Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- Top takeaways
- Market Overview
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- Figure 1: Total US retail sales and forecast of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, at current prices, 2015-25
- Impact of COVID-19 on feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products
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- Figure 2: Short-, medium- and long-term impact of COVID-19 on feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, September 2020
- Opportunities and Challenges
- Budget-friendly brands offering consumer-centric benefits will win during COVID-19
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- Figure 3: COVID-19 shopping behaviors, by financial status, June 2020
- COVID-19’s amplified income gap may increase consumer knowledge gap
- Consumers want natural ingredients they recognize and trust
- Feminine hygiene products have unique opportunity with young adults
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- Figure 4: Unmet feminine care needs, by age, June 2020
The Market – Key Takeaways
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- Essential women’s health needs are prioritized through pandemic
- Sanitary protection products maintain dominance; hygiene heats up
- Consumer identities must be considered by brands
- Purpose-driven benefits will drive category spending
- Feminine care doesn’t stop at menopause
Market Size and Forecast
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- Feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products are essential
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- Figure 5: Projected age groups of US female population, 2016-30
- Figure 6: Total US retail sales and forecast of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, at current prices, 2015-25
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- Figure 7: Total US retail sales and forecast of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, at current prices, 2015-25
- Impact of COVID-19 on feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products
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- Figure 8: Short-, medium- and long-term impact of COVID-19 on feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, September 2020
- Lockdown
- Re-emergence
- Recovery
- COVID-19: US context
- Learnings from the last recession
Segment Performance
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- Sanitary protection products maintain dominance in category
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- Figure 9: Total US retail sales and forecast of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, by segment, at current prices, 2015-25
Market Factors
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- Consumers will turn to higher quality, value tier products
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- Figure 10: COVID-19 shopping behaviors, by financial status, June 2020
- Brands must consider the Identity of multiple consumer segments
- Category users demand product quality
- Transgender men are users of sanitary protection/hygiene products
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- Figure 11: Female category users vs transgender male category users, June 2020
- Brands can play a role in price equity awareness
- Stacking purpose-driven benefits wins with consumers
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- Figure 12: Product attributes of influence, June 2020
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- Figure 13: L. products, August 2018
Market Opportunities
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- Learning from the clean movement; focus on education and transparency
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- Figure 14: Social media mentions of #cleanbeauty, #naturalbeauty, #greenbeauty and #organicbeauty, October 2016-19
- Support the transition to menopause
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- Figure 15: Feminine care knowledge of select health topics, by age, June 2020
Companies and Brands – Key Takeaways
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- Brand extensions supported growth for P&G
- Private label competes with trend-driven, budget-friendly name brands
- Product trends moving into the mainstream
- Menstrual symptoms extend beyond monthly periods
Market Share
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- P&G captures MULO sales thanks to new product lines
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- Figure 16: US multi-outlet sales of feminine hygiene and sanitary products, by leading companies, rolling 52 weeks 2019 and 2020
- Private label loses share against mainstream sanitary product brands
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- Figure 17: US multi-outlet sales of sanitary napkins/liners, by leading companies and brands, rolling 52 weeks 2019 and 2020
- Environmentally conscious tampon brands heat up
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- Figure 18: US multi-outlet sales of tampons, by leading companies and brands, rolling 52 weeks 2019 and 2020
- Niche brands outpace sales growth of category leaders
- Feminine hygiene players address lifestyle needs of category users
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- Figure 19: US multi-outlet sales of select feminine hygiene brands, rolling 52 weeks 2019 and 2020
- Menstrual cup brands focus on experience and comfort
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- Figure 20: US multi-outlet sales of select menstrual cup brands, rolling 52 weeks 2019 and 2020
- Figure 21: Sanitary protection products cause discomfort, by product usage in the past 12 months, June 2020
Competitive Strategies
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- New approaches to the plastic problem
- Natural/organic, rooted in safety and efficacy
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- Figure 22: Product attributes of influence, June 2020
- Natural trends are influencing product claims
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- Figure 23: Claim categories influencing feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, 2015-2020
- Figure 24: Product attributes of influence, June 2020
- Skin health presents area of opportunity
- Bundled products to support women’s health needs at all stages
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- Figure 26: Attitudes toward menstruating, June 2020
The Consumer – Key Takeaways
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- Vaginal wellness increases usage of feminine hygiene products
- Consider marketing to lifestyle occasions
- Once nice-to-have benefits are now expected product attributes
- Menstrual health routines can help consumers gain control
- Consumers are not the experts in feminine care; opportunity for brands
- COVID-19 behaviors shifts are driven by financial circumstance
Product Usage
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- Market for vaginal wellness stimulates feminine hygiene usage
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- Figure 27: Product usage, June 2020
- Leakage concerns support need for sanitary protection products
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- Figure 28: Female population, by age, 2013-23
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- Figure 29: Menstruation status, June 2020
- Young women are most active in the category
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- Figure 30: Product usage, by age, June 2020
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- Figure 31: Honey Pot mommy-to-be and post-partum product collection, October 2019
- Feminine hygiene products provide value for Black consumers
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- Figure 32: Product usage, by race and Hispanic origin, June 2020
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- Figure 33: Coddle perineal balm, July 2020
Unmet Feminine Care Needs
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- Myriad of unmet needs indicates opportunity for vaginal health routines
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- Figure 34: Unmet feminine care needs, June 2020
- Vaginal hygiene concerns support hygiene product market
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- Figure 35: Unmet feminine hygiene needs, by product usage, June 2020
- Lifestyles of young adults amplify certain feminine care needs
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- Figure 36: Unmet feminine care needs, by age, June 2020
Product Attributes of Influence
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- Functional category stunts investment in trends
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- Figure 37: Product attributes of influence, June 2020
- Natural ingredients will gain most traction with a familiar approach
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- Figure 38: Product attributes of influence, June 2020
- The number of menopausal women who experience bladder leakage continues to grow
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- Figure 39: Willingness to pay for products designed for specialized needs, by age, June 2020
Attitudes toward Menstruating
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- Establishing routines to gain control over menstruation
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- Figure 40: Difficulty controlling symptoms of menstruation, by feeling stressed around time of period, June 2020
- Acknowledging menstrual pain
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- Figure 41: Attitudes toward menstruating, June 2020
- Young women need support to manage menstrual symptoms
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- Figure 42: Attitudes toward menstruating, by age, June 2020
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- Figure 43: Rael heating pad, May 2020
Feminine Care Knowledge
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- Room to grow consumer confidence on products to support vaginal health
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- Figure 44: Feminine care knowledge, June 2020
- Discovery phase and menopausal phase lack feminine health knowledge
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- Figure 45: Feminine care knowledge of select health topics, by age, June 2020
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- Figure 46: The Spot by Lola, September 2020
- Income differences reveals gap in feminine health education
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- Figure 47: Feminine care knowledge of select health topics, by household income, June 2020
COVID-19 Shopping Behaviors
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- Feminine care consumers have maintained their usual shopping habits
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- Figure 48: COVID-19 shopping behaviors, June 2020
- When money gets tight, consumers stock up on less expensive brands
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- Figure 49: COVID-19 shopping behaviors, by financial status, June 2020
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- Figure 50: L. sanitary protection products, August 2020
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Sales data
- Forecast
- Consumer survey data
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
Appendix – The Market
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- Figure 51: Total US retail sales and forecast of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2015-25
- Figure 52: Total US retail sales of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, by segment, at current prices, 2018 and 2020
- Figure 53: Total US retail sales of feminine hygiene and sanitary protection products, by segment, at current prices, 2018 and 2020
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Appendix – Companies and Brands
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- Figure 54: US multi-outlet sales of feminine hygiene products, by leading companies and brands, rolling 52 weeks 2019 and 2020
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