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Brits are brushing aside supermarkets when it comes to everyday oral care. The category lost a total of £21.3m this year across its three main sectors as consumers took their business elsewhere.

“We saw a large shift of shoppers going out of the grocery channel and into value retail and bargain stores to buy their oral care products,” says Nielsen senior client manager Federico Borzone. However, he adds that “successful brands have managed to protect distribution in the grocery channel by playing in different sub-sectors”. That means offering fancier products with additional benefits and higher price points.

“Shoppers are getting more condition-aware and are choosing more specialist pastes,” says Jo Cooper, grocery sales director at GSK, owner of brands including Colgate, Corsodyl and Sensodyne. “They’re spending more because they want specialist products to look after their teeth. We’re seeing growth trends on toothpaste, medicated wash and whitening products.”

“Innovation is a great driver of this category,” adds Cooper. “Expect to see more products with scientific claims, products that repair your teeth, treat your gums or remineralise your enamel.”

This appetite for fancier innovation has made medicated toothpaste a hot area. Perhaps the most notable launch was Corsodyl Complete Protection, which debuted in January promising to “prevent bleeding gums, reduce inflammation and improve the seal between gums and teeth”. That was followed by the summer launch of Oral-B Gum Purify, which offers “significantly more protection against plaque and gum health issues than other fluorides”.

Oral care products with medical claims aren’t the only ones capturing consumer attention. Natural options such as Oral-B 3D White Whitening Therapy with Coconut Oil from P&G (see Top Launch, below) are trendy and getting trendier.

“Natural products are on the rise,” says P&G Northern Europe sales director Ian Morley. “Around 40% of UK consumers want natural oral care products.”

 

The Top Products

In association with nielsen

Top 10 Toothpaste      
        £m change (£m) change (%)
      Total Category: 421.6 -4.2 -1.0
Total volume change: 3.20%   Total Own Label: 7.7 -0.8 -9.8
             
This year’s rank Last year’s rank Brand Manufacturer £m change (£m) change (%)
1 1 Colgate Colgate 194.3 -2.5 -1.2
2 2 Sensodyne GSK 94.8 1.8 1.9
3 3 Oral B P&G 61.8 2.9 4.9
4 4 Aquafresh GSK 23.3 -3.3 -12.5
5 6 Corsodyl GSK 9.8 2.1 27.8
6 5 Arm & Hammer Church & Dwight 9.0 -0.8 -8.6
7 7 Macleans GSK 3.9 -0.7 -15.9
8 8 Euthymol J & J 3.9 0.6 19.1
9 9 Pearl Drops Church & Dwight 2.8 -0.1 -4.3
10 10 Blanx Coswell 2.1 -0.3 -12.1

 

Top 10 Toothbrushes      
        £m change (£m) change (%)
      Total Category: 288.6 -13.5 -4.5
Total volume change: -5.1%   Total Own Label: 19.5 1.3 7.1
             
This year’s rank Last year’s rank Brand Manufacturer £m change (£m) change (%)
1 1 Oral B P&G  178.4 -4.5 -2.5
2 2 Colgate Colgate 53.7 -6.7 -11.1
3 3 Sonicare Philips  21.2 -0.5 -2.3
4 4 Aquafresh GSK 7.4 -0.7 -8.3
5 7 Wisdom Wisdom Toothbrushes 5.8 0.4 8.1
6 6 Sensodyne GSK 5.4 -0.6 -10.1
7 5 Listerine Reach J & J 5.3 -1.0 -16.2
8 8 Firefly High Ridge Brands 1.6 0.5 40.2
9 10 Brush-Baby Brush-Baby 0.8 0.0 3.4
10 9 Dental Source Ranir 0.5 -0.4 -44.0

 

Top 10 Mouthwash      
        £m change (£m) change (%)
      Total Category: 158.3 -3.6 -2.2
Total volume change: -1.30%   Total Own Label: 7.6 0.3 4.7
             
This year’s rank Last year’s rank Brand Manufacturer £m change (£m) change (%)
1 1 Listerine Johnson & Johnson 68.4 0.8 1.2
2 2 Corsodyl GSK 32.5 -0.7 -2.1
3 3 Colgate Colgate 28.3 0.1 0.3
4 4 Cb12 Meda 3.6 -0.8 -18.3
5 7 Dentyl Dendron 2.8 -0.6 -17.8
6 6 Oral B P&G 2.6 -1.1 -29.4
7 5 Aquafresh GSK 2.5 -1.1 -30.4
8 8 Ultradex Periproducts 2.4 -0.2 -8.1
9 9 Sensodyne GSK 1.5 -0.6 -27.2
10 12 Oraldene J & J 0.9 0.3 50.4
 

The Grocer’s Top Launch

4. Oral B_0001

Oral B with coconut oil by P&G

First, ‘coconut oil pulling’ swept the nation via social media. The natural teeth whitening solution, seen as an eco-friendly way to avoid harsh chemicals and their hefty price tags, was sloshed around mouths across Instagram. But the process was often messy and unpleasant. Enter Oral B 3D White Whitening Therapy with Coconut Oil. It promises all the natural impurity-pulling benefits of coconut oil in an easy-to-use toothpaste format. Which is definitely something to smile about.

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The Grocer’s Top Products 2019: Brand on the run?