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"Safety defines the future of eco products, while intimate hygiene can benefit from blurring for premiumisation. Incontinence holds potential with untapped demand."
Ziyu Tian, OTC & Personal Care Research Analyst
Retail sales of the sanitary protection and incontinence market reached £708m in 2025, with an increase of 6%, driven largely by sales of incontinence products. However, 29% of men aged 18+ in the UK experiencing incontinence typically don’t use any products, highlighting untapped market demand.
Sanitary protection, on the other hand, only retained a low positive growth, with tampons seeing a decline in consumer usage and launch activity. Legacy brands should brace for an evolving landscape with updated consumer demands, as resuables and newer entrances revamp the period care space.
Intimate hygiene holds the biggest premiumisation opportunities. Brands can build on microbiome narratives to dispel scepticism and improve transparency. Skincare ingredients and wellness-inspired formats can also appeal, with the potential to blur with sexual wellness and fit into an intimate care routine.
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions.
Sanitary protection products
Intimate hygiene products
Adult incontinence products
Excluded
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