Americans are shopping for whips, handcuffs, and other bondage gear during lockdown
- Sales are up for bondage gear — namely whips and handcuffs — during lockdown, according to a new study by online sales website Love the Sales.
- The US saw an 83% jump in searches for whips and handcuffs in April 2020 compared to April 2019.
- Other countries saw a significant increase in searches for bondage gear: Australia's bondage searches are up 125%, Germany's are up 102%, and Canada's are up 90%.
- The data comes after new research showing people are getting more experimental in the bedroom during quarantine.
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When lockdowns began in the US in late March, people were rushing to buy canned goods, Clorox wipes, and stockpiles of toilet paper.
But almost two months later, shopping habits are changing.
As people settle into their "new normal" routines, sales are up for bondage gear, particularly handcuffs and whips, according to a new study by online sales website Love the Sales.
The US has seen an 83% jump in searches for these items in April 2020 compared to April 2019.
And the report suggests it's a global trend: in Australia, searches for bondage material are up 125%. In Germany, they're up 102%, and in Canada they're up 90%.
Whips and handcuffs are typically used in BDSM (bondage-discipline, dominance-submission, and sadism-masochism) — a consensual sexual dynamic in which people play with power through different sexual acts.
While the majority of people looking to buy whips and handcuffs aren't necessarily engaging in BDSM, the peaked interest in bondage gear comes on the heels of new research that found people are getting more experimental in the bedroom during quarantine.
Justin Lehmiller, a research fellow at The Kinsey Institute and author of "Tell Me What You Want," sharing preliminary results of his latest study with Insider.
After surveying an estimated 2,000 people, Lehmiller found that, while people are having less sex overall during quarantine, when they do have sex, they tend to be more experimental, trying out new positions and exploring fantasies.
According to his study, one in five people reported being more experimental in the bedroom since lockdowns began.
Sex toy sales, in general, have been on the rise during the pandemic. CivicScience conducted a poll of 6,000 adults in the United States and found over a quarter of them were using sex toys more since going into quarantine.
While there is no single concrete reason as to why people are trying to sexually branch out during lockdowns, some have joked all the extra time spent indoors, with nothing else to do, has given people the chance to have more sex, whether that be with a partner or alone.
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