Malaysia

The prolonged pandemic and subsequent lockdown measures has encouraged more people to become pet owners to gain companionship whilst working from home and to help alleviate boredom in leisure time. Most Malaysians are choosing cats, dogs, and fish as…

Retail tissue will record a negligible change in current value sales in 2021, retaining similar levels to both 2019 and 2020. Results have been mixed in the category, with paper towels and boxed facial tissues being more sought after due to the…

In 2021, COVID-19 dampened growth in most apparel accessories categories. For example, belts, ties and scarves all experienced a double-digit current retail value decline due to restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the pandemic in 2021. In…

Since local consumers spent more time at home in 2020 due to lockdown restrictions and home working, they needed to clean their toilets more frequently, supporting demand for toilet care. COVID-19 also supported demand by leading many to clean their…

Having more than trebled during 2020, the rate of growth in retail volume sales of surface care slowed significantly in 2021 but remained above its 2019 level. In 2020, surface care received a boost in demand due to increased hygiene concerns…

The pandemic has driven a modest acceleration in the rate of growth of retail current value sales of home care in Malaysia, with the fact that consumers were spending more time at home due to COVID-19 restrictions outweighing the economic shock of…

Sun care was the most negatively impacted beauty and personal care category as a direct result of the ongoing COVID-19 related restrictions in the first months of the year. The latter resulted in a further work from home order issued by the…

COVID-19 has led to a stronger demand for wipes as Malay consumers are using hygiene and cleanliness practices to improve their protection against the virus. This will lead to continued double-digit growth for retail wipes in 2021, with all…

2021 saw the Singapore-origin department store Robinsons become one of the highest-profile casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia as both of the Robinsons department stores in the country closed down permanently, with the retailer winding up…

In 2021, standard, premium and super premium jeans (men’s and women’s) demonstrated a stronger recovery compared to economy jeans. This is largely because consumers with higher incomes were less affected by the economic consequences of the COVID-19…

In 2021, consumer demand for hosiery remained low due to the COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions in Malaysia. For example, work from home policies significantly lowered demand for hosiery as consumers had minimal chances to wear shoes and…

The rate of growth in retail volume sales of dishwashing accelerated during 2020 and remained elevated in 2021. The pandemic has had a significant positive effect on demand for dishwashing, as local consumers are spending more time at home and…

Organic beverages is a niche category in Malaysia with a limited range of products on offer and negligible sales in 2021. Due to the high price of organic beverages they are mostly only found in higher-end supermarkets and speciality stores. Premium…

Following a surge of growth in 2020, as COVID-19 restrictions meant that local consumers spent more time at home (with many working from home), retail volume sales of hot drinks suffered something of a hangover during 2021. Nonetheless, retail volume…

Both retail current value and retail volume sales of coffee were little better than flat during 2021. Work-from-home measures introduced in 2020 as a response to COVID-19 remained in place during 2021, and this continued to weigh heavily on…

In 2021, Malaysia was in partial lockdown until October 2021 when work-from-home and stay-home orders were lifted. Consumers increased their frequency of usage as they gradually returned to the workplace, the gym, and spent longer periods of time…

Variety stores registered its second consecutive year of negative sales growth in 2021 as the entire category struggled to recover from the requirement for all variety stores to remain closed throughout the quarantine lockdowns that were imposed upon…

The national lockdown enforced due to the surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Malaysia heavily restricted opportunities to wear sportswear in 2021. For example, during the lockdown from May until September, no sporting events were allowed in the…

Free from meat tofu and derivatives is widely accepted by consumers in Malaysia due to the fact it is Halal (permissible based on Muslim law) with these products being made from soy. Due to the ongoing threat from COVID-19 consumers continued to…

Having exhibited strong growth during 2020 due to the effect of COVID-19 restrictions on movement, which meant that local consumers spent much more time at home (with many working from home), retail volume sales of tea suffered something of a…