$209.0m
$XX.Xm
1,824
338
$XX.Xm
While sexual services have historically proven resistant to economic slowdowns, the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, a mixed economic environment, and greater external competition from online pornography and dating apps over the past five years. Despite a drop in real household discretionary income over the three years through 2023-24, overall incomes have risen and this has mostly offset other negative factors. As a result, industry revenue is expected to inch up at an annualised 0.3% over the five years through 2023-24.
Several external competitive threats have emerged as Australian society has become increasingly sexually liberalised. These include online matchmaking websites and easy access to online pornography. For the minimal time and cost of registering with a matchmaking website, potential industry clients can meet and interact with like-minded individuals looking for sexual meetings without payment. Similarly, people can easily access online pornography. Direct competition from unlicensed sex work outside the industry has also grown over the past five years, while the COVID-19 pandemic greatly reduced industry supply and demand in late 2019-20 and 2020-21. However, demand surged over the two years through 2022-23, with the end of lockdowns and restrictions and a boom in business and international travel, leading to rising profit margins. Weakening economic conditions in 2023-24 are expected to prompt a 2.4% decline in 2023-24, with revenue falling to $209.0 million.
Strong growth in international and business travel and a recovery in consumer sentiment is expected to support industry demand over the next five years. As a result, industry revenue is projected to grow at an annualised 1.0% over the five years through 2028-29, to reach $220.1 million. However, alternatives to industry services, such as matchmaking websites, dating apps and pornography, are likely to become more popular, limiting industry growth.
Industry revenue has grown at a CAGR of 0.3 % over the past five years, to reach an estimated $209.0m in 2023.
Market size is projected to grow over the next five years.
Company | Market Share (%)
2024 | Revenue ($short_0)
2024 |
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There are no companies that hold a large enough market share in the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services in Australia industry for IBISWorld to include in this product.
Industry revenue is measured across several distinct product and services lines, including Brothel sexual services, Escort services and Other sexual services. Brothel sexual services is the largest segment of the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services in Australia.
High-end customers of escort services are more protected from cost-of-living issues
The industry comprises companies that mainly operate brothels, and provide escort and sex worker services. The industry includes brothel activity and legal transactions for actual sexual services. The industry does not include stripping, erotic dancing, adult internet services (such as dating or pornography), telephone sex chat lines, making and retailing adult video entertainment, or manufacturing and retailing sexual aids.
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ANZSIC 9534 - Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services in Australia
Get an indication of the industry's health through historical, current and forward-looking trends in the performance indicators that make or break businesses.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused a severe drop in industry revenue. The industry saw its strongest drop in sales in decades in 2020-21, as border closures, lockdowns and restrict...
Learn about an industry's products and services, markets and trends in international trade.
Online options and regulatory adjustments are moving the industry workers away from brothels. Decriminalisation efforts have reduced barriers to entry for independent sex wor...
Discover where business activity is most concentrated in an industry and the factors driving these trends to find opportunities and conduct regional benchmarking.
New South Wales and Victorian decriminalisation is encouraging more independent sex workers in those states. These states are over-represented in terms of enterprise numbers ...
Get data and insights on what's driving competition in an industry and the challenges industry operators and new entrants may face, with analysis built around Porter's Five Forces framework.
External substitutes’ attractiveness is increasing. The rising popularity of adult matchmaking sites and the increased proliferation, low cost and innovation within online po...
Learn about the performance of the top companies in the industry.
The industry is highly fragmented with increasingly fewer barriers to entry for independent sex workers, which is decreasing market share concentration. As a result, no compa...
Understand the demographic, economic and regulatory factors that shape how businesses in an industry perform.
The regulatory environment is steadily becoming more favourable to industry firms. Decriminalisation occurred in Victoria in 2022 and in the Northern Territory in 2019, follo...
View average costs for industry operators and compare financial data against an industry's financial benchmarks over time.
Margins have recovered from the effects of COVID-19. Restrictions, lockdowns and border closures almost eliminated industry margins in 2020-21, but the industry has seen a st...
Including values and annual change:
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Key data sources in Australia include:
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These sources include:
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The market size of the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry in Australia is $209.0m in 2024.
There are 338 businesses in the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry in Australia, which has grown at a CAGR of 3.8 % between 2018 and 2023.
The market size of the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry in Australia has been growing at a CAGR of 0.3 % between 2018 and 2023.
Over the next five years, the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry in Australia is expected to grow.
Brothel Sexual Services and Escort Agency Services are part of the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry.
The level of competition is moderate and increasing in the Brothel Keeping and Sex Worker Services industry in Australia.