Product Evolution
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Product Evolution Behind-the-scenes look at the No more washing diapers evolution of everyday products NoStory more ofwashing disposable diapers diapers Protection you can throw away Story of disposable diapers Story of facial tissues Did you ever wonder how the essential Learn Learn more more Learn more products you use on a daily basis came to be? What was happening in the world One teacher’s fight against germs that spurred Kimberly-Clark on to invent One teacher's fight against germs Helping babies become big kids StoryStory of paper of paper towels towels Story of training pants new-to-the-world products such as facial Learn Learn more more Learn more tissue, paper towels, toilet paper on a roll, feminine pads and disposable Cotton substitute improves women’s lives training pants? Why were disposable Cotton substitute improves women's lives The roll that changed history StoryStory of feminine of feminine sanitary pads sanitary pads Story of toilet tissue diapers invented and what role did Learn Learn more more Learn more Kimberly-Clark have in improving their use? How did all these amazing products become such an integral Protection you can throw away No more washing diapers Protection you can throw away part of the fabricStory of disposable our lives? diapers StoryStory of facialof facial tissues tissues Learn more Learn Learn more more The answers are quite extraordinary and surprising. For instance, did you know that the material used to develop Helping babies become big kids One teacher's fight against germs Helping babies become big kids Kleenex tissueStory was of paperoriginally towels intended StoryStory of training of training pants pants for use as a filter Learn for moregas masks in World Learn Learn more more War I? Or that resourceful Red Cross nurses used bandage material as The roll that changed history Cotton substitute improves women's lives The roll that changed history sanitary padsStory during of feminine their sanitary menstrual pads StoryStory of toiletof toilet tissue tissues periods? While Kimberly-Clark Learn more didn’t Learn Learn more more invent the disposable diaper, we did develop several key innovations that have become standards in the industry. Read on to discover the stories behind these fascinating products. no more washi ng diapers Disposable diapers story The need for diapers has been around since the beginning of history. Throughout the ages, people have created their own versions of diapers using natural resources such as milkweed leaf, animal skins, packed grass and moss. While there's no record of how often these makeshift diapers were changed, it is widely believed that in some cultures it was no more than once every three or four days. In colder regions, infants were often bound up in blankets that kept them warm and acted as primitive diapers. In warmer tropical climates, diapers were Expanding Into the Premium Diaper Market rarely used. Mothers tried to anticipate their baby's bowel K-C's leadership determined that Kimbies did not have a long- movements and took them outside away from the house to term future. They needed to do something completely new or avoid messes. get out of the business. K-C researchers had been quietly working on a rectangular-shaped diaper. Introduced in 1977, It wasn't until the mid- the popular-priced line was called Kleenex Super Dry diapers. nineteenth century with the At the same time, K-C researchers were aiming for the advent of cheap emerging premium-priced market manufactured cotton fabrics with a new product called Kleenex that cloth diapers began to Huggies, which was introduced in emerge. Diapers were 1978. It was an hourglass shaped typically rectangular or diaper that featured elastic at the square in shape and were legs. By 1982, Huggies was folded and fastened on distributed nationwide and a year infants as garments or later, Huggies with refastenable undergarments. Always tapes was the leading premium seeking ways to protect their children, many moms would add diaper. their own twist to the diaper phenomenon. Some would place natural absorbing materials such as moss or peat inside the Evolving to Meet Babies' Needs diapers to help collect waste and some would simply put two Over the years, a steady stream of or more diapers on their child to limit leakage. innovative improvements designed to provide extra comfort and a more Disposable Diapers Emerge natural fit, as well as to reduce diaper Disposable diapers were developed simultaneously in Europe rash and improve skin wellness, has and North America between the 1930s and 1950s, with most enabled Huggies to maintain its progress taking place after World War II. Technological market leadership. A few of those advances such as the development of more soft and absorbent product enhancements included the materials propelled the disposable diaper to a new level. As launch of Huggies Supreme diapers the new product received increased exposure to a variety of in 1994, Huggies Baby-Shaped Fit markets including pharmacies, hospitals, medical supply diapers, Huggies Overnites diapers, houses and department stores demand gradually began to and the recent introduction of grow. Still, manufacturers perceived them as a specialty two new supreme diapers under the Huggies brand - Huggies product with limited potential due to their high cost relative to Supreme Gentle Care and Huggies Supreme Natural Fit cotton diapers. diapers. Huggies Supreme Gentle Care diapers offer new cottony-soft materials called Cuddleweave to provide a K-C Enters Disposable Diaper Category comforting and secure feeling that is extra gentle for newborn Kimberly-Clark had worked on disposable diapers for years babies. In addition, its preemie and newborn sizes are the only before introducing the Kimbies diapers in the market with a new U-shaped umbilical cord brand in 1968. Kimbies featured opening offering the most-gentle protection for a younger several key innovations that baby's sensitive belly button area. Huggies Supreme Natural became industry standards, Fit, introduces Hugflex, a new hourglass shape so the diaper including a triangular shape fits and feels more natural to older babies. that was uniquely contoured to a baby's body, a new absorbent To learn more about Huggies products and to read informative material (fluff pulp instead of articles and insights from moms and other experts on tissue pulp), a spun-bounded pregnancy and parenting, polypropyleneliner and adhesive visit the Huggies Baby Network tape fasteners. However, the brand at www.huggiesbabynetwork.com still wasn't perfected and many consumers or www.huggies.com. complained that, when their child was upright or playing, the diaper sometimes leaked. Sources: Seven Decades of Disposable Diapers, Davis Dyer, The Winthrop Group, Inc. www.gpoabs.com.mx/chricher/history.htm , an overview of the history of the diaper Shared Values: A History of Kimberly-Clark one teacher's fight against germs Disposable paper towels story In 1907, a mild epidemic of colds hit the Philadelphia area. A Scott Targets Home Market local teacher blamed the outbreak on the fact that all her In 1931, Scott expanded its students used the same cloth towel, which she believed was papertowel business to the home the source of infection. To protect her students from spreading market with the introduction of any more germs, this resourceful teacher came up with the rolled ScotTowels, creating a novel idea of cutting heavy copy paper into squares and using whole new grocery category. them as individual towels. Critical to the success of ScotTowels was the creation Arthur Scott of the Scott of the towel holder, which Scott Paper Company heard also sold. Paul Brown, a Scott about the teacher's salesman in the 1930s, ingenious solution and it compared trying to sell towels gave him an idea. Around without a holder to selling razor blades without a razor. that time, the company had purchased several Roll towels were targeted for use parent rolls of a new type in the kitchen. They were of creped tissue for product advertised as attacking illnesses experimentation. One acquired from the use of linen carload delivered to Scott towels and even referred to the was so heavy and thick that threat of "social diseases." Scott it couldn't be cut into rolls of changed this approach in 1933 toilet tissue, Scott's dominant to stress economy, multiple uses consumer product at the time. Scott ordered the paper to be and eventually absorbency - made into rolls of towels and perforated into individual 13 described as "wet strength." inches by 18 inches sheets. The paper towel was born! The advertising strategy worked Originally called Sani-Towels, the new product was later and over the next several years renamed ScotTissue Towels. the Scott Paper Company became the world's leading manufacturer of paper towels. In 1995, Kimberly-Clark acquired Scott Paper. Evolving to Meet Consumers' Needs Over the years, there have been many improvements to the Scott Towels brand including designer prints, revolutionary ridges that absorb faster, mega rolls and licensing agreements and partnerships Promoting Sanitary Uses of Paper Towels with Disney and To educate the public as to the purpose, use and proper NASCAR. standards of personal hygiene of the paper towel, Scott conducted an advertising campaign which created a large market for ScotTissue Towels. One of its popular advertising slogans was "For use once by one user." Over the next few Kimberly-Clark has come a long way from the initial Scott years, rolled paper towels Sani-Towels product. Today, in addition to Scott Paper Towels were sold to commercial, the company also manufactures and distributes several other institutional and well-known disposable paper towel brands in more than 25 industrial users. The countries. A few of these global brands include Viva, Scottex, product became an Page, Fiesta, Velvet, Tela, Sopalin, Petalo and Vogue.