Banking on consumer affinity for ‘natural’ goods, Tambrands Canada is putting $6 million behind its introduction of a new 100% cotton feminine protection product.

Tampax Naturals are the first all-cotton tampons launched by a large national company, although there are small regional companies marketing such products.

‘Cotton is well understood and recognized as being absorbent, soft, pure and natural,’ says Barb Nolan, director of sales and marketing for the Richmond Hill, Ont.-based company.

Most tampons on the market today are made from a cotton-rayon blend or simply rayon, says Nolan.

Tambrands expects the Naturals extension to increase the size of the tampon category of the feminine protection market by encouraging customers who currently use pads as well as tampons to switch to tampons only.

The Canadian feminine protection market is worth about $270 million, with tampons accounting for about $80 million of that total, according to Nolan. Within the tampon category, Tambrands holds about a 58% market share, she says.

Of course, there will be consumer movement from other tampon lines, including other Tambrands lines, to the new product, but the company expects cannibalizing share within the tampon category to be minimal, says Nolan. ‘The real opportunity is to source volume from pads.’

Although she declined to reveal the nature of the creative, Nolan confirmed there will be several tv spots in the fall, as well as print ads, primarily in women’s magazines.

Advertising is handled by Toronto’s bbdo. ‘We’re investing very heavily,’ she says, adding the Canadian advertising budget is $6 million.

There will also be national sampling and couponing programs, she says, adding the back-to-school post-secondary crowd would be a good bet. Women aged 18-24 tend to be environmentally-aware and prefer pure products, she says.

100% Naturals was launched at the beginning of the year in the u.s. and sales have already exceeded expectations, says Nolan. Because it’s the first mass-market product of its kind, she predicts that competitors will be watching its market performance very closely.