people share tips and advice. These resources are very useful, especially if you're starting out. The collecting community often discusses safety standards and can help identify reputable suppliers.
Benefits
- You control your business, from the design to the sale
- It feels great to make something on your own
- Your toys are special (no one else sells exactly the same thing)
- Ability to produce made-to-order items rather than holding inventory
Challenges
- You face a learning curve at the start
- You must make sure your products meet safety standards
- Making more toys and selling them to more people can be tough
Working with a sex toys manufacturer
Another way to get products for your adult toy business is to work with a manufacturer. You can contact sex toy manufacturers in China or the US and share your requirements with them. This method lets you focus on marketing and developing new products while the factory makes them. It also helps your brand grow fast and reach customers all over the world.
Finding the right manufacturer is important. Since adult toys need to be safe, you must make sure the factory understands and follows safety rules. Verify that any factory you work with has experience in the industry and understands safety standards. You can work with a third-party auditor or liaison to help ask the right questions—this is especially important if there is a language barrier.
Benefits
- You can scale your business quickly
- Choosing a manufacturer who knows about safety gives you peace of mind
- Outsourcing production allows for a lean in-house team
- Enables you to focus on other business aspects like marketing and product development
Challenges
- You have less control over production and quality assurance processes
- Learning how to find and work with manufacturers takes time
- If you're just starting or are a small business, you might face high minimum order quantities
Reselling existing products
The most hands-off model involves sourcing and reselling existing products for your own store. If product design and development don't interest you, or you're looking to launch quickly, this is your best option. You can choose from white labeling, traditional reselling, or dropshipping models.
With white labeling, manufacturers create products that you can customize with your own branding. Traditional reselling involves curating existing products that fit your brand theme, buying them wholesale, and selling them through your store. Dropshipping lets customers shop from your online store while suppliers ship directly to them.
Benefits
- More hands-off approach, ideal for side businesses
- Ability to work with established brands with good reputations
- With dropshipping, no need to carry inventory and lower startup costs
Challenges
- Same products may be sold elsewhere—success depends heavily on marketing and brand differentiation
- You depend on other businesses' decisions and may face shipping delays
4. Build your online sex toy store
Now it's time for the rubber (or silicone) to hit the road. You'll want to keep laws and regulations in mind as you build. For example, some payment processors and web providers might restrict your sales due to the risqué nature of the sex toy business.
Here are the core things you'll need when setting up your sex toy website:
- Customizable theme (if you're not building from scratch)
- High-quality product photography—don't skimp on this part! Good photos will play a huge role in building customer trust. Shoot products at multiple angles and include images of any accessories like charging devices
- Key pages, including product and collection pages, comprehensive FAQ, About, Policies, and Contact pages
- Connection to a payment processor that accepts your terms
- Age verification system to ensure your site contains appropriate warnings about adult content
Your product pages need to work harder than typical e-commerce sites. Since customers can't physically examine items before purchase, include detailed descriptions, safety information, care instructions, and warranty details. Use tabbed information to avoid page clutter while providing comprehensive details.
5. Invest in sex education and customer support
Education is essential to sex toy companies to both ensure that customers make informed purchases and to protect yourself and customers from any harm. Educational content helps establish you as a trusted expert and can drive purchases through valuable information.
Educational information can appear on product pages, FAQ sections, and product packaging. But it can also form part of your content strategy. Create comprehensive resources covering product use, safety guidelines, and sexual wellness topics. Some brands even develop dedicated educational campaigns that drive significant traffic.
Due to the intimate nature of sex-related products, returns and exchanges are usually not possible. That's why customer support at all stages is crucial to avoid unhappy customers. Detailed communication before purchase helps customers choose products they'll be satisfied with.
6. Consider additional sales channels
With challenges and restrictions related to online advertising for sex toy businesses, many brands need to get creative by adding more sales channels to achieve wider reach.
Explore these channels:
- Events like trade shows, festivals, drag shows, and conferences can be incredible ways to expand your network and showcase your brand
- Wholesale partnerships with established retailers can significantly expand your reach
- Physical retail locations or pop-up shops for local market testing
- Online marketplaces (check terms of service regularly as policies change frequently)
7. Be thorough about safety and privacy
When you're running an online sex toy business, you have a critical responsibility to make sure your products are safe and that your customers' privacy is held to the highest standard.
If you're creating or manufacturing custom products, the onus is on you to make sure that your products are safe to use and that your advice and education are leading to the best possible outcomes. Use disclaimers, FAQs, instructional content, and detailed labeling where you can. Make sure you're complying with regulations in the country and region(s) where you're doing business.
For customer privacy, remember that many people want their purchases to remain private due to living situations or social concerns. Ship items in discreet packaging using generic business names on return labels and credit card statements. Be transparent about how you handle customer data and offer complete data deletion upon request.
Consider consulting with a lawyer to ensure you meet legal requirements for safety and labeling. Product liability insurance can provide additional protection for your business.
8. Price your toys
Setting the right price for sex toys can be tricky. You've got to cover your costs and still offer a price that customers are willing to pay.
Understand your costs
First things first: Work out your costs. That includes manufacturing, shipping—everything. Add a profit margin, but keep it realistic. Your price should reflect the value of your product and fit what your customers are willing to pay.
Study the competition
See what similar products are priced at. Your prices should be in the same ballpark, unless your product has unique features or superior quality that justifies a higher price.
Implement tiered pricing
Offer adult sex toys at different price points—from budget options to premium ones. This attracts a wider range of customers and caters to different budgets.
9. Craft your sex toy marketing and sales plan
Now is the fun part! Use your creativity, savvy, and even your sense of humor to get out there and actually start selling sex toys. However, be prepared for unique marketing challenges that come with this industry.
The most effective paid advertising networks often heavily restrict or completely block adult toy products. Social media platforms also impose strict policies around nudity and sexual content that can impact your organic posts. This means you'll need to get creative with your marketing approach.
Apart from strictly ecommerce, you might also find that in-person events like trade shows, festivals, and conferences can be an incredible way to expand your network and showcase your sex toy brand.
As for marketing, consider strategies like:
- Email and SMS marketing: Start building your email list before launching products. Create excitement by directing people to a Coming Soon page and offer perks for early sign-ups. Email lists let you reach customers who've opted in to adult content
- Content and SEO: Use engaging content on your site to build trust and assist customers. Also, drive site traffic by targeting relevant keywords through search optimization
- Influencer marketing: Connect with sex-positive influencers who resonate with your target audience. New brands can benefit from collaborating with micro influencers at more affordable rates
- Affiliate networks: Establish a network with other websites, blogs, and advertisers. They earn a commission for each sale they refer, expanding your reach
- PR and media pitches: Keep your brand in the spotlight with consistent media engagement. Aim to create products and stories that are worth sharing and talking about
- Product reviews: Get your products featured on popular sex toy review websites to increase visibility and credibility
How much does it cost to start a sex toy business?
Starting a sex toy business involves different costs, depending on your approach.
Reselling sex toys
If you opt to resell, you'll face expenses like purchasing inventory, renting storage space, and fees for setting up an online store. Even if you manage some tasks yourself, like branding, starting out will likely require a few thousand dollars.
Manufacturing sex toys
For those who plan to make their products, initial costs may be lower. You can produce items based on orders, avoiding excess inventory. However, equipment and supplies can still be a significant expense, potentially ranging from hundreds to thousands. Plus, investing in branded packaging, which often has minimum order requirements, is essential.
Designing novel sex toys
Creating a new or novel product demands more time and money. This process typically takes at least one year and can cost around $10,000 upfront. Manufacturing adds another layer of cost with minimum order quantities, impacting your budget. Manufacturing partners may require you to purchase hundreds of units to keep costs sustainable.
Dropshipping sex toys
Dropshipping is the most cost-effective method to start selling. It requires less capital, with a few hundred dollars usually sufficient for a basic website and online tools. The trade-off is less control over production and shipping.
Your sex toy empire awaits
Especially for those who are passionate about sexual health, education, and empowerment, selling sex toys online can be a massively rewarding business. Despite unique challenges like payment restrictions and social media censorship, this industry continues to grow as society becomes more open about sexuality.
The key to success lies in finding creative solutions to these obstacles while building trust with your customers. Focus on education, prioritize safety and privacy, and don't be afraid to get innovative with your marketing approaches.
So if you're looking to sell adult toys online, start by following the steps we outlined: figure out your niche and identify your customers, build a strong brand identity, choose your production method, create your online store with comprehensive education, consider multiple sales channels, prioritize safety and privacy, price strategically, and craft a creative marketing plan that works around industry restrictions.
How to sell sex toys FAQ
What should I do to become a sex toy seller?
To become a sex toy seller, start by researching to find the right market and products that fit your audience's needs. First, define your brand and choose a business model for your sex toy venture. It's crucial to understand safety and privacy practices well. Then, decide whether you'll source existing products or create your own. There are many businesses ready to partner with you for product sourcing. With these steps covered, you're set to begin marketing and selling adult toys!
How can I market sex toys online?
Marketing sex toys online requires reaching your target audience while overcoming the content restrictions of various social media and advertising platforms. Here are some strategies to consider:
- Craft creative social media posts that hint at your products without directly violating platform guidelines
- Build an organic marketing strategy focusing on SEO and content marketing to attract customers
- Develop an email list for direct marketing to customers interested in adult content
- Get your products reviewed on popular sex toy review websites to increase visibility
- Partner with sex-positive influencers who appeal to your target market
- Consider hiring a PR professional to assist with the unique challenges of marketing adult items and securing media attention
What type of sex toys should I sell?
To decide on the type of sex toys to sell, start by identifying your target market and their preferences. Focusing on a specific niche or an underserved audience is key. You can choose from a variety of products such as vibrators, dildos, sexual wellness items, massage oils, lingerie, lubricants, condoms, and kink or BDSM gear. Selecting products that cater to a specific need or interest will aid in the success of your business.
What is the best way to sell sex toys?
To sell sex toys effectively, consider using retail stores, online marketplaces, or creating your own website. With your own website, you control your brand and directly connect with your customers. Always check the rules of online platforms and payment gateways to ensure they support your products. Many successful brands use multiple channels including wholesale partnerships, events, and their own e-commerce sites.
How do I handle customer privacy when selling sex toys?
Customer privacy is crucial in the sex toy business. Ship items in discreet packaging without obvious branding, use generic business names on return labels and credit card statements, and be transparent about how you handle customer data. Many customers live with family or friends who may not appreciate finding such purchases, so discretion is essential for customer satisfaction and retention.