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growth from new product development - the household cleaning market

New product development is the key to achieving growth in the household cleaning market

Introduction

A recent survey by Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) Superpanel (a leading market researcher) on sales of household cleaning products in the UK suggests that the sector has expanded by seven per cent since August 2001.

In the 12 months to August 2002, more than £233m was spent on household cleaning products in the UK.

TNS found that growth has largely been driven by new product developments and innovations in the market, with new products such as single-use, multi-purpose cleaning wipes having a significant impact.

Market analysis

What are the leading brands and products in the UIK household cleaning market?

Flash (owned by Proctor and Gamble) remains the most popular cleaning product in the UK, with a market share of 23 per cent.

Flash is followed by Cif (owned by Unilever) with a 15 per cent market share. Third is Mr Muscle (owned by SC Johnson) with ten per cent.

However, since July 2000, the top-three brands have all lost market share to competitors such as Dettox and Domestos.

Over a two-year period from July 2000 to July 2002, Dettox's sales grew by 35 per cent and Domestos' by 43 per cent - significantly outperforming the overall growth of the market.

Brands dominate own-label products

The household cleaning market is dominated by branded products which together account for 80 per cent of UK sales.

However, own-label brands (owned by supermarkets such as Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda) are also popular, providing basic cleaning products at more affordable prices.

Research into market pricing indicates that the average price of a branded cleaning product is £1.32 - almost 40 per cent more than own-label products, which on average cost just 97p.

While the price of cleaning products has remained relatively stable in recent years, leading brands such as Flash and Domestos have actually become cheaper. TNS Superpanel believes that this decrease may reflect an attempt to reduce the price gap between branded and own-label products, creating a more competitive market as a greater range of products becomes available.

Product segments

Traditional cleaning products such as creams, sprays and liquids continue to be the most popular cleaners, particularly with certain customer segments such as the over-65s and lower-income households.

However, new cleaning wipes are increasingly popular. In terms of demographic segmentation, cleaning wipes are most commonly used by 27 to 34-year-olds and are also popular with households with one or two children. This may be because in such households, adults have less time available to spend on cleaning.

Although the introduction of household cleaning wipes has resulted in small declines in the market shares of cream cleaners, powders and mousses, wipes are generally bought as part of a repertoire of cleaning products. About 70 per cent of buyers of cleaning wipes also buy liquids and sprays.

As a quick and easy cleaning option, consumers are tending to use wipes in addition, rather than an alternative, to other cleaning products.

Since July 2000, Cif, Dettox, Windolene and Pledge have all introduced wipes to their product portfolios. Cleaning wipes now account for 17 per cent of the household cleaning market by value and sales grew by 188 per cent in the two years to July 2002.

Flash remains the leading brand for cleaning wipes, but has experienced a significant decline in market share - from 76 per cent in the 12 months to July 2000, to 28 per cent in the 12 months to July 2002 as new brands have penetrated the market. Flash's range of anti-bacterial wipes have shown a similar decline in market share (from 80 per cent share in 2000 to 47 per cent in 2002).

Although Flash and Domestos were previously the two biggest players in the cleaning wipes market, the influx of new products has resulted in a significant loss of market share for both of these brands.

Manufacturers, then, have begun to recognise the need for choice and diversity in the market by introducing new and innovative products. Time is at a premium for many customers, because of increasingly demanding lifestyles, and so interest in products which are less labour-intensive and reduce cleaning times is high.


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