With the UK’s bathrooms having their annual spring clean, almost 70% of people surveyed said they had found up to 10 unused pamper products, with the remainder having up to 30 bottles, packs and tubes simply gathering dust.
Shampoo is the most wasted product, closely followed by shower gel and moisturiser.
Over a quarter of respondents said their bathroom also held host to out of date medicines, but most shockingly, 54% said that they would still use them regardless, with men proving to be particularly lax on this issue.
The most common reasons provided for hoarding so many unused items in the bathroom was because people ‘forgot they were there’ and ‘always buy too much and never get round to using it’, whilst 58% said most of their unused toiletry toiletries were from unwanted gift packs.
Special store promotions were also cited as a key reason why Brits buy more products than they need, with 61% saying they would still take up a multi-buy offer, even if they knew they wouldn’t get around to using it all.
One fifth of those surveyed by Dolphin* estimated that they had wasted just over £20 on unused pampering products, whilst it seems the Welsh spend the most, at an average of £24.72, compared to the more conscientious West Midlander’s spending £19.85.
The bathroom cabinet takes most of this strain for half of those surveyed, followed by the windowsill and around the edge of the bath.
Geoff Wells, planning expert at Dolphin Bathrooms, comments: “Whilst we may be a nation of pamper addicts, we accumulate too many beauty products that we never intend to use and this often means cluttered bathrooms.
It comes as no surprise to us that over 60% of those questioned, wished they had more storage space in the bathroom, but despite this, we can’t seem to stop ourselves hoarding and so end up losing precious space.
“However, with careful planning, any bathroom can be designed to keep lotions and potions well organised and easy to find.
Clever use of cabinets, sink space and shelving will make sure you optimise every inch of space, whilst keeping your bathroom beautiful – plus you can avoid wasting money on new products you don’t actually need.â€
A fully fitted Dolphin bathroom starts from £6,000, including full design, technical survey, delivery and complete installation.
To view the range of storage solutions, or arrange a free design consultation,
visit the Dolphin Bathrooms website.
Tel: (0800) 458 9697
*Survey of 3,000 people commissioned by Dolphin Bathrooms, conducted by OnePoll.