Sex doll industries suffer major blow as coronavirus scare shuts down factories in China and halts production
Sex doll industries in the UK and the US have suffered a major blow due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to reports.
This is because nearly all of the x-rated dolls in the West are sourced from Chinese factories, and the coronavirus scare has caused a multitude of logistical hurdles.
"There has been a slowdown," Jade Stanley, who runs Sex Doll Official, told The Sun. "The problem is workers took three or four days off for Chinese New Year. They’ve gone home, been quarantined and been unable to return to factories."
The 36-year-old Worcestershire, England resident launched her sex doll business in 2018. In fact, the enterprise became the first to offer a rental service in the UK last year.
According to Jade, the service is a hit among widowers and "socially awkward" people. What's more? The dolls can be customized to fit the client's needs or specifications.
That said, manufacturing lockdowns across China have now hurt the supply chain.
"People who buy these products are often people who can’t — or don’t want to — go out a lot," the mother-of-four explained. "That’s especially so with coronavirus... we are having an awful lot of phone calls."
According to a report by The Sun, an increasing number of Britishers are secretly purchasing sex dolls and robots for companionship.
And one in ten Brits has expressed a desire to romp with a robot, as per the report.
The sex toy industry is set to be worth an estimated $47 billion by 2020, and sex dolls — one of the industry's fastest developing products — are already selling for $18,000 a pop.
The British newspaper reported last week how swingers had promised to continue swinging despite the coronavirus outbreak.
One swingers' club, however, has restricted its numbers to around 100 revelers at a time and installed hand sanitizers as a precaution.
A post from the CJs club in Glasgow announced that its "parties will still be going ahead and extra measures have been put in place to reduce any risks."
“Hand sanitizer dispensers have been placed on the wall at the entrance outside the cloakroom, at the top of the stairs before you enter playrooms and in the kitchen area," they said. "We are asking guests to please make use of these along with washing your hands before and after play."