• According to FT, adult diaper sales in China could surpass those of infant diapers by 2025.
• China's population is rapidly ageing as its birth rate drops.
• According to the FT, this demographic shift has led some manufacturers to refocus their marketing efforts on adult diapers.

China's diaper market appears to be heading towards an inflection point.

According to the Financial Times, adult diaper sales could surpass those of infant diapers by 2025 due to the country's rapidly increasing population and falling birth rate.

According to estimates, by 2050, there will be 330 million Chinese over 65. The country's birthrate is also falling. It reached its lowest point since 1952 last year.

Some diaper manufacturers have already begun to refocus their marketing efforts to reach older customers because of the demographic shift.

Unicharm, a top seller of diapers in China appears to be one. According to FT, Unicharm now devotes more marketing dollars to adult diapers rather than infant diapers. This is according to sources close to the company. The spokesperson for Unicharm declined to comment.

A diaper factory in Hubei in China told the FT that they now make diapers for adults and not infants.

According to CLSA data, the adult diaper market in China will be worth $30 billion by 2040.

Because of the stigma surrounding adult diapers, marketing and selling them has been difficult in the past.

Reuters reported that Essity diaper manufacturer and Kimberly-Clark diaper manufacturer, both in 2019, estimated that less than half of the over 400 million people who are susceptible to weak bladders are purchasing the right products. They are embarrassed.

Kimberly-Clark spokesperson told Reuters that people keep incontinence secrets from their spouses, brothers and sisters.