While the toilet paper shortages that hit the United States during pandemic lockdowns in the spring of 2020 ultimately eased up, they’ve had a lasting impact on one industry: the bidet business.
“The industry here in the U.S. just blew up. You couldn’t get a bidet if you wanted to,” says James Lin, founder of BidetKing.com, an online marketplace for all varieties of the bathroom appliance. “We all sold out. … There was a huge scramble to get more.”
Bidets — which clean you up with a stream of water, reducing the need for tissue — certainly weren’t the only items that people waited months for during that strange time. But while many have regretted buying their Pelotons or even their homes, those who installed the bathroom fixture at the height of the Great Toilet Paper Shortage of 2020 are far from remorseful. Instead, they’ve become true believers, evangelizing to family and friends and trying to help the United States catch up with the rest of the world on bidet use.
Rosanne Orgill, who lives outside Salt Lake City, bought three bidet attachments for her toilets in spring 2020. (Bidet attachments and bidet seats get installed directly onto existing toilets, whereas bidets are stand-alone appliances.) Orgill’s husband, who had traveled to dozens of countries before they got together, “often talked about how wonderful bidets are and … how weird it is that America doesn’t have any because there’s really no other way to clean yourself,” she says. So, with the supply of toilet paper dwindling, she saw bidet advertisements and decided to take the plunge. She installed the attachments herself, which wasn’t without its challenges. One of them leaked water all over the floor, and she had to call a plumber.
Even that didn’t sour her on the bidet experience. “I just love them now,” says Orgill. “I just don’t know how people survive without them.”