- Contents
- *Scope and Themes
- What you need to know
- Definition
- Data sources
- Sales data
- Consumer survey data
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
What you need to know
Sales of home laundry products remain weak as consumers continue to take advantage of discounts and promotions and other ways to save money. Still, ample opportunities exist in the $12.6 billion category for marketers and retailers that offer consumers ways to simplify the laundry process and improve results.
Definition
This report builds on the analysis presented in Mintel’s Laundry Detergents and Fabric Softeners – US, August 2013 and Fabric Care – US, October 2013, as well as Home Laundry Products—US, September 2012, and June 2011, June 2009, June 2008, June 2006, and June 2004 reports of the same title.
The following laundry products are included in this report:
Clothes-washing detergents (also includes fine washable detergents)
Liquid fabric softeners (also includes solid-form in-wash scent boosters)
Fabric softener sheets (also includes dryer bars)
Fabric care products (laundry prewash/additive, laundry starch, static control/fabric protectors)
Bleach (shc and color-safe)
Value figures throughout this report are at retail selling prices (rsp) excluding sales tax, unless otherwise stated.
Sales data
Market Size and Forecast and Segment Performance: based on Information Resources, Inc., InfoScan Reviews; US Census Bureau, Economic Census
Retail Channels: based on Information Resources, Inc. InfoScan Reviews; US Census Bureau, Economic Census; except supermarket and drug store sales, which are based on Information Resources, Inc., InfoScan Reviews.
Leading Companies and Brand Share: based on MULO sales data from Information Resources, Inc. InfoScan Reviews. MULO is defined as Multi Outlet, representative of the following channels: Total US Grocery, Mass, Total US Drug, Total Walmart, Dollar, Military, and Club. Note that the values shown in this section differ from the Market Size and Forecast and Segment Performance sections of this report. Leading Companies and Brand Share sales data encompasses only sales through MULO channels, while Market Size and Forecast and Segment Performance sales cover the entire retail market.
Consumer survey data
For the purposes of this report, Mintel commissioned exclusive consumer research through GMI to explore consumer purchase of and attitudes toward laundry products. Mintel was responsible for the survey design, data analysis, and reporting. Fieldwork was conducted in April 2014 among a sample of 2,000 adults aged 18+ with access to the internet.
Mintel selects survey respondents so that they are proportionally balanced to the entire US adult population based on the key demographics of gender, age, household income, and region. Mintel also slightly oversamples, relative to the population, respondents that are Hispanic or Black to ensure an adequate representation of these groups in the survey results. Please note that Mintel surveys are conducted online and in English only. Hispanics who are not online and/or do not speak English are not included in the survey results.
While race and Hispanic origin are separate demographic characteristics, Mintel often compares them to each other. Please note that the responses for race (White, Black, Asian, Native American, or other race) will overlap those that also are Hispanic, because Hispanics can be of any race.
Abbreviations
The following is a list of abbreviations used in this report.
| CPI | Consumer Price Index |
| GNPD | Global New Products Database |
| ICS | Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment |
| MULO | Multi Outlet, representative of the following channels: total US Grocery, Mass, total US Drug, total Walmart, Dollar, Military, and Club |
| NCS/NHCS | National Consumer Study/National Hispanic Consumer Study (Experian Marketing Services) |
| rsp | Retail selling price |
Terms
Generations, if discussed within this report, are defined as:
| World War II/Swing generations | Members of the WWII generation were born in 1932 or before and are aged 82 or older in 2014. Members of the Swing Generation were born from 1933 to 1945 and are aged 69-81 in 2014. |
| Baby Boomers | The generation born between 1946 and 1964. In 2014, Baby Boomers are between the ages of 50 and 68. |
| Generation X | The generation born between 1965 and 1976. In 2014, Gen Xers are between the ages of 38 and 49. |
| Millennials* | Born between 1977 and 1994, Millennials are aged 20-37 in 2014. |
| iGeneration | Born between 1995 and 2007, members of iGen are aged 7-19 in 2014. |
| Emerging generation | The newest generation began in 2008 as the annual number of births declined sharply with the recession. In 2014 members of this as-yet unnamed generation are under age 7. |
* also known as Generation Y or Echo Boomers
In order to provide an inflation-adjusted price value for markets, Mintel uses the CPI to deflate current prices. The CPI is defined as follows:
| CPI | The Consumer Price Index is a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services. The CPI and its components are typically used to adjust other economic series for price changes and to translate these series into inflation-free dollars. Examples of series adjusted by the CPI include retail sales, hourly and weekly earnings, and components of the national income and product accounts. In addition, and in Mintel reports, the CPI is used as a deflator of the value of the consumer’s dollar to find its purchasing power. The purchasing power of the consumer's dollar measures the change in the value to the consumer of goods and services that a dollar will buy at different dates. The CPI is generally the best measure for adjusting payments to consumers when the intent is to allow consumers to purchase, at today’s prices, a market basket of goods and services equivalent to one that they could purchase in an earlier period. It is also the best measure to use to translate retail sales into real or inflation-free dollars. Based on Bureau of Labor Statistics definition. |
