Chris Skyers, former VP, Own Brands at Wakefern and now EVP, Sales Strategy Services, Grocery Channel Lead, Market Performance Group, is among the retail store brand experts who will speak at PLMA’s annual Executive Education program, June 11-12 at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia.

Registration for PLMA members is now being offered at a special rate of $699 until May 3.

Other instructors include Theo Schweitz, former director of private brand food at Target and now CEO of Drive Wheel Peer Groups; and Brian Gornall, whose experience includes Albertsons as well as being a founding leader who established Amazon’s launch of several private label food and beverage brands.

Among the topics of discussion: “The Changing Retail Landscape,” “In-Store Brand Strategy,” “How Turbulent Times Impact Your Company,” “Product and Packaging Innovation” and much more.

Click here to get more details and register.

Store brands outperformed national brands in both dollar and unit sales in the first quarter of 2024, according to Circana, PLMA's provider of exclusive sales data.

Private label dollar sales were up 1.8%, compared to an increase of 1.2% for national brands. Over the first three months, total U.S. store brand sales were about $60 billion. This is a potential harbinger of another record year, as was the case in 2023, when all-time highs were set in annual sales ($236 billion) as well as dollar share (18.9%) and unit share (20.7%).

The Q1 2024 results in unit sales were even more impressive. Store brands rose by 2.3%, while national brands fell 0.9%. As a result, store brand market share of both dollars and units increased.

PLMA's 2024 Annual Private Label Trade Show, November 17-19 in Chicago, is appropriately themed “The Store Brands Phenomenon 2024 - Empowering the Retail Industry.” It’s a reprise of last year’s very successful theme. The event is ranked as a Gold 100 Show and is the largest of its kind. It provides supermarkets, supercenters, drug chains, wholesale clubs, dollar and specialty stores, mass merchandisers, importers and exporters and e-commerce retailers and visitors with an exclusive venue to discover the latest food, beverages, non-food, ingredients, flavors, fragrances, packaging, and supplier trends in the store brand industry.

Click here for more information or email info@plma.com.

A generational shift in pet shopping is occurring in the U.S., with Gen Z's visits to pet retailers increasing, while Millennials foot traffic is on the decline, according to new data from pass_by, an AI-powered geospatial insights company.

The report noted that over the past five years, Gen Z visits have risen, with Petsmart up by 1.3%, Petco by 1.89%, and Pet Supermarket by 1.65%. In contrast, Millennials have reduced their visits, with Petsmart seeing a 6.26% decrease; Petco, a 6.86% drop; and Pet Supermarket, a 7.63% decline.

-Trader Joe’s has launched an Instagram pizza recipe contest featuring its store brands. To enter, shoppers need to create and post a pizza recipe that incorporates up to seven Trader Joe’s products. (Salt, sugar, butter, water and oil do not count toward the seven-ingredient maximum.)

The winner will receive a $200 Trader Joe’s gift card and have their recipe featured on the Trader Joe’s website. Two runners-up will be selected to each receive a $100 Trader Joe’s gift card.

The winner will be announced April 29.

- Now that allergy season is here, retailers are promoting over-the-counter products to ease symptoms like itchy, watery eyes and a stuffy, runny nose. Hy-Vee and Giant Eagle, for instance, have advertised TopCare allergy medicine on their websites. The TopCare allergy line includes tablets, liquid and nasal sprays.

- Wegmans has introduced a line of store brand specialty sauces. The new sauces include Hollandaise, Bearnaise and Peppercorn. Each is sold under Wegmans’ “Food You Feel Good About” banner, featured on packaging of products that do not contain artificial colors, flavors or preservatives.

Retailers are partnering with content creators to bring their store brands to life in online recipes.

Stop & Shop, Quincy, Mass., has launched a series of videos with “The Happy Pear,” Irish twins who run a plant-based cooking and lifestyle company. Each video showcases various Stop & Shop private brands used in a plant-based recipe.

For instance, a recipe for Roasted Red Pepper Pasta includes store brand pasta. Other recipes include plant-based mac & cheese and grain-free granola.

“For today’s grocers, keeping your online customers engaged is more important than ever, as growth is now more likely derived from increased order frequency and/or spend per order.”

- Mark Fairhurst, global chief growth officer at Mercatus, on the latest Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopper Survey. The results show that March 2024 U.S. eGrocery sales totaled $8.0 billion, flat versus year ago.

550

- The number of items in Associated Wholesale Grocers’ Always Save store brand line. This is up from 140 when the brand was launched in 1984. Currently celebrating its 40th Anniversary, the brand can be found throughout the store. Just last year, it entered the health, beauty, and wellness category with an assortment of over-the-counter medications, bubble baths, oral care products, and more.

Brandon Brown, SVP, Own Brands at Albertsons Cos., shares an insider perspective on private brand successes and challenges. Pricing, consumer insights, new concepts and manufacturer-retailer relationships are among the areas explored.

Plus, Harry Overly, President & CEO of private label snack manufacturer Flagstone Foods, spoke at a recent PLMA Lunch with Leadership session about snacking trends. Overly says that snack shoppers are more interested in global flavors, like churro-flavored products. Watch full video here.

Another recent Lunch with Leadership guest was Ann O’Hara, president, Huhtamaki North America, who discussed sustainable packaging.

Click here for more information about Lunch with Leadership, or contact PLMA at info@plma.com.