Report: Condom producer Karex sees big increase in online sales during Covid-19 movement restrictions

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 31): Online sales for condoms made by Klang-based Karex “shot up by seven-fold during the first half of this year” owing to the numerous movement restrictions to stem the Covid-19 pandemic, reported Channel News Asia (CNA).

“A lot more people are engaging in bedroom activity because there’s nothing else to do and you don’t get out.

"And I guess it’s also a time when I don’t think you would want to have a baby, especially if you’re a young couple, because it’s so unpredictable at the moment,” CEO Goh Miah Kiat told the Singapore broadcaster.

According to the CNA report, Karex is the world's largest condom manufacturer, churning out more than five billion condoms a year.

The company said that 50% its condom production “goes towards government contracts for reproductive health programmes”, but with the arrival of the pandemic, Goh revealed that his company have “seen a (more than) 600 per cent increase online on our e-commerce channels. We’re starting to see a trend that’s moving from offline to online”.    

Karex is also apparently “known” for its limited edition condoms with “novelty flavours”.

It introduced durian flavoured condoms in 2016, and later “rolled out” nasi lemak, teh tarik and rendang flavours.

"The thing is, we don't talk about condoms. You think of them as a taboo thing right? Different people go out and buy condoms, and actually, it's quite the responsible thing to do," Goh told CNA.

"It's perception, and the thing is that there are a lot of people who don't buy condoms. Number one because they're just too shy, and there's a stigma, because if you're using a condom, you're sexually active.

"The thing is that, for me, I want to have fun, and I want people to break the taboo, and the only way you can break out of that is by talking about it, which is why we launched the durian flavour back in 2016, and then nasi lemak in 2017," he added.

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