The 'culture' and 'geography' of diapers

[HighVoltage]

Things like this interest me. Why does Europe and Asia prefer diaper pants, the kind that are easy to change on the go, that slide on like undies and have tear-away sides?

Why does the US and Latin America prefer tape-on diapers?

These things, statistics about how the world perceives and uses diapers, has always interested me. How diapers are marketed, why they sell or fail, etc.

I figured it might be fun to create a topic to discuss that kind of thing.

[nenog613]

are charts for total diaper sales, or is it strictly baby or adult diapers?

if its total diaper sales, it may be because who the diapers are intended for. China and India are the two most populated countries in the world, with significant portions of their populations having to ride extremely crowded commuter trains and buses for long hours for work. as a result, a large number of them wear adult diapers because there is no access to restrooms. then you've got Japan where they sell more adult diapers than baby diapers because a significant portion of the population is over the age of 65. for adults, diaper pants make more sense than tape diapers because they're a lot easier to take on and off.

for the Americas, diapers are bought more for babies, so tape diapers probably sell better because they make more sense than pull-ups. with pull-ups, the diaper may be too big and cause leaks or too small and dig into the child's legs. with tape diapers, you get a proper fit.

[HighVoltage]

15 minutes ago, nenog613 said:

are charts for total diaper sales, or is it strictly baby or adult diapers?

if its total diaper sales, it may be because who the diapers are intended for. China and India are the two most populated countries in the world, with significant portions of their populations having to ride extremely crowded commuter trains and buses for long hours for work. as a result, a large number of them wear adult diapers because there is no access to restrooms. then you've got Japan where they sell more adult diapers than baby diapers because a significant portion of the population is over the age of 65. for adults, diaper pants make more sense than tape diapers because they're a lot easier to take on and off.

for the Americas, diapers are bought more for babies, so tape diapers probably sell better because they make more sense than pull-ups. with pull-ups, the diaper may be too big and cause leaks or too small and dig into the child's legs. with tape diapers, you get a proper fit.

I checked where this came from, and it's only for babies and toddlers, and actual diapers, not training pants or bedwetting pants.

[Cruiser 03]

An intresting "kink" regarding Chinese and diapers , mothers don't often buy or use diapers for long with there kids ,as soon as the child is old enough to recognise there mothers whistle the go into split pants ( squat toilets ) so the mother whistles and the kids go squat ,my mother was a Psychologist and sociologist and she was fascinated by this ,she spent a month in country and was fascinated by the differences ,another think that fascinated her was the strict instructions to not engage with cops that had a "hello kitty" patch ,that was a way to get an ass beating ,officers who had a habit of beating the snot out of tourists where easy to identify as dangerous ,i have a Chinese firefighter friend and we talk about our cultures and stuff all the time ,and it fascinates him that I know so much about China and have never been there myself we met when I was still on the job in N.Y and he stopped by my house looking for directions .Any way Chinese like there split pant approach rather than diapers . Mothers can have there kids go squat every 15 minutes regardless of what they are doing . I would be intrested in finding a ABDL who grew up in China , because of the minimal exposure to actual diapers ,how did they find out the liked,loved or needed them in there life ,we can look for commonality within the sphere of us all wearing them as kids ,but how does someone who doesnt even have a memory of them discover that ? .   

[Alex Bridges]

I don’t think diaper pants/pull-ups are easier to change. Easy to take off, but to put one on the shoes and pants have to come all the way off.

[Little_Mouse]

I don't know why - but cloth-backed pull ups for big babies and toddlers are very popular in the part of Europe where I live.

The big store brands have advertised aggresively for pull ups and cloth-backed diapers over like the last decade, so maybe todays parents in Europe have been told and brainwashed most of their adult lifes into believe that it is the right thing to buy for their kid(s)?

[Stroller]

8 hours ago, Author_Alex said:

I don’t think diaper pants/pull-ups are easier to change. Easy to take off, but to put one on the shoes and pants have to come all the way off.

Yes, but...

For hiking there's nothing I've found as comfortable as Tena Maxi pants.  I've taken to putting two on if I'm going for a day's hike, with polyurethane pants over the top.  If I need to, I can just rip the inside ones off and I'm ready for the rest of the day.  As easy as can be.

[Alex Bridges]

3 hours ago, Stroller said:

Yes, but...

For hiking there's nothing I've found as comfortable as Tena Maxi pants.  I've taken to putting two on if I'm going for a day's hike, with polyurethane pants over the top.  If I need to, I can just rip the inside ones off and I'm ready for the rest of the day.  As easy as can be.

Clever

[HighVoltage]

Alright, theory:

The reason diaper pants are more popular in Asia, like Nenog said, has to do with space.

Japan and China are very, very cramped, so, in public areas (including restrooms), there might not be enough room for a laying down change. So diapers you can change standing up save space, as well as time (and easy when squirmy toddlers start to wriggle).

Doesn't explain the Europe part of this.

More questions on why certain trends didn't work: Why did Pampers Trainer fail in the mid-90s, but when they re-introduced the idea in the early 2000s as 'Pampers Easy Ups' did it work?

Why were gendered diapers so big in the early 90s, and why did they stop in the late 90s?

[WBxx]

My question, why are cloth diapers/nappies often terry squares in Great Britain and virtually never in the US?

[Smash-N-Dash]

9 hours ago, HighVoltage said:

Alright, theory:

The reason diaper pants are more popular in Asia, like Nenog said, has to do with space.

Japan and China are very, very cramped, so, in public areas (including restrooms), there might not be enough room for a laying down change. So diapers you can change standing up save space, as well as time (and easy when squirmy toddlers start to wriggle).

Doesn't explain the Europe part of this.

More questions on why certain trends didn't work: Why did Pampers Trainer fail in the mid-90s, but when they re-introduced the idea in the early 2000s as 'Pampers Easy Ups' did it work?

Why were gendered diapers so big in the early 90s, and why did they stop in the late 90s?

I have a few ideas on this myself. I think the reason Pampers Trainers were such a short-lived product was because they were inferior compared to Pull Ups at the time. Not to mention, Huggies not only created, but controlled the disposable training pant market for years at that point. Wouldn’t surprise me if they just couldn’t compete and pulled the product, only to introduce a better, more competitive product years later. Could also just be a matter of trends too.

As for the gender-specific diapers, they quit making them in favor of unisex diapers solely out of cost. Companies found it costly to produce two different diapers as opposed to a single diaper to serve both genders equally, at least here in the US. There are other parts of the world where Huggies, as an example, still offers gender-specific diapers, and even tried it again here in the US a little while ago when they introduced gender-specific Little Movers Slip-On Diapers. Obviously, they didn’t sell, as diaper pants typically don’t sell here. If a company isn’t making money on a product, then changes are in order.

44 minutes ago, WBxx said:

My question, why are cloth diapers/nappies often terry squares in Great Britain and virtually never in the US?

My guess is that being that they were invented here and considering the population sizes, they took off better here and have been a mainstay ever since.

[HighVoltage]

But then, that leaves the question of why gendered diapers are still in use in some products or areas (Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Australian Huggies, etc.)

[Smash-N-Dash]

1 hour ago, HighVoltage said:

But then, that leaves the question of why gendered diapers are still in use in some products or areas (Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Australian Huggies, etc.)

A lot of that comes from anatomy. It’s no secret when guys and gals go, it comes out of differently positioned orifices on the body. In babies, it’s not as significant of a difference when compared to an older child. That goes into the design not only just for absorbency, but look at where the wetness indicators are located on boys Pull Ups vs girls Pull Ups. Boys have theirs higher up on the front, and girls have theirs down more towards the middle. They’re going to pee in that area first, so they can catch the design fading and hopefully be caught in time to head to the bathroom before completely emptying. Not only that, but they’re meant to be stepping stones to underwear like big kids wear, so they have to look the part as well. Obviously, boys underwear doesn’t look like girls, and vice versa.

Same for Goodnites, though there are some markets, as well as a number of store brands, that offer unisex products. For the gendered ones, though, it still comes down to anatomy and design differentiation, only instead of encouraging a behavior, it helps to remove the stigma out of a behavior, in this case bedwetting. I know when I was younger, I had to wear the old all-white Goodnites that looked nothing like your typical underwear, and I was mortified. At least now kids have something that can give them some peace of mind without blowing their cover.

As for other exceptions, it could ultimately come down to market trends and what consumers have adopted to and become accustomed to over the years. Companies will do whatever they can to make a profit, even if it doesn’t make the most sense in the end.

[HighVoltage]

Alright, that makes sense.

I should clarify: I meant for this to be a free discussion of diapers, advertising, and how trends in both of those change both over time and across the globe, so if you have your own questions like "Why did this product fail?" or "Why are these two countries completely different in terms of their products?", feel free to ask and discuss.

[HighVoltage]

Why did Huggies fail in the UK, and now they only sell the wipes, Pull-Ups, Little Swimmers and bedwetting pants?

[Cruiser 03]

Why did Huggies fail in the UK, and now they only sell the wipes, Pull-Ups, Little Swimmers and bedwetting pants?

Whats weird to me is "diaper pants" I think of those Pjamas , i was going to by some to try ,then I found out they don't even hold an ATN Leak 27Oz nor does the site post negative reviews or feedback .
Combine that with an almost $500 investment for 2 pairs here in the US ,and then add they have to be line dried only ,which means mom or yourself has to hand wash and hang to dry every morning in order to have them ready to use everyday ,even me Mr.Try it and see hasn't way more work then just wearing a diaper ?

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[Riders Field]

I think that's interesting too. For myself, I just like the tape-on style. 

[HighVoltage]

It's been a bit, but I've got a solid question about a diaper brand: Why does Luvs not have anything other than normal diapers and wipes? They could make a lot of money with training pants and bedwetting pants and swim diapers.

[Smash-N-Dash]

8 hours ago, HighVoltage said:

It's been a bit, but I've got a solid question about a diaper brand: Why does Luvs not have anything other than normal diapers and wipes? They could make a lot of money with training pants and bedwetting pants and swim diapers.

They had them at different periods of time. Luvs Trainers were a thing in the 90s, and both Luvs Splashwear and Sleepdrys popped up in the late 90s/early 2000s. All discontinued after a few years.

When Luvs first came out, they were marketed as a premium diaper over Pampers, both of which are owned by P&G. It wasn’t until the 90s that they started marketing them as a budget brand, meant to undercut Pampers. They probably discontinued the various pants and swim diapers because either they weren’t popular or cannibalized sales from Pampers. After all, it doesn’t make sense for one company to release two directly competitive products.

[HighVoltage]

Wow, Smash-N-Dash, you know a lot about this kinda thing.

[Smash-N-Dash]

Honestly, a quick google search tells you a lot ?