Table of Contents
Executive Summary
-
- The issues
- Easy-cleaning surface cleaner segments gain, disinfection still important
-
- Figure 1: Total US sales of household surface cleaners, by segment, at current prices, 2012 and 2014
- More than four hours a week spent on cleaning, gender gap narrows
-
- Figure 2: Time spent housecleaning per week, by gender and age, March 2015
- An overall preference for quick, efficient cleanups
-
- Figure 3: Overall approach: A little at a time versus top-to-bottom cleaning, by time spent cleaning the house, March 2015
- The opportunities
- Toilets, kitchen countertops are focal points for cleaning and disinfection
-
- Figure 4: Approach to cleaning the toilet and kitchen countertops, March 2015
- Strong interest in products that provide a longer lasting clean
-
- Figure 5: Interest in select new cleaning products, March 2015
- Heavy cleaners more attuned to the safety of cleaning products
-
- Figure 6: Attitudes toward ingredient safety, by time spent cleaning, March 2015
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
-
- Time spent on housework declined only slightly between 2003 and 2013
- Easy-cleaning surface cleaner segments gain, disinfection still important
- Flat sales in largest segment slow growth of cleaning equipment category
Market Factors
-
- Time spent on housework declined only slightly between 2003 and 2013
- Gender gap in housework continues to narrow
-
- Figure 7: Time spent daily on housework, minutes, 2003-13
- More households, but households getting smaller
-
- Figure 8: Households, by presence of own children, 2003-13
- Figure 9: Household size, 2003-13
- Growing influence of Hispanic market
-
- Figure 10: Households with own children, by race and Hispanic origin of householder, 2013
- Figure 11: Population, by race and Hispanic origin, 2009-19
Market Perspective
-
- Easy-cleaning surface cleaner segments gain, disinfection still important
-
- Figure 12: Total US sales of household surface cleaners, by segment, at current prices, 2012 and 2014
- Flat sales in largest segment slow growth of cleaning equipment category
-
- Figure 13: Total US sales of household cleaning equipment, by segment, at current prices, 2012 and 2014
Key Players – What You Need to Know
-
- Products that enable quick spot cleaning and disinfection gain
- A focus on safer ingredients
- Improving the cleaning experience
- Products that require elbow grease lose ground
- Robotics poised to gain
- Self-cleaning surfaces could reduce the need for cleaning
What’s Working?
-
- Products that enable quick spot cleaning and disinfection gain
- A focus on safer ingredients
- Improving the cleaning experience, brought to life in marketing
-
- Figure 14: #SwifferDad video featuring Anthony Anderson, 2015
What’s Struggling?
-
- Products that require elbow grease lose ground
-
- Figure 15: Household usage of select household cleaning products, 2010 and 2015
What’s Next?
-
- Robotics poised to gain
- Self-cleaning surfaces
- Long-lasting treatments
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
-
- Housecleaning a high-participation and increasingly gender-neutral chore
- More than four hours a week spent on cleaning
- An overall preference for quick, efficient cleanups
- Toilets, kitchen countertops are focal points for cleaning and disinfection
- Strong interest in products that provide a longer lasting clean
- Heavy cleaners pressed for time but less willing to trade results for convenience
- Heavy cleaners more attuned to the safety of cleaning products
Responsibility for Cleaning the House
-
- Housecleaning a high-participation and increasingly gender-neutral chore
-
- Figure 16: Responsibility for cleaning the house, March 2015
- In their words: Sharing responsibility
Time Spent Cleaning the House
-
- More than four hours a week spent on cleaning
-
- Figure 17: Time spent housecleaning per week, by gender and age, March 2015
- Cleaners in larger households spend more time cleaning
-
- Figure 18: Time spent housecleaning per week, by number of people in household, March 2015
Overall Approach to Cleaning the House
-
- An overall preference for quick, efficient cleanups
-
- Figure 19: Overall approach to cleaning the house, March 2015
- Heaviest cleaners prefer top-to-bottom cleaning, specialized products
-
- Figure 20: Overall approach: A little at a time versus top-to-bottom cleaning, by time spent cleaning the house, March 2015
- In their words: Cleaning routines
Approach to Specific Housecleaning Tasks
-
- Toilets, kitchen countertops are focal points for cleaning and disinfection
- Windows and furniture less likely to get regular cleaning
-
- Figure 21: Approach to specific housecleaning tasks, March 2015
- In their words: Cleaning priorities
Interest in New Cleaning Products
-
- Strong interest in products that provide a longer lasting clean
- Natural alternatives
- Moderate interest in robotics, more education needed
-
- Figure 22: Interest in new cleaning products, March 2015
Attitudes toward Household Care
-
- Heavy cleaners pressed for time but less willing to trade results for convenience
- Heavy cleaners more attuned to the safety of cleaning products
-
- Figure 23: Attitudes toward household care, by time spent, March 2015
- In their words: Concern over cleaning product ingredients
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
-
- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
Back to top