Trends in detergents, cleaning agents and cleaning products – the rise of home cleaning
For a long time, cleaning at home was seen as an unloved, boring task that people avoided as much (and as long) as they could. If you absolutely had to, you just got up and did it to avoid sinking into dust and dirt. But very few people found it fun.
But things have miraculously changed. House cleaning now enjoys a completely different reputation. Not only is it now seen as a valuable job, but for many it has become a hobby that – read and marvel – people actually enjoy doing.
We want to get to the bottom of this truly spectacular change in this article. Our article naturally focuses on the effects of the new enthusiasm for home cleaning on the packaging design and marketing of detergents, cleaning products and cleaning agents.
Design trends for detergents, cleaning agents and cleaning products
Most people certainly remember the traditional packaging designs of washing, cleaning and detergent products from supermarkets and drugstores. With more or less funny figures and characters, screaming colors and an excess of information, WPR manufacturers tried to convince consumers who were hostile to cleaning that cleaning could be fun. However, they were only successful to the extent that, in the past, no one was spared the need to reach for a detergent or cleaning agent every now and then if they wanted to look after themselves, their clothes and their home. In any case, the “old” packaging designs hardly contributed to more enjoyment of the activity.
Modern packaging from WPR is a complete departure from the once maximalist approach with lots of colors, gradients, shadows, typography and information as well as traditional figures. Instead, they are minimalist in the best sense of the word. What we see now, when we look at the latest products for washing, cleaning and cleaning, are restrained, sophisticated colors in thoughtful combinations, simple illustrations that focus on the most important information, expressive typography and a generally uncluttered, clear layout. The packaging designers clearly place much more emphasis on a well-structured layout.
When we say that the cleaning products with their contemporary branding are ripe for the next Design Award, we are not exaggerating one bit.
But what is behind this enormous contrast? How did it come about that detergents, cleaning agents and cleaning products suddenly look like stylish luxury products and, with their packaging designs that are reduced to the essentials and at the same time emphatically clear and elegant, give consumers the impression that they are something valuable and precious? Essentially, there are three developments or aspects that have significantly influenced this change. We will look at these in the following paragraphs.
Home Care as Self-Care
In recent years, our apartments and houses have increasingly become multifunctional places to live and work. Above all, they should be places of refuge and retreat where our physical and mental well-being is the focus. Accordingly, we are increasingly viewing and treating the care of our homes as a more specialized type of wellness activity.
Here are some examples of how brands are using this trend in the design and marketing of their products:
– Guests on Earth says of itself “We treat home care like self-care.”.
– Purdy & Figg advertises with the invitation “Turn your home into a spa.”.
– Diptyque stands for an eco-friendly body care range with luxurious fragrances.
– kinfill offers ecological, effective cleansing products with elegant, contemporary aesthetics.
– HomeCourt combines skincare quality ingredients and fragrances from experienced perfumers.
Cleaning stars
Yes, even stars have to keep their homes clean. The best way to do this seems to be with their own products. The fact that celebrities help develop perfumes is no surprise to anyone these days. Recently, however, some celebrities have also tended to launch cleaning products on the market. Whether this trend is a consequence of the fact that cleaning has made the transition from a dirty to a smart activity, so to speak, or whether the stars and their brands have paved the way for the changed image of cleaning, is not clear. Presumably, as with many things in life, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.
A few examples of celebrities with their own brand of cleaning products:
– Actress Courteney Cox, best known from the sitcom Friends, in which she aptly portrays neat freak Monica Geller, launched HomeCourt in 2022. She wanted her house to smell like something she would wear herself. So the US American came up with the idea of creating home care products with that certain something.
– Drew Barrymore, also an American actress, has at least briefly strayed into the world of cleaning products. In collaboration with the manufacturer Grove Co., she has created a range of environmentally friendly yet sensually appealing home care products. The product series is a limited edition.
– With Safely, US TV personality Kris Jenner and British-born businesswoman Emma Grede have developed a brand for extraordinary home care products. The two women want to change the way the world thinks about cleaning. They believe that a thoroughly cleaned house is the basis for one’s own well-being.
– And there’s another US actress who has spawned a WPR brand: Jessica Alba’s The Honest Company offers both body and home care products with innovative formulations and a commitment to combining wellness with protecting the environment as much as possible.
Sustainable cleaning
As can be seen from the above, sustainability also plays a very important role in the WPR trend. However, environmental friendliness is not communicated by an almost annoying sticker, as it used to be, which points out that the bottle has recently dispensed with so and so much plastic or is now completely free of microplastics. Instead, sustainability is now also an integral part of the respective brand for detergents, cleaning products and cleaning agents, i.e. something that defines the brand.
Here are a few examples of the trend towards cleaning your own home with pleasure – but sustainably:
– Cleancult offers refill packs that are made from paper.
– The all-in-one cleaning concentrate from Everdaily fulfills different purposes in the home by adding different amounts of water. It can be used as a bathroom cleaner, laundry detergent, washing-up liquid and all-purpose cleaner.
– HoldOn offers bin liners made from plant-based, biodegradable materials.
– Solid soap, such as that produced by Ethique, saves packaging material and therefore waste.
– The detergent from Zara reduces the removal of microfibers from textiles by 80 percent.