Plumbing and fixtures company Geberit has committed itself to a £1.5 million promotional campaign for the concept of shower toilets to the UK.

The UK has notoriously never been keen on the bidet, but now the development of new technology has meant the all-in-one toilet and bidet is seen as the answer, according to Geberit.

The shower toilet was a common theme at March's ISH bathroom exhibition in Germany with many major manufacturers displaying variations on the toilet that cleans the user - both retrofit and new.

Geberit has launched a UK promotional campaign called "I Love Water" campaign to try to put the facts in front of the consumer, encouraging them to question these culturally ingrained habits.

The thrust of the Geberit argument is that using water in the toilet may seem like a huge leap for some, but if we never tried to improve personal hygiene and comfort in the toilet, we'd still be using squares of newspaper or tracing paper to clean ourselves.

Geberit's product launch in this arena is the AquaClean which uses water from an adjustable shower spray to clean the user. The product was launched to the public at the Ideal Home Show and this marked the beginning of a significanty consumer campaign across both print and online media, with a strong focus on high-circulation national consumer magazines like Ideal Home, Country Living and Good Housekeeping, and popular national newspaper supplements like the Sunday Times Magazine and the Mail on Sunday's YOU magazine.

The print and online advertising campaign will link back to a dedicated website -
www.I-love-water.co.uk.

Retailers can become Geberit AquaClean partners and, the company says, will be offered full marketing and sales support including POS, product displays, brochures and help with events.

"The key is in education, both for retailers wanting to understand the benefits of Geberit AquaClean, and for customers who are unfamiliar with this easy-to-use and comfortable method of personal hygiene," said Geberit UK managing director Mark Larden.

"Through this education we hope to create a category for toilets that clean you with water in the UK. We are confident that with our Partner support, this will be the start of a campaign which will dramatically change Britain's bathroom habits."