Analgesics in the Netherlands

PROSPECTS

Government aims to encourage greater self-care amongst Dutch population with new policy

Traditionally, the Dutch have shown greater restraint over the use of medication, which had translated into less frequent use of self-medication products compared to other European countries. However, concerned about the increasing demand for healthcare in the country and in an attempt to limit costs on the healthcare system with local consumers who do require basic medication often turning to their doctors for a prescription, the Dutch government implemented a new policy on 1 January 2019.

Increasing demand for topical analgesics through directly targeting of painful area

Despite growing from a low sales base, there was notable increasing demand for topical analgesics/anaesthetic in 2019, a trend that is predicted to continue into the forecast period, as some consumers continue to choose to move away from oral medicine in favour of directly targeting certain areas of pain that are deemed to be better treated with topical products. This trend is being supported by major players in the category, with leading brands such as Voltaren OTC Emulgel 1.

Potential for greater segmentation by brands in terms of targeting specific types of pain

In addition to targeting muscle pain through topical analgesics and the opportunity this category holds for other brands to enter, there is still potential for players to look to differentiate their products through types of pain as a key area of focus to drive value sales of analgesics over the forecast period. Analgesics that specifically target, for instance, females who suffer from menstruation pain, is likely to be more notable amongst branded products such as Aleve Feminax than private label, supported by larger parent companies that are able to invest in and develop more complex products, in addition to enjoying higher marketing budgets.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

GSK Consumer Healthcare gains leadership of analgesics through joint venture with Pfizer

GSK Consumer Healthcare gained leadership of overall analgesics in 2019 from Bayer Consumer Care following a joint venture between GlaxoSmithKline Plc with Pfizer Inc in 2018. This has resulted in GSK Consumer Healthcare distributing Pfizer’s analgesics ibuprofen brand Advil, which is also present in topical analgesics/anaesthetic with Advil Gel leading to strong share gain for the formerly second-ranked player.

Despite share loss, Bayer retains leadership of systemic analgesics

Despite losing some value share after falling to second position behind GSK Consumer Healthcare, Bayer Consumer Care BV continues to be a strong player, retaining its leadership of both adult and paediatric analgesics. The company offers an expansive product portfolio, dominating aspirin with its widely recognised brands Aspirine, although declining demand for adult aspirin has led it to place its focus on more demanded areas such as adult acetaminophen with its Finimal brand, and strengthening its leadership of paediatric acetaminophen with Sinaspril Paracetamol due to the growing demand for paediatric analgesics.

Private label retains strong value share of analgesics

Private label continued to hold strong value share within analgesics in 2019, which is particularly strong in adult acetaminophen, although it lost some sales to branded products in this category, while gaining ground in paediatric acetaminophen as parents began to gain greater trust in retailers’ own analgesics offers. This has led to greater share gain and strong value growth through modern grocery retailers such as hypermarkets and supermarkets.

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