The most profitable industries on the market are those that play to shoppers’ insecurities. Many self-care firms prey on individuals’s anxieties about how they appear and odor, providing merchandise that purport to make the wearer extra interesting to romantic prospects and the remainder of society by making them extra engaging and fewer smelly. For a lot of the trendy period, these merchandise have been geared toward ladies, reinforcing dominant magnificence requirements and making bucket a great deal of cash as gross sales have soared. Recently, that technique has grown to succeed in a beforehand untapped market: males and other people with penises. A slew of firms now provide all kinds of sprays, balms, and dietary supplements for males’s nether areas. While convincing males to put money into full physique hygiene, they’re additionally altering fashionable concepts about masculinity.
This week on Gadget Lab, we invite WIRED’s head of analysis Zak Jason to explain his descent into the bizarre world of testicle sprays, bag balms, and males’s wellness merchandise.
Show Notes
Read Zak’s story about his balls-out exploration of the nascent males’s magnificence merchandise business. Read Ashley Lauretta’s investigation into why we stay up late regardless that we all know it’s dangerous for us. Find our dialog about voicemails and audio messages in episode 590.
Recommendations
Zak recommends leaving your mates voicemails in the midst of the day. Mike recommends the podcast Bad Dates with Jameela Jamil. Lauren recommends going to mattress earlier.
Zak Jason could be discovered on Twitter @zakjason. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the primary hotline at @GadgetLab. The present is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.
How to Listen
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