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Breaking Taboos: Chinese Malls vs Stigma, Male SexTech 2025, & Australiaโ€™s Menopause Move

๐Ÿ›ธ sextech jobs, events, news and investments

๐Ÿ‘‹HEY ALL!

You know what I've been thinking...is 2025 the year male sextech moves out of taboo territory and into a premium experience?

It certainly is beginning to feel like it. In recent months, there's been a push in this category from utilitarian products to sophisticated wellness experiences.

This shift has been reflected in the broader global wellness category.

Think: the explosion of private club memberships now integrating ice baths and saunas... the move from 'vaguely feminine' zen style health spaces now trending toward plenty of wood, leather and darker (dare I say... masculine...) wellness surrounds.

Back to male sextech. For so long, I have often see only two options (and styles); clinical (take a pill!) or creepy (you don't want to keep that Fleshlight on your bedside table do you?).

At the forefront of this transformation is Manwan, a French brand revolutionizing the market through innovative design and scientific understanding of male pleasure.

Firstly, their products can be used with or without an erection. This is a pretty groundbreaking innovation in and of itself, but as part of a social conversation about male pleasure feels important for reducing stigma and challenging old school ideas about what you need to feel good.

Traditional approaches to male pleasure products have often prioritized what I'd call basic functionality over user experience. Manwan challenges this convention by focusing on overlooked erogenous zones, particularly the frenulum area - a highly sensitive region comparable to the female clitoris.

Their heavy research-backed approach has resulted in products that are designed to work for all body types (inclusive - yay!), combining deep anatomical expertise with the cherry-on-top... premium aesthetics.

Check them out here

Read on for:

๐Ÿ”ฅ this week in sextech

๐Ÿ’ผ job openings

๐ŸŽช events

๐Ÿ’ธ investments

๐Ÿ’ก founder of the week

โ€” Bryony

๐Ÿ”ฅ THIS WEEK IN SEXTECH

  • ๐Ÿ‘ Sex toy stores in Chinese malls challenge taboos

  • ๐Ÿฅš The cult of Tenga and male sexual wellness

  • ๐ŸŒธ Australians Long-Awaited Support for Menopausal Women

๐Ÿ‘ Sex Toy Stores in China Redefine Desire & Pleasure

While there's no data on the number of sex toy shops in China, the country's adult product market has grown significantly in recent years, and there are a growing number of stores selling toys in shopping malls.

According to Statista, China's adult product market was valued at about 179 billion yuan ($39 billion) in 2023 โ€” up 6.5 per cent compared to the previous year.

๐Ÿฅš Tenga, the futuristic and decidedly low-tech brand...and their disposable โ€œeggsโ€

Tenga's disposable eggsโ€”which are slightly larger than a chicken egg and, to put it bluntly, similar to a disposable version of a Fleshlight in functionโ€”have been around since 2008. They have a cult following, Tenga sold more than 2.7 million of them in 2024 alone!

This article is part of Wiredโ€™s new Love Bytes seriesโ€”worth bookmarking for a deep dive later!

๐ŸŒธ The Long-Awaited Support for Australian Menopausal Women

Hooray! Expensive hormone replacement therapies will be placed on the PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) from March this year following a $573 million Australian federal government investment in menopause, perimenopause and women's health.

๐Ÿ’ผ HOT JOBS

๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง Social Media Manager, Joyride [Apply]

๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง Fundraising Manager, Bloody Good Period [Apply]

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Head of Security, Raya [Apply]

๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ช Head of Product Brand Management, Lovehoney Group [Apply]

+22 more...

๐ŸŽช EVENTS

๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฑ February 14, Netherlands, A Shameless Valentine's Sip & Sketch with Vanillacooldance [RSVP]

๐ŸŒ February 17, Help Shape a Feminist AI Tool, CHAYN [RSVP]

๐ŸŒ February 19, Online, Better Sex Workshop: Sexual Scripts, Better Sex Workshop with Ruth Heneke Eliot [RSVP]

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ February 19, Romantic Urbanism Release Party, The Architectural League of New York [RSVP]

๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง February 22, London, Pop-up Rave in a Church, hosted by Olga Ivanova [RSVP]

๐ŸŒ February 22-23, Online. Exploring the Unconventional: My Therapist is a Pornstar Online Sexceptional Weekend, Sexual Health Alliance [RSVP]

๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ February 27, Melbourne. Sextech Edition: CHALLENGERS MELB (FEB) FOR CATEGORY CREATORS & BRAND-BUILDERS, GROUP GROUP [RSVP]

๐ŸŒ February 27, Online, Better Sex Workshop: Pleasure, Better Sex Workshop with Ruth Heneke Eliot [RSVP]

๐ŸŒ March 1-2, Sexuality, Scholarship, and the Struggle for Free Expression, Woodhull Freedom Foundation [RSVP]

๐ŸŒ March 5, Online, Better Sex Workshop: Fantasy & Kink, Better Sex Workshop with Ruth Heneke Eliot [RSVP]

๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ March 7, Texas USA, Pleasure Unrolled Fireside Chat & Networking Event, with Tristeza O. , Dr. Jessica Sanchez PhD, LMSW, MEd and Lorena Banda

๐ŸŒ March 13, Online, Better Sex Workshop: Romantic Scripts, Better Sex Workshop with Ruth Heneke Eliot [RSVP]

๐Ÿ’ธ INVESTMENTS

๐Ÿš€ Bold Care Raises $5M to Expand Sexual Health Solutions in India

๐Ÿ’ก Founder of the Week: Janelle Toussaint

Janelle Toussaint saint is a technical product manager and a somatic intimacy educator. Janelle is experienced in leading strategic product and process initiatives with a proven track record of acing business goals. She is also the founder of LAKETI INC. INC.

๐Ÿ‘€ Cohort 16 is calling! Sextech School is open for enrollmentโ€”are you in? ๐Ÿ’ก๐Ÿ’ฅ

Skip the queue and get straight to the front of the line by filling out this form. Classes officially start in March, but you'll get instant access to our private community and Video Library!

See you next week,
Bryony

Looking for a job?

๐Ÿ”’ Featured Premium Roles This Week ๐Ÿ‘€ ๐Ÿ”’:

- Program Manager at [Major Brand]

- Software Engineer at [Leading Platform]

- Visual Design Lead at [Major Brand]

+ 25 More Exclusive Positions Including roles at Lovehoney, Tinder and other industry leaders and academic institutions

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