Personal care – grooming 2021: sales suggest decline in hand-washing

Brits are washing their hands less often than last year. At least, that’s what the data suggests. Liquid soap’s value has fallen by 13.1%, while bar soap is down by 16.1%. However, NielsenIQ analyst Iulia Preda attributes the declines not to lax personal hygiene but the annualising of strong growth from 2020 amid panic-buying and stockpiling.

For big soap brands that have slumped – including Dove, Carex and Imperial Leather – “the most common factor has been a drop in unit demand” says Preda. Plus, retailers have given smaller suppliers more shelf space.

Declines in other sectors are more straightforward to explain. Less need to leave home for most Brits has meant a more casual approach to using the likes of deodorant – down by £37.8m – and shower gel, which has shed £9.1m.

Nevertheless, in spite of the downward trend, some bathroom brands have grown. They were mainly ones with strong wellness and self-care messaging, says Preda. She points to Radox, which rebranded in January and kicked off its ‘Life’s better with bubbles’ push. It’s shifted an extra 2.1 million packs.

Meanwhile, female skincare has seen 8.4 million packs go through tills. But a 7.5% rise in average price has kept the sector in the black.