MUM'S THE WORD

MUM'S THE WORD Mums everywhere have become Britain's number one bosom buddy - even replacing partners and friends as the person we appreciate the most. The results from this nationwide study commissioned by Andrex® are published today, following the toilet tissue brand's recent consumer insight panels which seemed to indicate that the traditional role of Mums is stretching into that of a friend's too. Today's results confirm Andrex's initial findings. The study reveals that an overwhelming 80% of us feel we owe the biggest thank you to a family member and when asked which family member that is, Mum comes out tops, getting almost half of our votes. The reason stated for Mum being so popular is that she always puts her family's welfare before her own, keeps the family together and offers good advice. Surprisingly, our Dads are only the third most valued loved ones in our lives, scraping in at 13%, while our Partners come in second, accounting for just over 20% of the votes. "The results show an overwhelming majority naming Mum as the person they value the most", says Ailsa Tiley, family care manager at Andrex. "It's a huge recognition for all Mums out there who may be juggling work commitments and doing great things for their families every day. They all deserve a big thank you!" "Most of us rely on our Mums to be there for us", says Michelle Maynard, a family relationships expert. "Despite evolving family set-ups, Mum is second to none. She has become the most important person in our lives." For further information, please contact Republic: Julia Crawford Tel: 020 7379 5000 julia@republicpr.com, or Pippa Goodman Tel: 020 7379 5000 pippa@republicpr.com *The study was carried out for Andrex® during May and June 2003 among 1410 people across the UK. OTHER KEY FINDINGS FROM THE STUDY · Even if Dads are not our top choice, they know how lucky they are with more men stating that their partners deserve a big thank you than the female respondents, with 23% and 18% respectively. In fact, the female family members seem to be the most appreciated overall, indicating that women in general are perceived to look out for the family more than their male counterparts · The younger male members of the family fared the worst with the fewest respondents thinking that Brothers and Sons needed a big thank you - voted for by 2% · The younger generation - 16-24 year olds - values their Mums more than any other generation (at 60%) which may be a reflection of children living at home for longer and therefore forming stronger relationships with their Mums · More males than females think that Mum's main purpose is to keep the family together - 46% vs 40% · When asked what people would sacrifice for another family member, the majority would cancel a night out with their friends (68%) and, rather generously, 64% of people surveyed said that they would even cancel a holiday. Surprisingly, the younger generation is more likely to give up their savings for that special someone than the older generation - 61% of 16-24 year olds compared to 51% of people aged 55 and over · Overall, women are more likely to make a sacrifice for a family member than their male counterparts - 45% vs 16% · People over the age of 55 value their family members even more, with over 88% wanting to thank someone in their family. However the 55 year olds and over felt that a friend was far less worthy of a thank you than any other age group with only 6% saying so. This compares to 13% of those aged 35-44, who said a friend was most in need of a thank you REGIONAL DIFFERENCES · Mum is valued the most in Wales (53%), with the Scottish Mums least appreciated (at 42%). 45% of the English picked Mum · More people in Yorkshire (57%) than anywhere else feel that Mum always puts their welfare before her own. In East Anglia this was the case for just 46% · The Welsh come out of the survey as the most family orientated wanting to thank a member or their family first, at over 87%, while the Northern Irish are the least family orientated at 60% · Sisters are becoming increasingly important in Cumbria with 14% naming their sisters as someone who has become even more important over the last year - this is more than double the national average of people (national average is 6%) · Across the board, teachers and work colleagues fared badly. But work colleagues were most likely to be thanked in central Scotland and Northern Ireland (at 5%) and teachers most appreciated in the North East (at 6%) · The Scottish are the least likely to lend their car to a family member at 31%, compared with 57% who are happy to do so in East Anglia · However, 77% of people in the East Anglia region would give up a night on the town to help a family member - the highest rate in the UK EDITOR'S NOTES Kimberly-Clark Europe is part of Kimberly-Clark Corporation, a leading global consumer products company. Its tissue, personal care and health care products are manufactured in 42 countries and sold in more than 150. Kimberly-Clark Europe is home to some of Europe's most trusted and recognised brands including ANDREX bathroom tissue, KLEENEX facial tissue, HUGGIES infant and child care products, KOTEX feminine care products and POISE adult care products. In the UK Kimberly-Clark has four manufacturing operations in Flint (North Wales), Barton-upon- Humber, Barrow-in-Furness and Northfleet. Kimberly-Clark is among Fortune magazine's "Most Admired" corporations and was recently named on the Sunday Times' list of "100 Best Companies to Work For". For more information about Kimberly-Clark visit the website at www.kimberly-clark.com. ® Andrex is registered trademark of Kimberly-Clark Ltd. ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/06/27/20030627BIT00810/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2003/06/27/20030627BIT00810/wkr0002.pdf