Crisis forces families to withdraw disposable diapers from the shopping basket

The Piauí Joice Lee, of 22 years, is the mother of Maria Luiza, of 1 year and 4 months. She buys a package of 24 diapers for girl, R $17, every two weeks, prioritizing the night time use and a few times during the day. The rest of the time, the small already wear panties. Is quite different from the situation that the clerk of the city of Luís Correia, 365 km from Teresina (PI), experienced when Daniel Achilles, your oldest son and today with 4 years, he was a baby. In 2014, the package of 24 diapers was consumed in two days.
— As it was just a child, we had more conditions to buy disposable diapers. Now, with two children, is difficult. Maria Luiza uses only disposable diapers, so every night. Daniel wore a lot of diapers. But, now, they are very expensive, and income fell — Joice, which has monthly income of R $300, supplemented with help from ex-husband, who still divides the House and keep the children.
The report of Joice explains in large part the drop in sales of disposable diapers for children in the country in the past two years, mainly as a result of the recession. In number of units sold, the recoil was 20.5% in 2016, and 7.8% in 2017, according to data from Kantar Worldpanel: consumer. Already in value, there was decrease of 15% and 1.6% increase, respectively. Fell also the frequency of purchase and the number of homes where the product is present.
— Between 2009 and 2014, Brazil has registered major growth in disposable diapers, pulled by the middle-class income gain, who happened to have access to a higher value-added product. The industry saw this movement, and the major manufacturers such as P&G, Kimberly-Clark and Hypermarcas, made investments in factories, innovation and expansion of portfolio. The recession has imposed a brake to consumption — explains Roberto Vautier, specialist in AGR retail consultants.
REDUCE THE BIRTH RATE
With unemployment and the squeeze on the family budget, families have reduced expenses, which explains the fall not only on the quantity purchased, but the frequency of purchase, as does the Piauí Joice.
— With the crisis, many women have postponed motherhood. But there was also the zika outbreak, which reduced the birth rate all over the country, especially in the North and Northeast, where the consumption of disposable diapers for children is stronger — highlights the consultant.
Fernando Bueno, Manager of Pampers in Brazil, P&G brand, says that the fall in the birth rate has impacted the segment:
— The consumption basket of the brazilian population through several changes over the years, as a result of the transformation of the Brazilians ' buying habits. In this scenario, according to data from Nielsen, there was a negative movement in the consumption of disposable diapers, which can be attributed to the falling birth rate, which has been recurring factor in Brazil.
In 2014, the trailer still income gain in the country, Brazil reached the rank of third-largest children's nappies market in the world, totaling US $ $1.81 billion in sales, behind only China and the United States. From then on, the world market has advanced, while the performance of Brazilian segment was decelerating. In 2015 and 2016, the country came down to fourth place, surpassed by Japan. Last year, dropped to sixth, after Mexico have jumped to third place, ahead of the Japanese.
PRICE ADVANCED 10% per year
In 2017, the diaper sales have reached $ $1.99 billion, 0.5% less than the previous year. Between 2014 and 2016, the brake on growth rate reflects the impact of the economic crisis, with smaller expansion rates: 11.9%, 6.5% and 3.5%, successively.
— The industry needed to reinvent itself. Some of the major manufacturers have chosen to offset the fall in infant diapers expanding the production of items for adult use. With the aging of the population, there was the offer of a wide range of products, with greater penetration in the upper classes — ponders Vautier.
Still, the average price of diapers advanced 10% annually in 2016 and 2017. It happened because the premium brands are the ones that have indented less in sales, explains the Kantar, and, even with promotions, they have above average prices.
— In the last two years, sales of diapers fell 20% and 30%. The premium brands also lost much. We make promotions, but not a fire sale, because our goal is to keep the customer attending our stores — ponders Sérgio Leite, commercial Director of the supermarkets.
EXPANDING ECOLOGICAL
Running on the outside — and gaining space on the market — come ecological diapers. They are a sustainable version of the old lean trousers more kit cloth diaper, but offering practicality and drums that are leaking technology. In Brazil there are already at least three prominent manufacturers: Dipano, Dry Diaper and We and David. All advance anchored by the desire of families to reduce the production of waste not recyclable — a disposable diaper can take more than 400 years to decompose — but also the issue of cost.
— Most of our clientele comes for the ecological issue. But it's a product that also attracts the issue of lower cost and does not cause allergies in babies — explains Maria Cristina Duarte, partner at Dipano, business that opened with the sister, Monica Pina, in 2010.
A child, says Maria Cristina, uses, on average, 6000 diapers between birth and fly, around 2 years and 6 months. By the calculations of Dipano, spent on diapers in a year edge R $3000. A kit with 20 ecological diapers — enough of birth (for babies from 3.5 pounds) to fly — it costs R $1,200.
— They are made of special fabric, washable. And pants where the diaper is placed allows adapt it to the size of the baby as he grows — explains Maria Cristina.