Paper Products

No issues for tissues

The paper products market continues to thrive in Ireland, with most of the main manufacturers making commitments to environmental sustainability.

IRISH consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of their paper product choices. Sustainability and flushability are two top features for consumers when considering tissue and hygiene products, according to the latest report into the Irish tissue and hygiene market from Euromonitor International. Private label continues to perform well in this category but multinational brands still dominate. Even though there are a number of significant challenges, the outlook remains reasonably positive for the majority of categories within tissue and hygiene, according to Euromonitor.

Despite growing concerns about the environmental impact of retail tissue products, a number of leading brands have started to introduce bigger packs to attract customers, according to Euromonitor. All the leading brands, particularly in toilet paper and paper towels, have launched larger volume packs.

As retail tissue has become increasingly competitive, there has been upwards pressure on the existing brands to maintain their value shares. This pressure has been exacerbated by the fact that the environmental impact of tissue products has generally led to increased manufacturing input costs in the form of levies and regulation.

In the away-from-home tissue category, wipes of all kinds are under increasing public scrutiny thanks to a number of high profile cases of environmental damage involving wipes. Although wet wipes have evolved significantly to contain less chemicals and less plastic, pressure still remains through diminished consumer sentiment for these products, according to Euromonitor. However, growing tourist numbers should help to support growth in away-from-home tissue, they predict.

Essity Ireland Limited Cushelle is the number one brand in the market over the last 12 months with 17.3% value share of the toilet tissue category (Source: Kantar Worldpanel MAT Data to December 31, 2019) and has exciting brand plans to continue growing in 2020. Cushelle will run a strong advertising campaign, featuring Kenny the Koala, throughout 2020, beginning with TV and VOD for Cushelle Quilted with a TV tag to help drive awareness of Cushelle facial tissues.

Many of you will have watched the upsetting news reports about the devastating bushfires in Australia that have claimed the homes and

Cushelle will run a strong advertising campaign, featuring Kenny the Koala, throughout 2020.

Velvet toilet tissue is a must stock brand in the toilet tissue category with value sales of almost €1.7m (Source: Kantar Worldpanel MAT Data to December 1, 2019). The brand has a strong focus on its product quality, while offering shoppers value across a wide variety of different pack sizes. For instance, to suit all shoppers Velvet has a core range that includes both fourand nine-roll pack sizes, appealing Data to December 1, 2019). In 2019, Plenty launched New Plenty Hand Towels. With convenient single sheets of kitchen towel, New Plenty Hand Towels are specially designed for quick, onehanded dispensing, no matter where the mess is. This absorbent and strong household towel is always at hand, and with its attractive pack design, it looks great in every room of the house.

The focus for the Plenty brand in 2020 is to continue to drive shoppers to store through a strong TV and VOD campaign across the year. Plenty advertising will continue to reach key householders with kids, building on the brand’s heritage as a household hero with the evolution of much loved brand ambassador ‘Juan Sheet’ into ‘Super Juan’!

According to Simon Pickering, Country Manager, Essity Ireland Ltd, “We have strong media and brand plans in place across Cushelle, Velvet and Plenty

lives of many people and wildlife. “As a responsible business that prominently features a koala in the branding of Cushelle, we felt it was our duty to make a donation to the ongoing relief efforts being carried out by charities in Australia,” noted a company spokesperson.

Therefore, Cushelle will be donating an initial Stg£25,000 to WIRES and Vets Beyond Borders. Both charities are working tirelessly to protect the wildlife caught up in the bushfires. Cushelle will also support the longer-term recovery efforts and the preservation of koalas in Australia.

New Plenty Handy Towels are specially designed for quick, one-handed dispensing, no matter where the mess is.

to both the basket ‘top up’ and trolley shoppers. For those shoppers who prefer to make a larger purchase, Velvet has a range of larger sized packs to cater for them. Velvet shoppers are buying more year-on-year, with a 7.9% volume increase for those shoppers who have purchased Velvet in both 2018 and 2019. Plenty is one of Ireland’s leading household towel brands with value sales of over €5.4m (Source: Kantar Worldpanel MAT for 2020 to ensure that our market leading brands remain at the forefront of consumers’ minds when shopping the paper category.”

Essity is a leading global hygiene and health company dedicated to improving well-being through products and solutions, essentials for everyday life. The name Essity stems from the words essentials and necessities. Their sustainable business model creates value for people and nature. Sales are conducted in approximately 150 countries under the leading global brand Tena and regional brands such as Cushelle, Plenty, Velvet, Bodyform and Demak’Up.

Essity has about 47,000 employees and net sales in 2018 amounted to approximately €11.6 billion. The headquarters is located in Stockholm, Sweden, and the company is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. For

The focus for the Plenty brand in 2020 is to continue to drive shoppers to store through a strong TV and VOD campaign across the year.

more information visit www.essity.com.

Homestead The Homestead paper range continues to be one of the strongest categories within the Homestead portfolio. 2019 was an extremely competitive year in this category and sales of Homestead Tissue continue to be extremely positive year-on-year.

The paper range, which includes a variety of toilet rolls, kitchen towels and man-size tissues, is produced to the highest quality using 100% virgin The Homestead Toilet Tissue Comfort 16 Roll, price marked at €4.99, continues to prove extremely popular for Homestead.

pulp paper sourced from well managed forests. The selection rivals any market leader, while remaining well priced in order to compete successfully in the private label market. 2019 saw the continuation of Homestead’s man-size tissue and Comfort toilet

The launch of Homestead Absorb Jumbo 2 Roll Kitchen Towel introduced a more absorbent kitchen towel to the Homestead portfolio.

tissue four-roll and 16-roll price mark packs, which gives day-to-day value for the consumer. Homestead replaced its Soft 2-ply toilet tissue with new Luxury Soft 3-ply quilted toilet tissue to introduce a more luxurious product to the range at the same great price.

The launch of Homestead Absorb Jumbo 2 Roll Kitchen Towel introduced a more absorbent kitchen towel to the Homestead portfolio, which has successfully replaced the Splash Kitchen Towel.

“Increasing cost in pulp paper will see changes to paper products across the market,” reveals Homestead Brand Manager Janice Gibney. “Homestead will continue to strive to remain competitive and continue to ‘Bring Value Home’ in what will continue to be a very competitive market in 2020.”

Showcasing future technologies in-store

Some of the foremost Irish technology innovators in the retail sector showcased their retail solutions to a host of international retailers at Enterprise Ireland’s Store of the Future event.

MORE than 20 international retail chains were in Ireland recently to participate in Enterprise Ireland’s ‘Store of the Future’ event, showcasing Ireland’s cluster of retail technology companies who are driving innovation in the retail sector globally in areas such as real-time analytics, efficient energy management, sustainability programmes and reducing operating costs.

Showcasing the latest retail solutions across innovative energy efficiency, refrigeration technology, IoT and food waste management, Irish companies presenting at the event included: Novum, delivering game changing innovation in refrigeration; FoodCloud, the social enterprise that links businesses with surplus food with local charities and community groups using a customised tech platform; and Remote Signals, an IoT company, adding

Leap technology. Novum’s Leap technology is a revolutionary new approach to food refrigeration for the retail sector that delivers the highest levels of food integrity, energy efficiency, serviceability, simplicity and presentation.

Pictured are (l-r): Stephen Hughes, Head of Consumer Division, Enterprise Ireland, and Jim Greene, CEO, Novum. sensors and connectivity to transform the retail sector. Major international retailers Major international retailers from Europe and North America were in attendance, including: Iceland, the international retail brand; Biedronka, the largest supermarket chain in Poland; La Sirena, Spain’s chain of frozen speciality shops; and Southeastern Grocers, the parent company of BI-LO, Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie grocery stores in the US, as well as the Canadian North West Company.

As well as attending the seminar event, the international retailers enjoyed one-to-one meetings with Irish retail innovators and visited Novum’s R&D facility, where Novum was launching the next generation of its disruptive Punching above its weight “I am very proud that Novum is celebrating 60 years in business in Ireland,” noted CEO of Novum Jim Greene, speaking at the event. “Novum continues to punch above its weight on the global stage through disruptive innovation and global partnerships. Leap technology is something that I am very excited about and I believe it is capable of changing the face of commercial refrigeration forever.”

Leo McAdams, Head of International Sales and Partnering, Enterprise Ireland, said, “Ireland has a wealth of leading, innovative technologies to support the international retail industry and has developed a solid global reputation for developing niche, customer-focused solutions. The Store of the Future event is key to showcasing Ireland’s capabilities to leading international retailers to support business growth of the Irish sector internationally.”