India needs more education around hygiene. SCA Hygiene India gives an account of the consumption pattern in India’s huge tissue market.
What are the different types and kinds of tissues? Which are the ones that are fast moving in India and its applications?
India provides the tissue industry with a huge potential, but more education around hygiene and the use of tissue is needed. The per capita consumption for tissue in India is very low (5-7 grams) compared to other countries. This category is still perceived as an ‘unnecessary luxury’ and seen as a commodity.
In AFH there are various applications for tissues
Paper Hand Towels:
Just washing our hands is not a complete solution, drying your hands is also important. In earlier days, we used to see Turkish cloth towels in washrooms which were highly unhygienic & were the key source for cross contamination. Eventually, paper towels have found their way into public washrooms. Use of paper towels brings two key benefits —
- Use and throw: Which means no cross contamination
- Paper: Which absorbs and dries hands completely and quickly
SCA offers paper towels under the Tork brand in various formats: C-fold, M-fold, single fold and the latest preferred format is Rolled towels. SCA does not only offer Tork paper hand towels, the company also has a strong track record in consulting its customers on the right format of the paper towels considering the washroom size, traffic etc. SCA and Tork are the first in India to introduce 2-ply hand towels on the market. 2-ply towels deliver better results in terms of drying while at the same time reducing waste.
Toilet Tissue
Toilet paper is not very popular in India, as water is more preferred than disposable toilet tissues.
Toilet tissues are available in rolled and folded format. Conventional toilet rolls are widely used in India considering its price and availability. Recently, SCA has introduced an innovative rolled system in this category called Smart one Toiler Paper System. This is a unique system with a dispenser and one-at-a-time dispensing. The covered system keeps the roll intact and one-at-a-time dispensing of toilet paper provides hygienic and sustainable consumption control.
Facial Tissue
This category is mostly driven by the consumer industry. In the AFH sector, facial tissue can be found in conference rooms and hotel guest rooms.
Napkins
In India, traditional napkins are widely used. All restaurants, canteens, catering services provide quarterfold napkins. The napkin market provides a high potential but is very price competitive. Customization, i.e. printing logos on the product, is a key demand from the end customers to get maximum brand mileage.
Considering its belief in innovation, SCA has launched a system-based napkin system which dispenses one napkin at a time. This new system is called Tork XpressNap and consists of dispenser and napkins. This unique system brings more hygiene and branding opportunity, as well as allows for better control over the napkin consumption.
Kitchen Rolls / wipes
Kitchen rolls are tissue rolls which are used in hotel kitchens for hand wiping or surface cleaning.
Kitchen rolls are available with or without dispenser. From a hygiene perspective, it is suggested to use the kitchen roll with dispenser.
Of all the above mentioned types of tissues, toilet rolls and napkins are fast moving goods, based on consumption patterns.
What are the strategies being adopted by SCA in the Indian market to create awareness about tissues and hygiene?
-Becoming a consultant and not a product seller
- SCA strongly believes that everybody has a right for hygiene. SCA’s Tork range of products offers various hygiene platforms & solutions which provide easy access to hygiene. SCA conducts hand hygiene programs, hygiene eduction programmes, or participation in hygiene forums etc. Doing this SCA also provides consultation on product suggestion understanding customer needs, washroom size, traffic level. We taking care of the needs, so that our customer can focus on other things
Localization
- SCA invests in India to produce products locally to meet various customer needs & ensuringavailability of the product any point of time.
Fueling innovation & driving convenience
- Launching highly differentiated products provides better functionality & brings more cost in use from long term perspective
Which are the sectors SCA is catering to in India? Why?
Two key segments where SCA is focusing & catering are: Commercial Trade and HoReCa (hotels, restaurant & catering), as both these segments are showing double digit growth rate. Also increased awareness about hygiene in banking, schools and IT sectors has helped. Young employment demands for good quality products.
India currently has over 200,000 hotel rooms spread across hotel categories and guest-houses and is still facing a shortfall of over 100,000 rooms. ‘Make in India’ campaign designed to transform India into a global manufacturing hub is also a positive factor.