Sexual wellness trends: Normal founder Lucy Wark on what to expect in 2023

ICYMI: sexual wellness has exploded as a consumer category over the last few years. 

We’ve seen cultural movements (from #MeToo and #TeachUsConsent to shows like Sex Education and Heartbreak High) collide with tech that lets us consume content and interact in new ways, dramatically changing the way we’re having conversations about sex. 

And when it comes to physical products like sex toys, there’s been a sea change in how we buy and what we buy. That change has been led by a wave of diverse entrepreneurs creating beautiful modern lifestyle products that you can shop in shame-free, educational online spaces — like Normal! 

So, with all this change: what comes next? 

Here are five predictions for the sexual wellness space in 2023, based on our experiences at Normal and our research tracking trends in sex, dating and relationships: 

1: People with penises are the next wave to break 

The earliest ground in the sexual wellness space was broken by entrepreneurs focussed on foregrounding pleasure for people with vulvas and the LGBTQ+ community (whose needs were less central in earlier representations and education about sex, which drove the ‘orgasm gap’). 

However, the flipside of this wave of pleasure education is that people with penises have actually been left behind. 

Our research (with a representative sample of Australians surveyed by an independent agency, not our user base) found that for the first time, the body parts that Australians are most comfortable identifying and bringing pleasure to are overwhelmingly those of people with vulvas — and that pleasure anatomy for people with penises is much less well-understood. 

Source: supplied.

We expect to see a wave of new and existing brands developing sex-positive, modern offerings for this audience over 2023. 

2: Companies will start tackling libido and the stress-sex connection better 

In the aftermath of the pandemic and all of the stressors connected to it, low libido became the #1 sexual issue for Australians (replacing ‘body image making it hard to enjoy sex’ for the first time). 

We’ve also seen one in four Australians experiencing this issue trying over-the-counter supplements for it (where unfortunately there is little to no medical evidence). 

We’re starting to see a better understanding of the science of libido and desire (I’d recommend this book and this free course for anyone looking to understand spontaneous and responsive desire, as well as the role of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system) – and we expect to see more companies offering holistic solutions based on what tends to work in sex therapy (working on environmental and relational turn-offs, as well as developing skills around mindfulness and embodiment). 

3: Erotica consumption will continue shifting away from free video porn

Gen Z is the first generation who use social media to self-educate about sex more than they use porn (43% vs 25%) — and there’s an increasingly mainstream discussion about the shortcomings of free video porn (from unethical production and a lack of diversity in performers, to unrealistic or harmful storylines around pleasure, consent and contraceptive use). 

And we’re seeing a move towards a diverse range of new erotica formats — from increasing usage of ethical porn and VR to audio erotica focussed on pleasure for people with vulvas (apps like Dipsea, Quinn and Blussh, which recently went through Y Combinator). 

4: Dating app fatigue will drive richer online and IRL formats to the fore 

Australians are more open than ever to using a dating app (48% would be happy meeting someone on an app), but just 17% of us say we have good experiences — and some groups have disproportionately negative experiences with apps (like people of colour). 

We also hear enormous fatigue with the superficiality of interactions and the tendency for dating apps to promote a ‘paradox of choice’ which doesn’t lead to the outcomes people are looking for. 

With the success of apps like Thursday (which promote a time limit on matches — Thursday — and integrate an IRL component where people can meet up in specified bars all over London or New York), we expect to see more of the old (like speed dating and richer online profiles that help to truly understand a match) among this new but flawed format. 

5: Disability and mobility products will finally be recognised as a huge opportunity 

Even though we’ve seen strong progress in product development for disability and mobility issues in sex by companies like Bump’n, the opportunity represented by this space hasn’t been fully realised in terms of funding or attention from the wider business community. 

But think about this: one in five Australians has a disability, we have an aging population in which mobility and usability issues are only becoming bigger challenges, these audiences often have a higher spending capacity, and there are government subsidies, clear distribution channels and wide open space into which brands can be launched. 

So if anyone is looking for help launching an awesome brand in this space, I’m here to help! And we expect to see other investors getting more excited about the space next year. 

Lucy Wark is the founder of Normal.