For the first time in history, private label brands are getting some truly special treatment. No longer the ugly ducklings, store brands are starting to rise up, redesigned and reconsidered. And while this means that mass-market shelves are more beautiful than ever before, this movement has serious implications on name brands.
Once the occasional choice of the cost-savvy shopper, the private label marketplace has undergone an enormous shift in the past 10 years. And while private label performance has always been strongly linked to economic conditions—private label market share generally goes up when the economy is down and down when the economy is up—the impact of private label is growing at an outpaced rate, surging private label success year after year.
Performance
There are quite a few factors that have fed this success, and product performance, aka quality, is at the top of the list. Where there was once a distinct gap in quality between private label and name brand products, today there is little to no differentiation. Private label quality is at an all time high, and in many cases, brand name products and private label are being manufactured in the same facilities using the same processes, making it easier and easier for consumers to make the switch to private label brands.
