Dishwashing in France

PROSPECTS

Automatic dishwashing will continue to drive category forward in value terms

Dishwashing in France continued to experience positive but undynamic demand in 2019, dominated by the low value, but high volume, category of hand dishwashing. Automatic dishwashing on the other hand, continued to experience gradually strengthening demand, linked to the increasing penetration rate of dishwashers in French households, bringing greater convenience to busy families and easing daily chores.

Demand for greater convenience and multi-functionality drives growth of all-in-one automatic dishwashing tablets

In line with growing demand for convenience and time-saving solutions to cleaning dishes, leading to increasing possession rates of dishwashers in France, automatic dishwashing tablets and automatic dishwashing liquids recorded the highest volume growth rates in 2019. Manufacturers are increasingly focusing on developing and marketing all-in-one solutions which include rinse aid or reviving salts, reducing the need to purchase separate specific dishwashing additives, and leading to volume decline for the latter.

Ecological products offer chance for hand dishwashing to improve its performance over the forecast period

Despite its undynamic performance at the end of the review period, hand dishwashing will remain the most popular dishwashing solution in France due to its affordable pricing and the fact that there will always be a need for some types of cookware or heavily soiled pans to be washed by hand. The category is also likely to benefit from the increasing interest in ecological products, as consumers have direct contact with the product and therefore are searching for more natural products that are free from chemicals.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Sun looks to further expand its portfolio due to growing pressure from green products

Dishwashing remained a fairly consolidated competitive landscape in 2019, led by Unilever which offers the brand Sun, due to its domination of the largest value category of automatic dishwashing. However, the player came under increasing pressure from the number of strong ecological brands present, which was particularly notable in automatic dishwashing liquids, as Sun Liquigel continued to lose value share to L'Arbre Vert, Maison Verte and Rainett gel lave-vaisselle.

Strongest performances from ecological brands

In line with growing concerns over the environment in France which is beginning to influence a number of home care categories, ecological brands within dishwashing continued to record the strongest performances in 2019, in terms of positive current value growth and value share gain, including Rainett (Werner & Mertz France SA), L’Arbre Vert (Novamex SA), and Maison Verte (Swania SAS) in addition to Ecover and You, with the latter re-entering the category in 2018 following its acquisition by Swania from Doucet SAS, and which resulted in double-digit current value growth in 2019. Ranked fourth, L'Arbre Vert (“The Green Tree”) is in the strongest position to offer real competition to its closest rivals Paic and Mir, with the brand offering a wide product portfolio across both automatic and hand dishwashing.

Higher fragmentation within hand dishwashing enables smaller brands to enter

The ecological trend is set to help improve the performance of hand dishwashing over the forecast period, the large but undynamic category within overall dishwashing in France. While more high-profile ecological names such as L'Arbre Vert and Maison Verte continue to perform well, the fragmented nature of hand dishwashing compared to the automatic format, is enabling an increasing number of smaller players to enter and gain consumers’ attention through differentiation.

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