SCA, the maker of the Tork® brand of away-from-home paper products in North America, today announces availability of its most luxurious line of High-End Hand Towels. Featuring an embossed leaf throughout, the hand towels are soft, strong, and smart – designed to match customer expectations for Class A office buildings, fine dining restaurants, and other top-end establishments.

 "The leaf design represents quality you can see and feel – and people will notice the quality of these towels," said Joe Russo, SCA vice president sales & marketing, Away from Home Professional Hygiene North America. "We know that for our customers, every impression counts, which is why we used a leaf to reinforce their high-end image and provide a luxurious experience, even in the restroom."

The High-End Hand Towels offer superior softness and comfort. The towels are strong – individual towels don’t break apart and are more absorbent, so they dry hands faster and require fewer per use. In addition, they're smart – with one-at-a-time dispensing, renewable and recycled content, and fewer towels needed per visit, they reduce overall paper usage and restroom clutter.

 The hand towels are smarter for the environment, too, with several FSC certified – a third-party certification that assures the virgin fiber is sourced in a way that is economically, socially and environmentally responsible. Others are EPA compliant, meeting the government standards for post-consumer content.

 How important is the perception of the restroom to consumers?  More than three quarters of Americans (76%) have at least one complaint about public restrooms, according to an August 2013 survey by The Trending Machine. Women complained louder than men about restroom problems (85% vs. 67% respectively). Common complaints included wet seats (52% women vs. 35% men), germy door handles (46% vs. 39%) or lack of proper supplies, including hand towels (46% vs. 29%).

"Our customers have been asking for a high-end line – products that complement their image and offer a superior restroom experience," Russo said. "This new high-end line offers a premium product to address those needs, and we are confident it will open new market opportunities for SCA in North America while providing our customers with a broad line of paper products to meet their end-user needs."

 The new line offers a variety of solutions to deliver on the promise of simple elegance, with nine paper varieties and six dispensing options, including the new Tork Xpress Countertop dispenser. Offered in three colors – white, black and stainless steel – the Xpress dispensers are designed for high-end restrooms where style and performance are critical. All three finishes offer finger-proof technology to ensure cleanliness, anti-slip pads to stay affixed to a countertop and one-at-a-time dispensing backed by Tork's guarantee of a 25 percent reduction in paper use.

To introduce the new line, Tork is offering free two-week trials for its customers so they can feel the difference – and the luxury – themselves.

For more information, please contact Christina Binz, Burson-Marsteller

(412) 394-6662 or Christina.Binz@bm.com

About Tork

The Tork brand offers professional hygiene products and services to customers ranging from restaurants and healthcare facilities to offices, schools and industries. Products include dispensers, paper towels, toilet tissue, soap, napkins, and industrial and kitchen wipers. Through expertise in hygiene, functional design and sustainability, Tork has become a market leader. Tork is a global brand of SCA, and a committed partner to customers in over 80 countries. To keep up with the latest Tork news and innovations, please visit: torkusa.com or tork.ca. 

About SCA

In North America, SCA produces the Tork line of dispensers, towels, tissue, soap, napkins and wipers used in commercial settings such as office buildings, restaurants, schools and healthcare facilities and the TENA® line of incontinence care products used by consumers at home and in healthcare facilities. TENA and Tork are the global leading brands in their categories. For more information, visit www.sca.com/us. 

Globally, SCA is a leading hygiene and forest products company. We develop and produce sustainable personal care, tissue and forest products. Sales are conducted in about 100 countries under many strong brands, including the leading global brands TENA and Tork, and many regional brands.  As Europe’s largest private forest owner, we put great emphasis on sustainable forest management.  SCA has about 36,000 employees. Sales in 2012 amounted to $13 billion. SCA was founded in 1929, has its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, and is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm stock exchange. More information at www.sca.com.

Sustainability

SCA delivers sustainable solutions with added value for our customers from safe, resource efficient and environmentally sound sourcing, production and development. Recent third party accreditations for the SCA sustainability work include Dow Jones Sustainability Index 2012, the WWF Environmental Paper Company Index 2011, and Ethisphere – World’s most ethical companies 2013.