Two London brothers are hoping to encourage more dating divas to carry condoms when they head out on a night, it has emerged.

Pharmacy owners Shandip and Ketan Shah put their business minds together after noticing most prophylactic purchasers are men - a situation they want to change by launching their own rubber range.

"We want to say this is a trendy but essential item to take on your night out," Shandip explained to the Times.

"If we can persuade girls to carry something that doesn't look like a pack of condoms in their bags, maybe we can bring down the rates of sexually transmitted diseases in this country," he added.

Another driver for the brothers' contraceptive endeavour is apparently the growing number of "anxious young women" who come into their shop for the morning-after pill.

The brothers' quest follows news that Durex's release of the banana-shaped Pleasure Curve contraceptive had spurred a rash of rubber innovators into designing similarly funky shapes.

US entrepreneur Brian Osterberg is leading the expansion, with champagne flute, dolphin and 'bell ringer' shapes all in the offing.

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