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Whitening pastes storm the market
Power brushes polish up the sector
Speciality pastes at premium prices
Children's oral care grows up
Mouthwash to be the next big thing
In search of a sparkling white smile, consumers are spending more time and money than ever before keeping their teeth and gums in pristine condition. They are increasingly happy to trade up to premium products that deliver additional or improved performance benefits. Bestsellers are teeth whitening pastes and the new generation of low cost power toothbrushes.
Standard products which don't offer anything new or special are losing ground and are the reason why the 557m oral care market has grown by only a meagre 1 % in value [Information Resources March 2000].
SmithKline Beecham dental care category manager Nick Winter claims this lacklustre performance is due to the multiples' aggressive pricing strategy in toothpastes, the largest sector at 298m which fell 1.8% in value.
Winter says: "Asda and Tesco with their everyday low pricing have driven down value growth in ordinary toothpaste, the largest slice of the paste market. In the last year they cut Colgate Regular and Aquafresh Mild'n'Minty from 1.45 to 99p for the 100ml tube."
Despite this strategy Winter says ordinary pastes are still in decline as consumers become attracted to more specialised offerings.
Fashion plays a part in what consumers look for in added value. Tartar control, the rising star of the '90s, is now out of favour. Its position has been usurped by complete protection products which now hold 22% of the toothpaste market, lead by Colgate Total and Macleans Total Clean.
Pastes for sensitive teeth, used predominantly by older people, is growing at 3% year on year [Information Resources]. This market is led by Stafford-Miller's Sensodyne, relaunched as a total care product last year.
But the hot favourite is whitening toothpaste, which appeals to a core market of...