Laundry Detergent: Developed and Developing Region Scenario

There is a huge gap between the developed and developing economy in terms of laundry industry. In mature economies innovation in laundry detergents over the past few years has focused primarily biodegradability and sustainability. Sophisticated washing systems or changes in washing process (e.g. introduction of premeasured doses, pods or improved stain removers) had a mixed effect on the surfactant consumption. Consumers are more tilted towards products which are skin friendly and manufactured using natural ingredients (i.e. plant based products). FMCG companies are focusing towards developing regions due increasing urbanization, disposable income, awareness about usage of appliances and products. . However, still consumers are not fully aware about the functionality of the various laundry care products and the prime focus of the companies is to reduce the production cost. According to the major FMCG Players, the developed nations (the US, Western Europe and Japan) seems to mature in terms of the laundry demand and population growth (which is relatively low due to stringent government regulation and family planning concepts). These parameters lead to limited growth of the detergent with respect to volume consumption. In addition, there is a huge gap between mature economies where the use of washing machines for laundry application is the common feature of most households and where the detergent formulations have reached a considerable sophistication and in comparison to this, the developing economies (Brazil, China and India), that are characterized by predominance of hand washing and of essentially basic formulations.   Author: Jaswin Ratti