Opportunities to Export and Sell in America: Bidet Sales Skyrocket

Due to the Coronavirus crisis, interest in personal hygiene is increasing in the USA in general


 

Toilet paper is scarce in supermarkets and for the first time, Americans are looking at bidets as a solution

Another favorable factor is the focus on the environment and waste: it takes 27,000 trees to support the daily sale of toilet paper worldwide

What is one of the most scarce products in America at the moment? Toilet paper. One of the most iconic images of the moment is represented by entire empty shelves inside major American supermarkets. Along with the renewed focus on personal hygiene and the environment, this has led to an interest in bidets like never before by American consumers.

Sales of bidets in the American market have skyrocketed. On some ecommerce sites, a discount code titled "USABIDET" has been created, offering a 10% discount for every bidet purchased.

Historically, the bidet in America has never caught on, partly because it carried a controversial reputation: American soldiers first encountered bidets in brothels during World War II, and since then, the image of the bidet as an object more suited to places of "sin" than a home has persisted.

American manufacturers of bidets are experiencing a favorable moment, with sales increasing up to 10 times compared to a few weeks ago. "This is a new trend that could finally lead to the adoption of bidets in the USA," says Jose Ojavo, CEO of the startup Tushy.

James Lin, owner of the bidet-specialized ecommerce site Bidet King, confirms the increase in American consumer interest in this "new" accessory. The bidet section of the Wirecutter site was the most read from March 13 to 15.

We saw an identical phenomenon in the mid-1970s when the New York blackout forced people to walk to work. That was the start of the great sneaker fashion and the birth of a market.

Sectors with the Greatest Potential for Selling Bidets in America

Hotel Chains, New Homes, and Existing Homes

We can divide bidets into two categories: the classic bidet made of ceramic or the "nozzle" type to be incorporated into the toilet.
 

• For the first category, American hotel chains are a natural target. With over 5 million hotel rooms [all WITHOUT bidets], they perhaps represent the richest market segment.

• Next are newly constructed homes that can incorporate the bidet into the structure without issue.

• Finally, there's the retrofitting segment, which concerns existing homes that might have difficulty incorporating a classic ceramic bidet into the bathroom layout.

RELATED ARTICLES

Logistics Services for the United States