6 ms·

Men Are Paying Sixfold Markups to Feel Cool About Buying Generic Viagra

33 points by prostoalex 7y ago

arcticbull 7y ago
Kudos to Hims and Roman. Their branding and comms strategy are on point, and they've tapped into a longstanding insecurity for men. I can't help but feel like this is applying the same sales strategy used often in women's beauty products -- pointing out flaws then selling you a solution -- but with an added premium for discretion and 'hiding your shame.' Then consolidating all your 'shameful' purchases into a one-stop shop by selling hair-loss products? Genius. I mean, where else are you going to go? Fess up to your doctor? Stand in line at Walgreens? Some shady site on the dark web?
- jds375 7y ago
  There are some potential downsides with the model that they are using with respect to the client-doctor relationship. See here for some more details: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/02/technology/for-him-for-hers-get-roman.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/02/technology/for-him-for-he...
- wavefunction 7y ago
  Shave your head and adopt a healthier lifestyle that doesn't involve self-ideation as a pornographic star.
  - arcticbull 7y ago
    I mean, that's my personal plan when I get there. I'm also keenly aware the market for this stuff exists.
draw_down 7y ago
I don't think it's about "feeling cool", come on. I think the advantage is that you can do it all online without having to go to a doctor and discuss your erection problems in person.
koolba 7y ago
> Hims charges $28.50 for a monthly supply of finasteride, plus a $5 fee for an online physician visit. The drug can be had for half the price elsewhere. Good luck finding a doctor to write you a scrip elsewhere for $5. Assuming you’re on the common high deductible plan you’re looking at $100+ for a 5-min appointment unless you can mention it in passing to during your annual checkup. Can you take the scrip from these online pharmacies to your local one and get the $.15/pill pricing?
- arcticbull 7y ago
  > Can you take the scrip from these online pharmacies to your local one and get the $.15/pill pricing? I'd wager the bulk of the premium is in the discretion -- bland packaging that just shows up at your door -- so you don't have to look anyone in the face and ask for it. If you were okay with that, you'd just have done it at your annual physical like you suggested.
  - village-idiot 7y ago
    And convenience too. I use Harry’s razors because the shopping experience is really nice, even though I could probably find a similar quality for cheaper elsewhere. Sometimes people optimize for ease rather than cost.
    - arcticbull 7y ago
      Indeed, I'm a big fan of Harry's. Curious how it changes as a member of the Schick family.
- jonathanjaeger 7y ago
  Costco online costs about $35-$40 PER YEAR for finasteride and it comes in just as bland a packaging as anyone else would send. I can't speak to the other products Hims sells. Hims is cheaper than CVS for generic finasteride but is 10x more expensive than Costco online.
  - 7y ago
glenra 7y ago
The framing of this article is weird. Keeps.com charges $25/month for finasteride; if we look that up on GoodRx it is ONE THIRD the regular retail price at CVS or Target or Rite-Aid or Walgreens. True, it's more than the secret with-special-coupon price nobody knows about, but since most people do pay the original overinflated retail price, those who patronize these services are saving money. They're perhaps not saving the most money they possibly could if they checked the GoodRx rankings every month, printed out those special coupons and stood in line...but that sounds like a lot of work.
erikig 7y ago
If Veblen Goods are the expensive objects of conspicuous consumption, what will we call the expensive objects of inconspicuous consumption?
- arcticbull 7y ago
  "Male enhancements" haha
gleenn 7y ago
The value prop is not having to have an in-person doctor visit or pay a huge copay to get access to the drug. The per-pill cost is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of cost, especially if you don’t actually want that much of the drug.
glenra 7y ago
I wonder if this article was inspired by a Blink Health press release? The article positions them as the obvious one to switch to if you still want automatic ordering/delivery and don't want to bother with in-person coupons or a doctor's visit: According to the article: > "Blink Health, a drug-discount startup that pitches low prices on generic drugs, recently added a men’s health telemedicine offering that undercuts Hims and Roman, charging $6.95 for 10 sildenafil pills and $8.95 for a month’s supply of finasteride." Except...I just went through their order form for finasteride and noticed that in addition to the charge for the pills there is also a 9.95/month "subscription fee", making the full price (after a first-month discount) "$18.90 per month with auto-refill." Which is still a BIT cheaper than the other services, but not THAT much cheaper.
elissawilliams 7y ago
All the medicines are not making side effects on the body. But few medicines are making the side effects due to the patient’s body health conditions. But the doctor must aware of the medicine power and patient health condition. My small suggestion is prevention is better than cure. So be care full...before taking the medicine. Men can buy generic Viagra online from a well-known online pharmacy name as Assertmeds.com. This pharmacy gives two-fold advantages to its customers i.e. they get top quality medication at a reasonable price. For more details, you can visit: https://www.assertmeds.com/generic-viagra.html https://www.assertmeds.com/generic-viagra.html
mangoleaf 7y ago
They are making their margin from the fancy marketing, AND from not having to talk with their doc about it. It is called the shame coefficient. Clearly prices can be had for significantly less as seen in a comparison site [1] [1] vqRN : http://vqrn.com/Compare-Pharmacies-Viagra.html http://vqrn.com/Compare-Pharmacies-Viagra.html

33 points by prostoalex 7y ago

Kudos to Hims and Roman. Their branding and comms strategy are on point, and they've tapped into a longstanding insecurity for men. I can't help but feel like this is applying the same sales strategy used often in women's beauty products -- pointing out flaws then selling you a solution -- but with an added premium for discretion and 'hiding your shame.' Then consolidating all your 'shameful' purchases into a one-stop shop by selling hair-loss products? Genius. I mean, where else are you going to go? Fess up to your doctor? Stand in line at Walgreens? Some shady site on the dark web?

jds375 7y ago
There are some potential downsides with the model that they are using with respect to the client-doctor relationship. See here for some more details: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/02/technology/for-him-for-hers-get-roman.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/02/technology/for-him-for-he...
wavefunction 7y ago
Shave your head and adopt a healthier lifestyle that doesn't involve self-ideation as a pornographic star.
- arcticbull 7y ago
  I mean, that's my personal plan when I get there. I'm also keenly aware the market for this stuff exists.

draw_down 7y ago

I don't think it's about "feeling cool", come on. I think the advantage is that you can do it all online without having to go to a doctor and discuss your erection problems in person.

koolba 7y ago

> Hims charges $28.50 for a monthly supply of finasteride, plus a $5 fee for an online physician visit. The drug can be had for half the price elsewhere. Good luck finding a doctor to write you a scrip elsewhere for $5. Assuming you’re on the common high deductible plan you’re looking at $100+ for a 5-min appointment unless you can mention it in passing to during your annual checkup. Can you take the scrip from these online pharmacies to your local one and get the $.15/pill pricing?

arcticbull 7y ago
> Can you take the scrip from these online pharmacies to your local one and get the $.15/pill pricing? I'd wager the bulk of the premium is in the discretion -- bland packaging that just shows up at your door -- so you don't have to look anyone in the face and ask for it. If you were okay with that, you'd just have done it at your annual physical like you suggested.
- village-idiot 7y ago
  And convenience too. I use Harry’s razors because the shopping experience is really nice, even though I could probably find a similar quality for cheaper elsewhere. Sometimes people optimize for ease rather than cost.
  - arcticbull 7y ago
    Indeed, I'm a big fan of Harry's. Curious how it changes as a member of the Schick family.
jonathanjaeger 7y ago
Costco online costs about $35-$40 PER YEAR for finasteride and it comes in just as bland a packaging as anyone else would send. I can't speak to the other products Hims sells. Hims is cheaper than CVS for generic finasteride but is 10x more expensive than Costco online.
- 7y ago

glenra 7y ago

The framing of this article is weird. Keeps.com charges $25/month for finasteride; if we look that up on GoodRx it is ONE THIRD the regular retail price at CVS or Target or Rite-Aid or Walgreens. True, it's more than the secret with-special-coupon price nobody knows about, but since most people do pay the original overinflated retail price, those who patronize these services are saving money. They're perhaps not saving the most money they possibly could if they checked the GoodRx rankings every month, printed out those special coupons and stood in line...but that sounds like a lot of work.

erikig 7y ago

If Veblen Goods are the expensive objects of conspicuous consumption, what will we call the expensive objects of inconspicuous consumption?

arcticbull 7y ago
"Male enhancements" haha

gleenn 7y ago

The value prop is not having to have an in-person doctor visit or pay a huge copay to get access to the drug. The per-pill cost is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of cost, especially if you don’t actually want that much of the drug.

glenra 7y ago

I wonder if this article was inspired by a Blink Health press release? The article positions them as the obvious one to switch to if you still want automatic ordering/delivery and don't want to bother with in-person coupons or a doctor's visit: According to the article: > "Blink Health, a drug-discount startup that pitches low prices on generic drugs, recently added a men’s health telemedicine offering that undercuts Hims and Roman, charging $6.95 for 10 sildenafil pills and $8.95 for a month’s supply of finasteride." Except...I just went through their order form for finasteride and noticed that in addition to the charge for the pills there is also a 9.95/month "subscription fee", making the full price (after a first-month discount) "$18.90 per month with auto-refill." Which is still a BIT cheaper than the other services, but not THAT much cheaper.

elissawilliams 7y ago

All the medicines are not making side effects on the body. But few medicines are making the side effects due to the patient’s body health conditions. But the doctor must aware of the medicine power and patient health condition. My small suggestion is prevention is better than cure. So be care full...before taking the medicine. Men can buy generic Viagra online from a well-known online pharmacy name as Assertmeds.com. This pharmacy gives two-fold advantages to its customers i.e. they get top quality medication at a reasonable price. For more details, you can visit: https://www.assertmeds.com/generic-viagra.html https://www.assertmeds.com/generic-viagra.html

mangoleaf 7y ago

They are making their margin from the fancy marketing, AND from not having to talk with their doc about it. It is called the shame coefficient. Clearly prices can be had for significantly less as seen in a comparison site [1] [1] vqRN : http://vqrn.com/Compare-Pharmacies-Viagra.html http://vqrn.com/Compare-Pharmacies-Viagra.html