While the usage of most household paper products remains steady, facial tissue consumption continues to decline, particularly among younger consumers. This demographic tends to use other paper products to wipe their nose and primarily turns to tissues only when unwell. To reignite interest, brands can innovate in features like flu-relief ingredients or cosmetic benefits, such as oil control, to expand usage occasions.
Despite the bulky nature of paper products, which makes them well suited for online shopping, they are still purchased less frequently online, at only 20%, compared to other household care items. Key barriers include high delivery costs (33%) and the perception that shopping online is less environmentally friendly (29%). These issues can be addressed with same-day delivery for urban-dwelling customers as well as bundled product offerings to reduce shipping expenses.
Sustainability remains a critical factor, with 41% of household care shoppers opting for eco-friendly household paper products. However, challenges persist, such as the perceived inferiority of unbleached paper products and uncertainty around alternative fibres. To stay competitive, brands should educate consumers about the benefits of sustainable alternatives and invest in bolstering unbleached paper’s image to meet consumer and regulatory demands.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Trends in usage and purchase of household paper products
- Channels for buying household paper products
- Barriers to purchasing paper products online and unbleached paper products
- Attitudes and behaviours towards household paper products
- Launch activity and innovation opportunities for household paper products
Sustainability remains key, but household paper brands can differentiate themselves further by centring softness and innovating with skin-friendly ingredients.
Yasemin Holtemayer, Household Care Research Analyst, Germany
Market Definitions
The German household paper product market comprises three basic product types:
- toilet tissues
- kitchen towels
- facial tissues
This Report includes moistened or scented varieties of toilet and facial tissues, napkins and serviettes as well as recycled versions of all three varieties.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Opportunities
- Outlook
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OPPORTUNITIES
- Explore alternative fibres and showcase the softness of sustainable products
- Traditional tree-pulp fibres are threatened by deforestation concerns
- Alternative fibres ease the strain on limited recyclate supplies
- Educate consumers on the quality of unbleached paper products
- Softness sampling is critical to overcome consumers’ negative perceptions
- Tap into colour trends to uplift the image of unbleached paper products
- Brands push sustainable innovation forward
- Supercharge online shopping through product bundles, same-day deliveries and quizzes
- Online shopping for household paper products needs to be more attractive
- Offer product bundles for essentials online
- Enhance urban living with the convenience of same-day delivery
- Add value to subscriptions with personalisation offers
- Facial tissues must evolve, or they risk being left behind
- Include more flu-alleviating ingredients in facial tissues
- International brands combat flu symptoms with innovation
- Beauty usage can spark innovation in facial tissues
- Offer beauty functionality in facial tissues…
- …for all generations
- Skin benefits elevate facial tissues
- Appeal with collaborations for boxed facial tissue packaging
- Offer one-hand usage for busy parents
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CONSUMER
- Usage of household paper products
- Overall household paper product usage remains stable
- Graph 1: usage of household paper products in the last month, 2023-24
- Facial tissues are less popular with Gen Z
- Younger consumers drive the decline in facial tissue usage
- Graph 2: usage of packet facial tissues in the last month, 2021-24
- Financially healthy consumers are more likely to buy non-essential paper products
- Graph 3: usage of household paper products in the last month, by financial health status, 2024
- Parents seek convenient solutions at home
- Purchase channels and barriers to purchasing online
- Online purchases for household paper products are low
- Graph 4: barriers for buying household paper products online, 2024
- Graph 5: channels for shopping household paper products, 2024
- Cost consciousness and delivery issues hold back online shopping
- Gen Z and younger Millennials use online services due to busy schedules
- Younger consumers are more likely to be online shoppers…
- Graph 6: channels for shopping household paper products, by generation, 2024
- …and online shopping is more common among city dwellers
- Attitudes and behaviours
- Facial tissue usage is threatened by other paper products
- Graph 7: behaviours related to facial tissues, 2024
- Younger consumers consider boxed facial tissues higher quality
- Positive perceptions of boxed facial tissues don’t translate into usage
- Graph 8: I think boxed facial tissues are higher quality (eg tear less easily) than packet facial tissues, by yes, 2024
- Negative perceptions impact unbleached paper products
- Graph 9: barriers for buying unbleached household paper products, 2024
- Graph 10: behaviours related to unbleached household paper products, 2024
- Concerns around softness limit adoption
- Recycled materials benefit from positive perception
- Recycled materials benefit from a sustainability halo
- Manufacturers face trade-offs between bleached and unbleached materials
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INNOVATION
- Household paper product NPD remains stable
- Graph 11: NPD in household products, by the top five categories, 2020-24
- Facial tissue NPD still has a smaller share than other sub-categories
- Graph 12: NPD in household paper products, by sub-category, 2020-24
- Brands continue to focus on new packaging launches
- Graph 13: share of NPD in household paper products, by launch type, 2020-24
- Recycling claims slightly fell between 2023 and 2024
- Ethical claims remained largely stable between 2022 and 2024
- Graph 14: NPD in household paper products, by the top five leading claims, 2020-24
- Invest in alternative fibres as recycled materials are becoming hard to come by
- Brands turn to alternative fibres as recycled material supplies dwindle
- Brands and private label show a similar launch pace
- Graph 15: branded vs private-label NPD in household paper products, 2020-24
- Launch activity stays stagnant among the top players
- Graph 16: NPD in household paper products, by the top 10 companies, 2022-24
- Brands navigate multiple issues, leading to a decline in NPD
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MARKET DRIVERS
- Recycled paper usage is at an all-time high…
- …but faces challenges because hygienic paper isn’t recyclable
- Deforestation concerns inform household paper usage
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APPENDIX
- Report scope and definitions
- Market definition
- Abbreviations
- Methodology – consumer research
- Consumer research methodology
- A note on language
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