Ed Williams was among the very first to anticipate the growth and importance of private label in the consumer marketplace. In 1979 – at the age of seventy-one — Ed created Private Label magazine to report on this very specialized and growing business in service to America’s retailers. The mission was to help retailers increase their sales by presenting the best industry knowledge on purchasing, pricing, displaying, packaging, advertising, product mix, and other areas vital to a profitable private label operation. To accomplish this objective, he organized a meeting of private label manufacturers and suppliers in New York City on October 23, 1979, the group became the founders of the Private Label Manufacturers Association. Through his magazine, Ed Williams never ceased voicing his support for the growth of the private label industry, while at the same time advocating the continual improvement of the quality of store brands. He died in March 1997, but his pioneering role in private label is not forgotten.