The Truth? Magnum condoms aren't actually that much bigger
Magnum is a brand of condoms made by an American company called Trojan (Church & Dwight), and very popular in the US. Lots of people ask the question "are these genuinely large condoms?"
The Trojan website describes Magnum condoms as "Larger than standard latex condoms for extra comfort" so you would certainly expect them to be big condoms. But contraception.about.com lists the measurements of a Magnum condom as:
"Length 205mm, nominal width 54mm"
which are pretty much the same measurements as for a regular condom.
Jim Daniels is the VP of marketing at Trojan. Here's what he said about Magnum, and the common belief that they are large condoms:
"(the Magnum condom) is the same length as standard condoms, with the same circumference at its base" Mr. Daniels said. “Some people feel more comfortable with that width, but you don’t have to be an overly endowed man to use a Magnum and enjoy it” he added.
And here's what Psychology Today said about Magnum:
“The copy tries to upsell the Trojan customer to Magnum, and the Magnum customer to XL. It's easy to see why men fall for this particular sales pitch [and] why Trojan loves Magnums. A box of 12 regular Trojans retails for around $5.99; a box of 12 Magnums or Magnum XLs is $7.99. That's a 33 percent premium. Then there's Magnum Ecstasy, at $10.99 for a box that contains only 10. [Now] were these gloves instead of love gloves, "small," "medium," and "large" would retail for the same price. So the Magnum premium is pure profit."
That's right. Insinuating a condom is for "well-endowed" men turns out to be a really effective way of selling more condoms, at a higher price.
The Trojan website describes Magnum condoms as "Larger than standard latex condoms for extra comfort" so you would certainly expect them to be big condoms. But contraception.about.com lists the measurements of a Magnum condom as:
"Length 205mm, nominal width 54mm"
which are pretty much the same measurements as for a regular condom.
Jim Daniels is the VP of marketing at Trojan. Here's what he said about Magnum, and the common belief that they are large condoms:
"(the Magnum condom) is the same length as standard condoms, with the same circumference at its base" Mr. Daniels said. “Some people feel more comfortable with that width, but you don’t have to be an overly endowed man to use a Magnum and enjoy it” he added.
And here's what Psychology Today said about Magnum:
“The copy tries to upsell the Trojan customer to Magnum, and the Magnum customer to XL. It's easy to see why men fall for this particular sales pitch [and] why Trojan loves Magnums. A box of 12 regular Trojans retails for around $5.99; a box of 12 Magnums or Magnum XLs is $7.99. That's a 33 percent premium. Then there's Magnum Ecstasy, at $10.99 for a box that contains only 10. [Now] were these gloves instead of love gloves, "small," "medium," and "large" would retail for the same price. So the Magnum premium is pure profit."
That's right. Insinuating a condom is for "well-endowed" men turns out to be a really effective way of selling more condoms, at a higher price.