How P&G engineered Pampers from a 1% niche to 42% of the US diaper market by 1973, driven by continuous manufacturing innovation and price compression.
Key Takeaways
Victor Mills at P&G proposed disposable diapers in 1957; the first Dallas field test failed due to heat rash from plastic pants, forcing a full redesign.
Early Pampers launched in Peoria at 10 cents each – double the diaper service rate – requiring years of machine engineering to hit a viable 5.5 cents before national rollout in 1966.
Kimberly-Clark’s Huggies (1977) introduced crotch elastication and refastenable tape, using custom hourglass-cut tissue machines; it eventually overtook Pampers as market leader.
Superabsorbent polymers introduced mid-1980s cut diaper bulk by 50%, slashing trucking, storage, and shelf costs roughly in half each per P&G’s logistics chief.
Huggies Pull-Ups (1989) captured 9% of the diaper market and $200M in annual sales before P&G could respond, showing how adjacent product extensions can blindside incumbents.
Hacker News Comment Review
Parent commenters broadly agree that diaper changing is among the easier infant challenges; the cultural horror around it is seen as an internet-amplified misconception that discourages potential parents.
A subset of commenters actively uses cloth diapers citing chemical concerns, but anecdotal reports consistently show abandonment within weeks once the laundry burden hits – echoing the exact friction P&G exploited.
The demographic thread notes adult diaper sales now exceed baby diaper sales in Japan, raising questions about how manufacturers will reorient R&D as birth rates fall globally.
Notable Comments
@cycomanic: Points out infant potty training under 3 months is common in many non-Western cultures, questioning whether the entire diaper market rests on a Western behavioral assumption.
@uma_ch: Notes adult diapers now outsell baby diapers in Japan, framing it as a strategic signal for manufacturers in aging or low-birthrate markets.
