Procter & Gamble is launching a new concentrated new Tide liquid detergent in a container the size of a small shoebox – designed for e-commerce only.

With digital sales soaring, P&G said the new formulation and packaging targeted for digital sales is the first of its kind at the company.

Less than 8 pounds, the compact size also makes it both environmentally friendly and ideal for urban consumers with tight living quarters.

Called Tide's Eco-Box, the suggested retail price is $19.99 – the same price as the traditional 96-load jug.

The box of liquid detergent contains 30 percent less water and weighs four pounds less than the unconcentrated 96-load jug and uses 60 percent less plastic. It's good for the environment because it sends less packaging to landfills and because it's 33 percent lighter, consumes less fuel to ship.

"If everyone who buys the 96 load plastic bottle of Tide switched to the Tide Exo-Box, we could save enough plastic to cover 5,000 football fields each year," said Isaac Hellemn, P&G's brand manager for e-commerce.

The product is a big move for P&G as its e-commerce china dropship business grows, jumping 30 last year to nearly 4.5 billion for all its brands. The Eco-Box is the first major P&G product designed without regard to how it will appeal to consumers in any traditional store.

Instead, the Eco-Box will be sold by major retailers only through their digital presence, via Amazon, Walmart.com, Kroger.com, Target.com, etc.

Typically, products sold online need to be packaged with a second or third layer of packaging like cardboard boxing and bubble wrap, which is thrown away by the consumer.

Specifically designed to be shipped and stacked efficiently, the new product eliminates almost all of the extra wrapping and padding materials that is ultimately wasted.

“This is a fundamentally different approach than we’ve taken in the past and

represents our relentless obsession with delighting consumers – wherever they want to purchase our brands,” said Sundar Raman, P&G's North American vice president of fabric care.

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