UK Attitudes towards Household Care Brands: 2026
Ongoing cost pressures continue to influence household care behaviours, with price sensitivity limiting engagement with newer brands/products.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- The outlook for household care brand preferences
- Opportunities
- Lean into lifestyle trends to expand value beyond core performance
- Reframe sustainability through human-safe chemistry to rebuild trust in eco claims
- Lower the cost of entry to allow emerging brands to compete at the point of choice
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THE MARKET
- Continued financial pressures create a tough environment
- Graph 1: spending intentions in select household categories, 2025
- Channel shifts will impact brand preferences
- Graph 2: UK retail channels used to buy household care products, 2026
- Skin sensitivities influence brand preferences
- Sustainability claims face greater scrutiny
- Social media is lowering barriers for challenger brands
- New disruptors find different routes to stand out
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THE CONSUMER
- Brand heritage influences product perception and discovery
- Performance perceptions keep consumers interested in established brands
- Social media is at the heart of brand discovery
- Emerging brands can use content to connect with new consumers
- Human influence is still crucial for brand growth
- Make eco products credible and accessible
- Evidentiate claims for consumers who do their homework
- Unlock access to eco ranges in mainstream shopping channels
- Improve assortment via brand accelerator initiatives
- Value sensitivity impacts selection between branded and own-label products
- Price sensitivity limits trial of new brands
- Own-label moves beyond price
- Remove price barriers at the brand experimentation stage
- Heritage holds value
- Reinforce the value of established names in changing routines
- Diverging product priorities shape purchase decisions
- Generational split in safety and performance priorities
- Performance is the core expectation for older consumers
- Align product safety with sustainability
- Traditional vs experimental mindsets towards innovation
- The importance of familiarity and trust
- Performance-led innovation better fits traditional shoppers
- Graph 3: household care product buyers’ preference for traditional or experimental innovation, by generation, 2026
- Add value beyond performance for experimental enthusiasts
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PRODUCT, INNOVATION AND MARKETING
- The saturation of eco claims makes standing out more difficult
- Graph 4: share of household care launches carrying ethical & environmental claims, 2021-26
- Format innovation can drive eco differentiation
- Antibac loses relevance with safer cleaning demands
- Established brands are also providing safer cleaning approaches
- Tallow + Ash is appealing through sensorial elements
- Experiential marketing can help build familiarity and trust
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APPENDIX
- Report scope
- The consumer
- Consumer research questions
- Consumer research methodology
- UK generation groups
- Abbreviations
"Emerging brands must lower barriers to trial, while proving value, as social discovery and shifting expectations expand competition beyond performance into trust, safety and experience."
Luke Santos, Household Care Analyst
Ongoing cost pressures continue to influence household care behaviours, with price sensitivity limiting engagement with newer brands/products. This is particularly evident for emerging players, as 66% of household care buyers say high prices would prevent them from purchasing these brands, highlighting hesitation at the point of purchase.
This creates a more demanding landscape for brands, where products need to justify their place more clearly within constrained budgets. Consumers are weighing choices more carefully, with unfamiliar options more likely to be overlooked unless they offer a compelling reason to be considered alongside established or lower-cost alternatives.
At the same time, new routes to engagement are developing. Social media influences how products are discovered and experienced, and word of mouth is also crucial for brand discovery. Lifestyle-led behaviours are expanding what consumers expect from everyday routines. Brands that can connect performance with more distinctive, value-adding features will be better placed to prompt consideration and encourage experimentation in a cautious spending environment.
This Report Looks at the Following Areas:
- The impact of cost pressures on willingness to try emerging household care brands
- How channel shifts towards discounters and online are reshaping brand choice and visibility
- The role of safety concerns and skin sensitivity in product preference
- Rising scepticism towards sustainability claims and need for clearer proof points
- The influence of social media and word of mouth on brand discovery and trial
- Diverging consumer priorities between performance-led and safety-led product selection
- Preferred innovation styles in the household care market
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