H1 2025 Whitepaper: China's Household Paper Products Market Analysis

Key Finding 1

China's online household paper products market reached CN¥ 56.8 billion in MAT2025 (September 2024 to August 2025), growing +11.3% YoY, with volume-driven expansion offsetting declining average prices across major categories.

The market continues its structural shift toward volume growth amid price competition. Facial tissue remains the dominant category at CN¥ 27.9 billion (+10.2% YoY), commanding 50% market share. Tmall/Taobao (天猫/淘宝) retains the largest platform share at approximately 41%, though its dominance continues eroding as JD.com (京东) gains +1.1pp to 26.4% and Douyin (抖音) holds steady at 32.6%. This platform diversification reflects consumers' expanding channel preferences and brands' multi-platform distribution strategies.

Key Finding 2

Kitchen paper towels (+45.6% YoY), wet toilet paper (+30.9%), and moisturizing tissue (+24.5%) emerge as the three fastest-growing sub-categories, driven by evolving hygiene standards, premiumization, and product innovation.

The growth hierarchy reveals clear consumer upgrade trajectories. Kitchen paper towels, despite a smaller base, demonstrate the strongest growth as Chinese households increasingly adopt specialized cleaning products. Wet toilet paper benefits from rising personal hygiene awareness, reaching CN¥ 3.5 billion with Deyou commanding 38.6% market share. Moisturizing tissue continues its premium positioning at CN¥ 2.7 billion, though COROU's market share declined -2.9pp to 53.6% as value-oriented challengers like Yipiao (+424.2%) and Congma (+2,967.5%) capture share through aggressive pricing under CN¥ 10 per unit.

Key Finding 3

Celebrity endorsements, IP collaborations, and ingredient innovation are reshaping competitive dynamics across all sub-categories, with cream formulations becoming the universal selling point while squalane, probiotics, and natural plant extracts drive brand differentiation.

The convergence of skincare concepts with household paper products is creating a new competitive playbook. COROU's partnership with actress Liu Shishi generated 26,388 social media posts and 2.96 million engagements in October 2024 alone. Deyou's announcement of global brand ambassador Cheng Yi in February 2025 drove engagement surges across both moisturizing tissue and wet toilet paper. Meanwhile, IP collaborations -- including Nezha (哪吒), Line Friends, and Sanrio -- are proving especially effective at attracting younger consumers. Brands that combine ingredient innovation with emotionally resonant marketing are capturing disproportionate market share growth.