Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Category sales slide continues
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- Figure 1: Total US sales and fan chart forecast of home laundry products, at current prices, 2009-19
- Market segmentation
- Largest segment faces the most pressure
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- Figure 2: Total retail sales of home laundry products, by segment, 2012 and 2014
- Key players
- Market share for top competitors changes little
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- Figure 3: Manufacturer sales of home laundry products, 2013 and 2014
- The consumer
- Liquid detergent still the go-to choice for most
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- Figure 4: Regular use of laundry products, April 2014
- Stain-fighting power top priority for detergents
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- Figure 5: Laundry detergent attribute importance, April 2014
- Feel and fragrance are defining attributes for fabric softeners
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- Figure 6: Fabric softener attribute importance, by gender and age, April 2014
- Interest in convenience features increases with household size
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- Figure 7: Willingness to pay more for laundry product features, by household size, April 2014
- Attitudes toward doing laundry
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- Figure 8: Attitudes toward doing laundry, any agree, April 2014
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- For laundry detergent, getting smaller could be the way to grow
- The issues
- The implications
- Boosting sales of fabric care in a detergent-centric market
- The issues
- The implications
- A growing opportunity among aging boomers
- The issues
- The implications
Trend Application
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- Trend: FSTR & HYPR
- Trend: Minimize Me
- Trend: Many Mes
Market Size and Forecast
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- Key points
- Sales and forecast of home laundry products
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- Figure 9: Total US sales and forecast of home laundry products, at current prices, 2009-19
- Figure 10: Total US sales and forecast of home laundry products, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2009-19
- Weakness in overall market poised to continue
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- Figure 11: Total US sales and fan chart forecast of home laundry products, at current prices, 2009-19
- Forecast methodology
Market Drivers
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- Household income stabilizes but remains weak
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- Figure 12: Median household income in inflation-adjusted dollars, 2002-12
- Economizing mindset and price promotions keep sales growth in check
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- Figure 13: Laundry detergent shopping behaviors, by household income, May 2013
- Consumer confidence creeps up
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- Figure 14: Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment, 2009-14
- Household growth slows, especially households with kids
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- Figure 15: Households, by presence of children, 2003-13
- Population shifts make home laundry market more diverse
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- Figure 16: Households with children by race and Hispanic origin of householder, 2013
- Figure 17: Population, by race and Hispanic origin, 2009-19
Competitive Context
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- Sales edge up for environmentally friendly brands
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- Figure 18: MULO sales of select environmentally friendly home laundry products, 2009-14
- Innovative packaging and products
- Private label goes natural
- Sales of homemade detergent ingredients continue to rise
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- Figure 19: MULO sales of select laundry products commonly used to make laundry detergent, 2009-14
Segment Performance
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- Key points
- Largest segment faces the most pressure
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- Figure 20: Total retail sales of home laundry products, by segment, 2012 and 2014
- Multiple factors contribute to decline in detergent sales
- Could more concentrated formulations give detergent sales a boost?
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- Figure 21: Total US sales and forecast of laundry detergent, at current prices, 2009-19
- Scent boosters continue to boost liquid fabric softener segment sales
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- Figure 22: Total US sales and forecast of liquid fabric softener, at current prices, 2009-19
- Bleach bounces back
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- Figure 23: Total US sales and forecast of bleach, at current prices, 2009-19
- Fabric care sales edge down
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- Figure 24: Total US sales and forecast of fabric care, at current prices, 2009-19
- Fabric softener sheet sales flat
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- Figure 25: Total US sales and forecast of fabric softener sheets, at current prices, 2009-19
Retail Channels
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- Key points
- Drug stores build on a small base
- Sales of home laundry products, by channel
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- Figure 26: Sales of home laundry products, by channel, 2012 and 2014
- Long-term trend favors price- and value-driven channels
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- Figure 27: Sales of home laundry products, by channel, 2009-14
Leading Companies
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- Key points
- P&G dominates top segments
- Church & Dwight gains with value-priced brands
- Manufacturer sales of home laundry products
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- Figure 28: Manufacturer sales of home laundry products, 2013 and 2014
Brand Share – Laundry Detergent
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- Key points
- Minimal share shifts mask intense competition and new product activity
- P&G pushes unit dose form and revamped liquid line
- Tide goes low with Simply Clean & Fresh
- Church & Dwight gives OxiClean starring role in detergent segment
- Manufacturer sales of laundry detergent
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- Figure 29: Manufacturer sales of laundry detergent, 2013 and 2014
- Figure 30: Key purchase measures for the top brands of laundry detergent, by household penetration, 52 weeks ending Dec. 29, 2013 (current) and Dec 29, 2012 (year ago)
Brand Share – Liquid Fabric Softener
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- Key points
- P&G gets bounce from Downy and Gain scent boosters
- Snuggle launches unit dose scent boosters
- Manufacturer sales of liquid fabric softener
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- Figure 31: Manufacturer sales of liquid fabric softener, 2013 and 2014
- Figure 32: Key purchase measures for the top brands of liquid fabric softener, by household penetration, 52 weeks ending Dec. 29, 2013 (current) and Dec 29, 2012 (year ago)
Brand Share – Bleach
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- Key points
- Clorox sees bleach share slip as segment sales rebound
- Private label and value-tier make gains
- Manufacturer sales of bleach
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- Figure 33: Manufacturer sales of bleach, 2013 and 2014
- Figure 34: Key purchase measures for the top brands of bleach, by household penetration, 52 weeks ending Dec. 29, 2013 (current) and Dec 29, 2012 (year ago)
Brand Share – Fabric Care
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- Key points
- OxiClean strengthens its position in a crowded segment
- P&G combats OxiClean, extends beyond laundry room
- Manufacturer sales of fabric care
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- Figure 35: Manufacturer sales of fabric care, 2013 and 2014
- Figure 36: Key purchase measures for the top brands of fabric care, by household penetration, 52 weeks ending Dec. 29, 2013 (current) and Dec 29, 2012 (year ago)
Brand Share – Fabric Softener Sheets
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- Key points
- Private label continues to cut into brand sales
- Manufacturer sales of fabric softener sheets
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- Figure 37: Manufacturer sales of fabric softener sheets, 2013 and 2014
- Figure 38: Key purchase measures for the top brands of dishwashing liquid, by household penetration, 52 weeks ending Dec. 29, 2013 (current) and Dec 29, 2012 (year ago)
Innovations and Innovators
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- Detergents dominate home laundry new product launches
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- Figure 39: Home laundry new product launches, by type, 2009-2014
- Most detergent launches still in liquid form, but unit dose continues to gain
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- Figure 40: Laundry detergent new product launches, by form, 2009-2014
- Packaging innovation
- Laundry process innovation
- Leveraging fragrance further
- Arm & Hammer offers scents linked to national parks
- P&G Sweet Dreams line an effort to make fragrance functional
- Fragrance-free product represents first significant extension of Tide Pods line
Marketing Strategies
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- Ads ask, why Tide Pods?
- The power of multiple ingredients
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- Figure 41: Tide Pods, “Three Things” TV spot, 2014
- Savings versus multiple products
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- Figure 42: Tide Pods, “Pop in Savings” TV spot, 2014
- No over-filling
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- Figure 43: Tide Pods, “Pop in Savings” TV spot, 2014
- Downy promotes dual usage of Unstopables and Infusions
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- Figure 44: Downy, “Mixmatched Girl” TV spot, 2014
- Downy base brand shifts to softness
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- Figure 45: Downy, “Irresistible Bed” TV spot, 2014
- “Tide that”: an effort to extend brand beyond the laundry room
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- Figure 46: Tide Oxi, “Tide That” TV spot, 2014
- OxiClean extends into laundry detergent
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- Figure 47: OxiClean Laundry Detergent, “Shaking Up the Detergent Aisle” TV spot, 2014
Responsibility for Doing Laundry and Shopping for Laundry Products
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- Gender gap in laundry responsibility may be narrowing
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- Figure 48: Responsibility for doing laundry and shopping for laundry products, by gender and age, April 2014
Usage of Laundry Products
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- Key points
- Liquid detergent still the go-to choice for most
- Unit dose poised to overtake powder detergent
- Scent boosters still have considerable upside
- Fabric care products less likely to get regular use
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- Figure 49: Usage of laundry products, April 2014
- Young adults use a wider array of laundry products
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- Figure 50: Regular use of laundry products, by gender and age, April 2014
- Larger households use more varied line-up of products
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- Figure 51: Regular use of laundry products, by household size, April 2014
Laundry Detergent Attribute Importance
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- Key points
- Stain-fighting power top priority for consumers
- Cold water effectiveness a priority for many
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- Figure 52: Laundry detergent attribute importance, by gender and age, April 2014
- Lower-income consumers especially interested in fragrance
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- Figure 53: Laundry detergent attribute importance, by household income, April 2014
Fabric Softener Attribute Importance
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- Key points
- Feel and fragrance are defining attributes for fabric softeners
- Duration of fragrance nearly as important as fragrance itself
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- Figure 54: Fabric softener attribute importance, by gender and age, April 2014
- Lower-income fabric softener users prioritize scent/fragrance
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- Figure 55: Fabric softener attribute importance, by household income, April 2014
Interest in Laundry Product Features
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- Key points
- Opportunities to differentiate in a variety of areas
- Laundry process simplification
- Deeper cleaning
- Ingredient-specific benefits
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- Figure 56: Interest in and willingness to pay more for laundry product features, April 2014
- Interest in convenience features increases with household size
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- Figure 57: Willingness to pay more for laundry product features, by household size, April 2014
Attitudes toward Doing Laundry
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- Key points
- Time-savings and convenience hold strong appeal
- For many, detergent alone is effective enough
- Doing laundry still a source of emotional satisfaction
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- Figure 58: Attitudes toward doing laundry, April 2014
- Women 18-54 more emotionally engaged in laundry
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- Figure 59: Attitudes toward doing laundry, strongly agree, by gender and age, April 2014
Race and Hispanic Origin
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- Blacks, Hispanics more likely to use powder detergents, liquid fabric softeners
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- Figure 60: Regular use of laundry products, race/Hispanic origin, April 2014
- Power to remove tough stains a priority in all groups
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- Figure 61: Laundry detergent attribute importance, by race/Hispanic origin, April 2014
- Fragrance a key priority for Black and Hispanic fabric softener users
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- Figure 62: Fabric softener attribute importance, April 2014
- Blacks, Hispanics willing to pay more added-value features
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- Figure 63: Willingness to pay more for laundry product features, by race/Hispanic origin, April 2014
- Black consumers take pride in laundry knowhow
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- Figure 64: Attitudes toward doing laundry, any agree, by race/Hispanic origin, April 2014
Consumer Segmentation
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- Figure 65: Cluster groups, April 2014
- Practicals
- Demographics
- Approach to laundry
- Opportunity
- Disengageds
- Demographics
- Approach to laundry
- Opportunity
- Super Washers
- Demographics
- Approach to laundry
- Opportunity
- Cluster characteristic tables
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- Figure 66: Attitudes toward doing laundry, any agree, by cluster groups, April 2014
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- Figure 67: Attitudes toward doing laundry, any agree, by cluster groups, April 2014
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- Figure 68: Responsibility for doing laundry and shopping for laundry products, by cluster groups, April 2014
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- Figure 69: Regular use of laundry products, by cluster groups, April 2014
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- Figure 70: Laundry detergent attribute importance, by cluster groups, April 2014
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- Figure 71: Fabric softener attribute importance, by cluster groups, April 2014
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- Figure 72: Willingness to pay more for laundry product features, by product preference groups, April 2014
- Cluster demographic tables
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- Figure 73: Cluster groups, by demographic, August 2013
- Cluster methodology
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Custom Consumer Groups
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- Product preference groups
- Naturalists use variety of products, opportunity for eco-friendly laundry regimen
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- Figure 74: Regular use of laundry products, by product preference groups, April 2014
- All-in-Ones value cleaning performance
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- Figure 75: Laundry detergent attribute importance, by product preference groups, April 2014
- Power Seekers value sensory benefits as well
- Skin-friendliness important to Naturalists
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- Figure 76: Fabric softener attribute importance, by product preference groups, April 2014
Appendix – Other Useful Consumer Tables
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- Responsibility for doing laundry and shopping for laundry products
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- Figure 77: Responsibility for doing laundry and shopping for laundry products, by household income, April 2014
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- Figure 78: Responsibility for doing laundry and shopping for laundry products, by household size, April 2014
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- Figure 79: Responsibility for doing laundry and shopping for laundry products, by race/Hispanic origin, April 2014
- Regular use of laundry products
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- Figure 80: Regular use of laundry products, by household income, April 2014
- Laundry detergent attribute importance
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- Figure 81: Laundry detergent attribute importance, by household size, April 2014
- Fabric softener attribute importance
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- Figure 82: Fabric softener attribute importance, by household size, April 2014
- Willingness to pay more for laundry product features
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- Figure 83: Willingness to pay more for laundry product features, by gender and age, April 2014
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- Figure 84: Willingness to pay more for laundry product features, by household income, April 2014
- Attitudes toward doing laundry
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- Figure 85: Attitudes toward doing laundry, any agree, by household income, April 2014
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- Figure 86: Attitudes toward doing laundry, any agree, by household size, April 2014
Appendix – Information Resources Inc. Builders Panel Data Definitions
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- Information Resources Inc. Consumer Network Metrics
Appendix – Trade Associations
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