Tissue and Hygiene in Qatar

With tissue and hygiene sales already mature in Qatar, the arrival of COVID-19 had little impact on retail sales across industry. Per capita sales are already quite high, although there remains a split in demand between affluent local consumers and less affluent expatriate labourers, with local people likely to engage with a wider range of value-added products, while foreign labourers are more interested in simple, low-cost products that offer basic functionality.

Market Insight: COVID-19 Impact

COVID-19 is expected to have had little impact on retail sales of tissue and hygiene in Qatar during 2020. Sales growth rates in most categories remained unchanged in the wake of COVID-19 as these products are widely regarded as essential and therefore demand is somewhat inelastic.

Country Insight: COVID-19 Impact

As of 12 May 2020, Qatar had seen 14 deaths due to COVID-19 and 25,149 cases. With the exception of the military, security services and the health sector, since 22 March, Qatar has allowed only 20% of the employees in the public sector space to work, encouraging people to stay at home with a partial lockdown.

Country Insight: Pre-COVID-19

There is a correlation between the consumption of tissue and hygiene products in Qatar and the country’s high health and hygiene standards and high rating on the human department index (HDI). As a Muslim state, Qatar has a conservative culture and people do not openly discuss topics such as sex education or women’s natural health cycles, including but not limited to discussions about menstruation.

Socioeconomic Trends

As with many Arab countries, Qatar has a significant and affluent population of young adults. This has two effects on sales of different hygiene.

Logistics/Infrastructure

The vast majority of tissue and hygiene purchases are planned, with these products bought alongside the regular grocery shop in supermarkets and hypermarkets. These retailers have a strong presence across urban areas and are preferred by most consumers, being viewed as convenient and as offering value for money and the widest range of options.

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