Elastoplast surpasses Band-Aid to take control of the Australian wound care market

The Australian wound care market grew by 5% through 2012, to reach a sales value of A$94 million in current value terms.

Wound care is a significant category in Australia. Australians live active lifestyles and when injured or hurt want to minimise the inconvenience experienced. On average, 1% of the population suffers from a chronic wound at any one time and 20% of these sufferers have this wound for two years according to research commissioned by local industry players. Beyond chronic wounds, common symptoms include abrasions, lacerations, skin tearing, grazes, burns and blisters.

Growth in wound care was aided by demographic trends in Australia, primarily led by Australia's ageing population and the injuries that often occur as a result of ageing. As consumers get older a number of factors combine to increase demand for wound care: not only are they increasingly prone to falls, but it also takes longer for wounds to heal.

Consumers using wound care offerings want to get back to their daily lives as quickly as possible. This has led to strong consumer approval of heavy duty sticking plasters/adhesive bandages. Heavy duty variants represent around 35% of the sticking plasters/adhesive bandages category in Australia in value terms and this product area grew by 18% in value terms in 2012. Sticking plasters/adhesive bandages as a whole grew by 5% to A$48 million in current value terms in 2012.

While Johnson & Johnson Pacific Pty Ltd's Band-Aid brand had long been the leader within the Australian wound care market, this lead has been slowly eroded and was eventually surpassed by the Beiersdorf Australia Ltd brand Elastoplast, which at the end of 2012 led sales with a 27% value share.

Beiersdorf's Elastoplast is well positioned in both gauze, tape and other wound care and sticking plasters/adhesive bandages. Elastoplast, which specialises in fabric rather than plastic bandages, is considered to be more hardy and robust than Band-Aid, and it is this durability that was pushed in branding.

For more information on the Australian wound care market, see the latest research: Australian Wound Care Market

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