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Marketing experts say access to COVID-19 vaccinations is getting people excited about the prospects of a ‘hot vax summer.’ Data from the marketing research firm IRI revealed that male condom sales in the US increased by 23 percent from March to mid-April this year. This is compared to last year, when there was a 4 percent decrease in Durex condom sales, according to IRI.
Those in sexual protection and intimacy industries are attributing the rise in condom sales to the desire people have to socialize after not being able to do much during the pandemic. The intimacy product line SKYN conducted a survey that found that 39 percent of people who socially distanced during the pandemic experienced an increased sex drive.
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“An even more eagerly awaited bounce back of sales is in the condom category as condoms mean pleasure. Eighteen-to 24-year-olds can’t wait to get their social lives back,” Britta Bomhard, chief marketing officer at Trojan condom maker, Church & Dwight told CNN. Interestingly, a survey by the sexual intimacy brand LoveHoney found a 14 percent decline in sexual activity among Americans aged 18 to 34, while those 34 and up reported a 4 percent increase in activity.
Church & Dwight CEO Matthew Farrell also told CNN that condoms “are expected to deliver year-over-year growth as society opens up and consumers have greater mobility.”
In 2020, the dating site Match.com published its 10th annual Singles in America study which surveys over 50,000 people in the US and found that 71 percent of singles did not have sex during quarantine. However, 41 percent of singles who did have sex while staying inside had it with someone who they quarantined with, and “1 in 4 singles had sex with a nonromantic roommate”.
In addition to the ways that people’s sex lives have changed over the past year, dating during the pandemic has also been a popular topic of research. Messages across dating apps like Tinder, OKCupid, Match.com, and Hinge increased by 30-40 percent according to the youth marketing research company YPulse. People also reported using dating apps more often throughout the pandemic to combat loneliness, highlighting the social void the pandemic has created.
Read More: CVS, Walgreens wasted thousands of vaccines, CDC reports
While vaccination rollouts are underway, there are still many that have yet to be administered. An estimated 44 percent of Americans have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 32 percent are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC’s daily COVID Data Tracker. COVID cases are still being reported with the highest numbers in counties within populous states like California, Florida, New York, and Texas. The CDC also estimates that there are 20 million new STD infections each year.
So whether you’re on what some may call a ‘hot vax summer’ excursion, ‘the streets’, or generally outside, one thing remains clear: continuing to wear the appropriate masks for various occasions is a must.
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