Fewer babies, smaller market: How Singapore baby-care brands are adapting

Homegrown brands are widening product ranges, adding services and expanding abroad as costs climb and the domestic customer base shrinks.

Fewer babies, rising costs and intensifying competition are putting pressure on Singapore’s baby-care market. (Photo: iStock/Liudmila Chernetska)

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SINGAPORE: A shrinking pool of babies is forcing Singapore's baby-care brands to rethink where growth will come from, even as costs climb and competition turns increasingly global.

For homegrown brand Hegen, which grew significantly for much of the past decade, the effects are beginning to show. Its co-founder and chief operating officer Leon Bock said its Singapore business has seen a “very slight” decline over the past one to one-and-a-half years.

The challenges facing the sector have drawn greater attention following the recent announcement that homegrown brand Tollyjoy is winding down after 55 years .

While the company has said its decision was not driven by financial considerations , its exit comes as the industry adjusts to a smaller domestic customer base, raising questions about what fewer births will mean for companies that depend on parents and young children.

CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less Retail experts said the answer is more nuanced than a straightforward decline. Citing data from market research firm Euromonitor, Associate Professor Lau Kong Cheen, head of the marketing programme at Nanyang Business School, said retail value sales in Singapore's baby and mother-care industry rose 7 per cent in 2025 to S$117 million (US$91.5 million). Fewer babies could mean fewer products sold but not necessarily a corresponding fall in spending, he said. Parents are becoming more discerning, and niche and premium products let companies capture more spending from each customer. Dr Lynda Wee, an adjunct associate professor of marketing at the same school, said parents increasingly expect products to be safe, convenient and multi-functional. SHRINKING CUSTOMER BASE Singapore recorded 29,864 live births in 2025, down 11.4 per cent from 33,703 the previous year. The resident total fertility rate fell to a historic low of 0.87 . Births could keep falling even if fertility rates recover somewhat, as fewer women of childbearing age remain, said Professor Jean Yeung, director of social sciences at A*STAR’s Institute for Human Development and Potential. Parents with fewer children may spend more on each child, but this was unlikely to offset the drop in consumption volume that comes with lower fertility. Singapore's current age structure points to smaller child-related markets over time, said Prof Yeung, who is also a professor at the National University of Singapore's Department of Paediatrics. For businesses, that demographic shift means tougher competition for every customer. “When we first started … Singapore had about 40,000 babies that year but today that number is less than 30,000,” said its co-founder and chief operating officer Leon Bock. “So with a much smaller size, it creates a lot more challenges for all the brands involved in (this) category … We have many competitors, locally, domestically, as well as internationally and therefore, to try and fight for a smaller piece of the cake is always more and more difficult.” The cost of doing business is also climbing. Hegen has raised prices twice in its 11-year history, each time within about 10 per cent, Mr Bock said, citing higher raw material, freight and oil costs. “It's hit us hard at the bottom lines, and even though we have had a price adjustment not too long ago … our cost still continues to rise, so that's one of the areas that we are obviously concerned with and trying to see how we can best mitigate all the factors involved,” he said. Purchases typically dip for a few months after a price increase before recovering, he added. Global supply disruptions have also made shipping times harder to predict. To build resilience into its supply chain, Hegen is developing distribution centres closer to its markets. It plans to open centres in Europe and the United States by the fourth quarter of this year, alongside Singapore as its Asian hub, with another potentially in China next year. Other companies are tackling the cost squeeze closer to the factory floor. Freshening Industries, which manufactures baby-care products such as wipes and diapers under its Zappy brand, has turned to automation. Managing director Moh Yan Ting said automating repetitive and labour-intensive work has improved productivity without adding manpower and helped the company manage prices. How exposed a brand is to price competition depends on its market position, said Professor Kapil Tuli of Singapore Management University. Tollyjoy was positioned as a value-for-money brand while Hegen competes at the premium end, where product design is a key differentiator. That leaves Hegen relatively less exposed to lower-cost rivals, while value-oriented brands may face greater pressure , said the marketing professor. Still, price is not the only consideration for parents. This is especially when it comes to baby products, where they weigh factors such as ingredients, quality and safety, Ms Moh said. Competing purely on price is not sustainable, she added. Dr Wee said parents today are often time-poor, juggling dual careers, caregiving and household management. That has increased the value they place on products that save time, reduce stress and offer convenience. Professor Lawrence Loh, director of the Centre for Governance and Sustainability at NUS Business School, pointed to baby and child skincare, toiletries and medicated products as categories with room to grow. Premiumisation, a strategy that shifts demand towards higher-value, higher-margin products, could let companies grow revenue even as births fall, he added.

Retail experts said the answer is more nuanced than a straightforward decline.

Citing data from market research firm Euromonitor, Associate Professor Lau Kong Cheen, head of the marketing programme at Nanyang Business School, said retail value sales in Singapore's baby and mother-care industry rose 7 per cent in 2025 to S$117 million (US$91.5 million).

Fewer babies could mean fewer products sold but not necessarily a corresponding fall in spending, he said. Parents are becoming more discerning, and niche and premium products let companies capture more spending from each customer.

Dr Lynda Wee, an adjunct associate professor of marketing at the same school, said parents increasingly expect products to be safe, convenient and multi-functional.

SHRINKING CUSTOMER BASE

Singapore recorded 29,864 live births in 2025, down 11.4 per cent from 33,703 the previous year. The resident total fertility rate fell to a historic low of 0.87 .

Births could keep falling even if fertility rates recover somewhat, as fewer women of childbearing age remain, said Professor Jean Yeung, director of social sciences at A*STAR’s Institute for Human Development and Potential.

Parents with fewer children may spend more on each child, but this was unlikely to offset the drop in consumption volume that comes with lower fertility. Singapore's current age structure points to smaller child-related markets over time, said Prof Yeung, who is also a professor at the National University of Singapore's Department of Paediatrics.

For businesses, that demographic shift means tougher competition for every customer.

“When we first started … Singapore had about 40,000 babies that year but today that number is less than 30,000,” said its co-founder and chief operating officer Leon Bock.

“So with a much smaller size, it creates a lot more challenges for all the brands involved in (this) category … We have many competitors, locally, domestically, as well as internationally and therefore, to try and fight for a smaller piece of the cake is always more and more difficult.”

The cost of doing business is also climbing. Hegen has raised prices twice in its 11-year history, each time within about 10 per cent, Mr Bock said, citing higher raw material, freight and oil costs.

“It's hit us hard at the bottom lines, and even though we have had a price adjustment not too long ago … our cost still continues to rise, so that's one of the areas that we are obviously concerned with and trying to see how we can best mitigate all the factors involved,” he said.

Purchases typically dip for a few months after a price increase before recovering, he added.

Global supply disruptions have also made shipping times harder to predict. To build resilience into its supply chain, Hegen is developing distribution centres closer to its markets. It plans to open centres in Europe and the United States by the fourth quarter of this year, alongside Singapore as its Asian hub, with another potentially in China next year.

Other companies are tackling the cost squeeze closer to the factory floor.

Freshening Industries, which manufactures baby-care products such as wipes and diapers under its Zappy brand, has turned to automation. Managing director Moh Yan Ting said automating repetitive and labour-intensive work has improved productivity without adding manpower and helped the company manage prices.

How exposed a brand is to price competition depends on its market position, said Professor Kapil Tuli of Singapore Management University.

Tollyjoy was positioned as a value-for-money brand while Hegen competes at the premium end, where product design is a key differentiator. That leaves Hegen relatively less exposed to lower-cost rivals, while value-oriented brands may face greater pressure , said the marketing professor.

Still, price is not the only consideration for parents. This is especially when it comes to baby products, where they weigh factors such as ingredients, quality and safety, Ms Moh said.

Competing purely on price is not sustainable, she added.

Dr Wee said parents today are often time-poor, juggling dual careers, caregiving and household management. That has increased the value they place on products that save time, reduce stress and offer convenience.

Professor Lawrence Loh, director of the Centre for Governance and Sustainability at NUS Business School, pointed to baby and child skincare, toiletries and medicated products as categories with room to grow.

Premiumisation, a strategy that shifts demand towards higher-value, higher-margin products, could let companies grow revenue even as births fall, he added.

KEEPING CUSTOMERS FOR LONGER

Another option is to keep existing customers for longer. That is a particular challenge for Hegen, which Mr Bock said must effectively win a new group of customers every two years because its traditional products largely serve children from birth to around age two.

“If we can’t get more customers, then we need to find a way to journey longer with our customers by creating products that extend the usage from birth to 10 years old, or even longer,” he said.

The company is developing products for a wider age range and expanding beyond physical products into personalisation, education and lactation services.

“It's something that has taken off very well for us, and it is accounting for quite a big portion of our domestic revenue. Now we've started to launch this service internationally as well, so we've got three international markets that are all launching (the personalisation service) within the next couple of months,” he said, adding that the company is looking to provide more value-add services.

Assoc Prof Lau said companies can also deepen customer relationships by combining online and offline marketing, engaging parents consistently and turning users into brand advocates as purchasing shifts to digital channels.

For Zappy, reducing its reliance on any one customer group means spreading its products across different categories and age groups.

“This allows us to continue developing products around changing consumer needs rather than being dependent on a single demographic or product category,” Ms Moh said.

LOOKING BEYOND SINGAPORE

Some companies are anchoring themselves beyond Singapore’s shores. Hegen is now in 28 markets and plans to grow this to 35.

“Singapore accounts for maybe 6 to 7 per cent of our overall revenue, so it will be really hard to reach the scale that we are today if it's just the Singapore market,” said Mr Bock.

Unlike competitors with sizeable home markets, Singapore companies have less room to build scale domestically, he said.

“For us, from day one, we knew we had to depend on the international markets.”

Freshening Industries has expanded to more than 38 countries and sees Singapore as a base for developing and refining products before taking them overseas.

“Singapore brands need to look beyond Singapore if they want to achieve meaningful long-term scale,” said Ms Moh. “Singapore is a relatively small market, so while it is an important market for us, global expansion is an important part of our growth strategy.

“The advantage we have as a Singapore brand is that we can use Singapore as a base for developing, testing and refining our products, and then bring those capabilities and products to international markets.”

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随着成本上升和国内客户群萎缩，本土品牌正在扩大产品范围、增加服务并向海外扩张。

婴儿数量减少、成本上涨和竞争加剧，都给新加坡的婴儿护理市场带来了压力。（图片：iStock/Liudmila Chernetska）

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

新加坡：婴儿数量不断减少，迫使新加坡的婴儿护理品牌重新思考增长点在哪里，与此同时，成本却在上升，竞争也日益全球化。

对于过去十年间发展迅猛的本土品牌Hegen而言，如今这种影响开始显现。其联合创始人兼首席运营官Leon Bock表示，过去一年到一年半的时间里，其新加坡业务出现了“非常轻微”的下滑。

本土品牌 Tollyjoy 在创立 55 年后宣布即将停业，这让人们更加关注该行业面临的挑战。

虽然该公司表示其决定并非出于财务考虑，但其退出正值该行业调整以适应国内客户群体规模缩小之际，这引发了人们对出生率下降将对依赖父母和幼儿的公司意味着什么的疑问。

CNA游戏猜词游戏：逐行破解单词；流行词游戏：用给定的字母组成单词；迷你数独：小巧的谜题，强大的脑力挑战；迷你填字游戏：小方格，大挑战；单词搜索：尽可能多地找出单词。显示更多 显示更少 零售专家表示，答案并非简单的下降，而是更为微妙。南洋商学院市场营销项目负责人刘光谦副教授援引市场调研公司欧睿国际的数据指出，新加坡母婴护理行业的零售额预计在2025年增长7%，达到1.17亿新元（9150万美元）。他表示，婴儿数量减少可能意味着产品销量下降，但并不一定意味着消费支出相应减少。父母们越来越挑剔，小众和高端产品可以让企业从每位顾客身上获得更多消费。同一所学校的市场营销兼职副教授魏琳达博士表示，父母们越来越希望产品安全、便捷且功能多样。新加坡2025年新生儿数量为29,864人，较上年的33,703人下降11.4%。居民总和生育率降至历史新低0.87。新加坡科技研究局（A*STAR）人类发展与潜能研究所社会科学主任杨珍教授表示，即使生育率有所回升，由于育龄妇女数量减少，新生儿数量仍可能继续下降。子女较少的父母可能会在每个孩子身上花费更多，但这不太可能抵消生育率下降带来的消费量减少。杨教授同时也是新加坡国立大学儿科学系的教授，她指出，新加坡目前的人口结构预示着与儿童相关的市场规模将随着时间的推移而缩小。对于企业而言，这种人口结构的变化意味着每个客户的竞争都将更加激烈。 “我们刚起步的时候……新加坡当年大约有4万名新生儿，但如今这个数字已经不足3万，”联合创始人兼首席运营官Leon Bock说道。“因此，市场规模大幅缩小，给所有涉足该领域的品牌都带来了更大的挑战……我们在本地、国内以及国际市场都面临着众多竞争对手，因此，想要在日益缩小的市场份额中分一杯羹变得越来越难。” 运营成本也在不断攀升。Bock先生表示，Hegen在11年的发展历程中已经两次提价，每次涨幅都在10%左右，主要原因是原材料、运费和石油成本上涨。“这严重影响了我们的利润，尽管不久前我们进行了价格调整……但成本仍在持续上涨，因此这是我们非常关注的问题之一，我们正在努力寻找最佳方案来应对所有相关因素，”他说道。他还补充说，通常情况下，提价后销量会先下降几个月，然后才会回升。全球供应链中断也使得运输时间更难预测。为了增强供应链的韧性，Hegen正在靠近市场的地方建设配送中心。该公司计划在今年第四季度之前在欧洲和美国开设配送中心，并以新加坡作为其亚洲枢纽，明年可能还会在中国开设另一个配送中心。其他公司则在工厂层面积极应对成本压力。生产婴儿护理产品（如湿巾和尿布）的Freshening Industries公司（旗下品牌为Zappy）已转向自动化生产。总经理Moh Yan Ting表示，自动化重复性劳动密集型工作提高了生产效率，而无需增加人力，并帮助公司控制价格。新加坡管理大学的Kapil Tuli教授指出，一个品牌受价格竞争的影响程度取决于其市场定位。Tollyjoy定位为高性价比品牌，而Hegen则在高端市场竞争，产品设计是其关键的差异化因素。这位市场营销学教授表示，这使得Hegen受低成本竞争对手的影响相对较小，而注重性价比的品牌则可能面临更大的压力。然而，价格并非父母唯一的考量因素。莫女士表示，尤其是在婴儿用品方面，父母还会权衡成分、质量和安全性等因素。她补充说，单纯依靠价格竞争是不可持续的。魏医生指出，如今的父母往往时间紧迫，需要兼顾双职工家庭、照顾孩子和料理家务。这使得他们更加重视那些能够节省时间、减轻压力和提供便利的产品。新加坡国立大学商学院治理与可持续发展中心主任罗教授指出，婴幼儿护肤品、洗漱用品和药品等品类仍有增长空间。他补充说，高端化战略——即引导消费者转向更高价值、更高利润的产品——可以帮助企业在出生率下降的情况下实现营收增长。

零售专家表示，答案比简单的下滑要复杂得多。

南洋商学院市场营销课程负责人刘光谦副教授援引市场研究公司欧睿国际的数据表示，新加坡母婴护理行业的零售额到 2025 年将增长 7%，达到 1.17 亿新元（9150 万美元）。

他表示，新生儿数量减少可能意味着产品销量下降，但这并不一定意味着消费支出也会相应减少。父母们变得越来越挑剔，而小众和高端产品可以让企业从每位顾客身上获得更多收益。

该校市场营销兼职副教授林达·魏博士表示，家长们越来越希望产品安全、方便且功能多样。

客户群体萎缩

新加坡2025年新生儿数量为29,864人，比上年的33,703人下降了11.4%。居民总和生育率降至历史新低0.87。

新加坡科技研究局人类发展与潜力研究所社会科学主任杨珍教授表示，即使生育率有所回升，出生率也可能继续下降，因为育龄妇女数量减少。

子女较少的父母可能会在每个孩子身上花费更多，但这不太可能抵消生育率下降带来的消费量减少。新加坡国立大学儿科学系教授杨教授表示，新加坡目前的人口年龄结构表明，随着时间的推移，与儿童相关的市场规模将会缩小。

对企业而言，这种人口结构变化意味着争夺每位客户的竞争将更加激烈。

“我们刚起步的时候……新加坡当年大约有 4 万名婴儿出生，但如今这个数字已经不到 3 万了，”联合创始人兼首席运营官 Leon Bock 说。

“因此，市场规模缩小了很多，这给所有参与（该）品类的品牌带来了更多挑战……我们在本地、国内以及国际上都有很多竞争对手，因此，想要争夺这块越来越小的蛋糕变得越来越困难。”

经营成本也在不断攀升。博克先生表示，黑根公司成立11年来已经两次提价，每次涨幅都在10%左右，主要原因是原材料、运费和石油成本上涨。

“这严重影响了我们的利润，尽管不久前我们进行了价格调整……但我们的成本仍在持续上涨，所以这显然是我们关注的领域之一，我们正在努力寻找最佳方式来缓解所有相关因素的影响，”他说。

他还补充说，价格上涨后，购买量通常会下降几个月，然后才会回升。

全球供应链中断也使得运输时间更难预测。为了增强供应链的韧性，Hegen正在靠近市场的地方建设配送中心。该公司计划在今年第四季度前在欧洲和美国开设配送中心，并以新加坡作为其亚洲枢纽，明年可能还会在中国开设另一个配送中心。

其他公司则在更接近生产车间的环节上着手解决成本压力问题。

生产婴儿护理产品（如湿巾和尿布，旗下品牌为Zappy）的Freshening Industries公司已开始采用自动化生产。总经理莫彦廷表示，自动化重复性劳动密集型工作提高了生产效率，且无需增加人力，并帮助公司更好地控制价格。

新加坡管理大学的卡皮尔·图利教授表示，一个品牌面临的价格竞争风险程度取决于其市场地位。

Tollyjoy定位为高性价比品牌，而Hegen则面向高端市场，产品设计是其关键的差异化因素。这位市场营销学教授表示，这使得Hegen受低价竞争对手的影响相对较小，而注重性价比的品牌则可能面临更大的压力。

不过，莫女士表示，价格并非父母唯一的考量因素。尤其是在婴儿用品方面，他们还会权衡成分、质量和安全性等因素。

她补充说，单纯依靠价格竞争是不可持续的。

魏博士表示，如今的父母往往时间紧迫，既要兼顾双职工家庭，又要照顾孩子，还要管理家务。这使得他们更加重视那些能够节省时间、减轻压力、提供便利的产品。

新加坡国立大学商学院治理与可持续发展中心主任罗文森教授指出，婴儿和儿童护肤品、洗漱用品和药品等类别还有很大的增长空间。

他补充说，高端化战略（即把需求转向更高价值、更高利润的产品）可以让公司即使在出生率下降的情况下也能实现收入增长。

延长客户留存时间

另一种选择是延长现有客户的使用期限。这对Hegen公司来说尤其具有挑战性，Bock先生表示，该公司必须每两年有效地赢得一批新客户，因为其传统产品主要面向0至2岁左右的儿童。

他说：“如果我们无法获得更多客户，那么我们需要找到一种方法，通过创造能够将产品使用期限延长至从出生到 10 岁甚至更久的产品，来与我们的客户建立更长久的联系。”

该公司正在开发面向更广泛年龄段的产品，并将业务范围从实体产品扩展到个性化、教育和哺乳服务。

“这项服务发展势头良好，为我们贡献了相当大一部分国内收入。现在我们也开始在国际市场推出这项服务，未来几个月内，我们将在三个国际市场推出（个性化服务）。”他说道，并补充说，公司正在寻求提供更多增值服务。

刘副教授表示，随着购买行为转向数字渠道，企业还可以通过结合线上和线下营销、持续与家长互动以及将用户转化为品牌拥护者来加深与客户的关系。

对于 Zappy 来说，减少对任何单一客户群体的依赖意味着将其产品分散到不同的类别和年龄段。

“这使我们能够继续围绕不断变化的消费者需求开发产品，而不是依赖单一的人群或产品类别，”莫女士说。

放眼新加坡以外

一些公司正将业务拓展到新加坡以外的地区。Hegen目前已进入28个市场，并计划将市场规模扩大到35个。

博克先生表示：“新加坡市场可能只占我们总收入的 6% 到 7%，所以如果只依赖新加坡市场，我们很难达到今天的规模。”

他表示，与拥有庞大本土市场的竞争对手不同，新加坡公司在国内市场扩大规模的空间较小。

“对我们来说，从一开始我们就知道我们必须依靠国际市场。”

Freshening Industries 的业务已扩展到 38 个国家，并将新加坡视为开发和改进产品，然后再将其推向海外的基地。

“新加坡品牌如果想要实现有意义的长期规模扩张，就需要将目光投向新加坡以外的地方，”莫女士说。“新加坡是一个相对较小的市场，所以虽然它对我们来说是一个重要的市场，但全球扩张是我们增长战略的重要组成部分。”

“作为新加坡品牌，我们的优势在于我们可以利用新加坡作为基地来开发、测试和改进我们的产品，然后将这些能力和产品推向国际市场。”

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