Philips Unveils Massager for Couples

The bold move by the Dutch electronics giant is part of a strategy to become a design-led company focused on health and well-being

By Kerry Capell

Has the spark gone out of your relationship? Royal Philips Electronics (PHG) reckons it just might have the answer. The $38 billion diversified Dutch giant hopes to give its newly created Consumer Lifestyle business a bit of a buzz with the launch of a new product category known as "relationship care." On Sept. 10, the unit will launch its first new product, initially in Britain and later elsewhere: a range of intimate massagers aimed at couples between the ages of 35 and 55.

It's a bold departure for the 117-year-old Dutch company, better known for making everything from home electronics and small appliances to high-tech medical diagnostic systems. But the move is part of Philips' ongoing transformation from a high-volume consumer electronics maker to a design-led company focused on health and well-being—a strategy that Philips Chief Executive Gerard Kleisterlee believes will open up growth opportunities in both developed and developing markets.

The new range of products will be sold first at British pharmacy chain Boots and upscale department store Selfridges, and over the Internet via Amazon.com (AMZN). Aimed at couples who might normally be unwilling to enter sex shops, the massager range comes in discreet packaging that wouldn't look out of place on the store shelf next to, say, hair dryers or cordless shavers.

Sexual Vitality Market

With a retail price of more than $150, the massagers aren't cheap. But Philips says what makes its new product unique is a focus on the couple, not the individual. The ergonomically designed device comes in two abstract shaped parts, each no bigger than the palm of a hand, which can be stored in a small black recharging case. "We wanted to focus on couples because our research showed there was a large unmet need," says Sheila Struyck, head of market-driven innovation at Philips in Amsterdam. "We were looking for products that wouldn't replace one or the other partner."

The idea to move into relationship care was first mooted among members of Philips' advisory "Simplicity Board" more than two years ago. The panel of outside experts (BusinessWeek, 12/11/06), which included a Chinese architect, a British fashion designer, and two Americans (a graphic designer and a radiologist), suggested that if Philips intended to focus on health and well-being, it made sense to explore interpersonal well-being.

The proposal moved from concept to reality when Struyck got involved. As part of the Philips Octagon program, a six-month executive education course run jointly with Wharton School, Struyck and a team of six other Philips managers decided to explore new business opportunities linked to the topic of sexual vitality. Working weekends and evenings, often via e-mail, the team decided there was a big opportunity in the market. Philips figures that the global market for intimate massagers already tops $1 billion annually.

In September 2006, Struyck and her team presented the idea of relationship care as a potential new business opportunity to the Philips board, including Andrea Ragnetti, who is now CEO of the company's Consumer Lifestyle business, formed earlier this year from the merger of two former Philips divisions, Consumer Electronics and Domestic Appliances & Personal Care.

"The hardest thing was finding the right business language," Struyck says.