Private Labels A Growing Threat To Name Brands

Although private label brands have been slowly growing in the marketplace over the past decade, the recession in recent years has spurred the sales growth of these brands, creating yet another concern for branded food companies.

When the economy took its most recent downturn, consumers at all income levels reevaluated their spending and opted to not only eat at home more often, boosting supermarket sales in general, but to also purchase more private label goods instead of name brand goods.

The economic downturn did not only affect less affluent shoppers. A recent survey published in Supermarket News revealed that more than 50% of more affluent shoppers (defined in this survey as having household income greater than $75,000 annually) are purchasing private label brands. The same survey also indicated that 51% of all consumers are now more aware of store brands than they were a year ago. This awareness was especially high among younger consumers (18-35) as well as