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A Look at the UK Market

Who were the winners in 2023’s market

as published by GfK in January 2024 Progressive Preschool

As we approached the end of 2023, the total Baby Care market continued to look less than favourable. Market value between January to October was up only 1% and volume saw significant declines down to 9% in the same period. With demand continuing to drop, it looks unlikely that volume sales would see positive growth by the end of 2023, and value looked set to stabilise at around 1%.

Most products within the Baby Care market have seen a declines in both value and volume over 2023. However, there are a handful of products that, for a variety of reasons, enjoyed positive growth.

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS BOOSTED SALES OF BOTTLES AND TEETHERS

Over the last few years, volume sales of products that use sustainable materials has risen. In 2023, this trend saw a decline – in part due to the more expensive price tag associated with sustainable products. This caused some consumers to stop purchasing them during the cost-of-living crisis. However, glass baby bottles and wood+silicone teethers continued to deliver both value and volume growth over 2023.

Glass bottles saw a 15% rise in volume and a 39% uptick in value between January – October. The price also rose significantly during this period (by 21%) and is currently 30% higher than a plastic bottle. However, this greater price did not deter all consumers as plastic bottle volume was down 9%.

Teethers fabricated from a mixture of wood and silicone saw value increase by 24% and volume up by 23%. The mixture of wood and silicone makes the current average price of a product more affordable than a purely wood product. This is also true of silicone products, which may explain why consumers are currently favouring them when money is tight. For both glass bottles and wood and silicone teethers, 2023 delivered the highest volume and value sales. GfK expects this trend to continue throughout 2024.

SMART APP CONTROLLED BABY MONITORS

Smart baby monitors have also seen steady growth over the last few years as consumers move to the latest technology. Other monitor types posted falling demand in 2023, while smart controlled baby monitors were the only product to generate both volume and value growth versus 2022. Value grew 16% between January and October, while volume grew 17%. Once again this proves high-price is not always an obstacle to purchase. Prices saw a 1% decline versus 2022 as certain categories returned to pre-pandemic levels. This is another product where we have seen the highest value and volume total for a year, and we anticipate growth again in 2024.

WEARBLE BREAST PUMPS

‘Wearable’ (can be discreetly worn under a top / in a bra) breast pumps are another product that has grown in popularity over the years (bébélephant introduced the market leader – Elvie – to the UK in 2019). In 2022, value was negatively impacted at the start of the cost-of-living crisis. However, in 2023 both value and volume enjoyed significant growth. The launch of several new brands and models boosted the market. Value was up 24% and volume rose by 21% between January and October 2023. Once again, the higher price did not deter customers as wearable breast pumps are some of the most expensive models currently on the market. Rather, it is innovation and design driving popularity and appeal. 2023 was not a positive year for many brands and products, but there were a handful that performed well. These will aim to continue in this vein in 2024 thanks to a combination of innovation and customer understanding – addressing consumer concerns such as sustainability and the cost-of-living crisis.

 We are grateful to GfK for this research.

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