Welcome to PLMA’s e-scanner newsletter – News, Insights and Happenings
By Carol Angrisani, Editor and PLMA Content Producer

March 9, 2024

NEWS ROUNDUP
Excitement Builds for PLMA Conference, March 20-22

More than 90 companies in the store brands industry will gather at the PLMA 2024 Annual Meeting & Leadership Conference March 20-22 at the Hyatt Regency San Antonio Riverwalk.

The keynote speaker is Brandon Brown, SVP, Own Brands, Albertsons. Brown’s presentation is titled, “Breaking Free from Bland: The Next Era of Own Brands.”

Also speaking are professionals from Cogknition Analytics, Daymon, dunnhumby, Kerry, McKinsey and many others. Additionally, the Private Label Hall of Fame Class of 2024 will be inducted at a special dinner.

The conference offers sponsorships of food and beverages offered at the conference. Company sponsorship will be acknowledged during the event with signage.

Click here to register today to join retailers and your peers for this can’t-miss event. For more information, contact PLMA at conferences@plma.com.

Private Label Growth Covered by Forbes

The hot new brand in retailing is private label, according to an article in Forbes. The article cites PLMA research showing that store brands have been taking a bigger share of all unit sales, hitting a record last year of 20.7%. It also quotes PLMA’s Gen Z Research Report, which reveals that 64% of Gen Z shoppers said they buy store brands “always/frequently,” and 51% “always/frequently” choose a place to shop due to its store brands. Click here to read full article.

Sales of Snacks, Baking Products Increase

As the cooking-at-home trend continues, many store brand shelf stable and baking staples experienced strong growth in 2023 vs. 2022. Following is an excerpt from Tom’s Data Dive, by Tom Prendergast, PLMA’s Director of Research Services. It is based on analysis of store brand sales numbers in Circana’s Unify+ data portal, available for free to PLMA members on members.plma.com.

  • Chips/Baking Chocolate/Cocoa, up 15.4% in dollar sales; up 9.6% in unit sales.
  • Flour, up 16.7% in dollars; up 6.5% in units.
  • Olive Oil, up 27.3% in dollars; up 10.1% in units.
  • Brown/Powdered/Flavored Sugar, up 20.4% in dollars; up 4.7% in units.

Additionally, snacking has been growing in popularity, and store brands are reflecting that trend:

  • Potato Chips experienced dollar sales growth of 31.1% and unit sales increase of 7.9%.
  • Pretzels rose 23.3% in dollar sales and 15.6% in unit sales.
  • Tortilla/Tostado Chips rose 24.4% in dollar sales and 13.3% in units.
     
Grocery Prices Continue to Rise

Though inflation is slowing, the food-at-home index increased 0.4% in January compared to December, according to the Consumer Price Index by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Four of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased in January. Only cereals and bakery products showed a decline at 0.2%. The non-alcoholic index moved up 1.2% for the month.

The index for other food at home - which contains the index for sugar and sweets, fats and oils and other foods - rose 0.6%, while the fruits and vegetables index increased 0.4%. The index for dairy and related products moved up 0.2% in January. The index for meats, poultry, fish and eggs went unchanged.

Dollar General Opens 20,000th Store

Dollar General Corp. celebrated the grand opening of its 20,000th store at its DG Market location in Alice, Texas.

At the ribbon cutting, customers received a complimentary tote bag with product samples from numerous vendors, as well as refreshments from one of DG’s private brands, Clover Valley.

The new store opening comes at a time when Dollar General is expanding its fresh produce assortment. Fresh produce options are now available in more than 5,000 stores across the country.

FTC Challenges Kroger’s Acquisition of Albertsons

The Federal Trade Commission sued to block the largest proposed supermarket merger in U.S. history - Kroger Co.’s $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons Companies.

The FTC says the proposed deal will eliminate competition and raise grocery prices for millions of Americans, while harming tens of thousands of workers.

In a response, Kroger said the proposed merger will produce meaningful and measurable benefits for customers, associates and communities across the country. “The combined company committed that no stores, distribution centers or manufacturing facilities will close as a result of the merger, including those divested to C&S Wholesale Grocers,” according to a statement.

Kroger maintains that customers will benefit from lower prices and more choices following the merger close. The company said it is committed to investing $500 million to begin lowering prices day one post-close, and an additional $1.3 billion to improve Albertsons Cos.' stores.

Kroger said the FTC’s move “makes it more likely that America's consumers will see higher food prices and fewer grocery stores at a time when communities across the country are already facing high inflation and food deserts.”

IDEAS AND INSPIRATION
  • Giant Eagle is featuring its Market District store brand in a holiday meal deal promotion. One meal bundle includes a turkey breast, Market District chicken gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and dinner rolls. It costs $69.99 and serves up to six people.
  • Gelson's Markets is partnering with renowned winemakers for a new "Winemaker Series" line. The first offering is a red blend by Heidi Barrett, known as “The First Lady of Wine.”
  • Discount grocer Lidl shares stories some of its store brand suppliers in its store magazine. For instance, to promote its line of authentic Indian frozen meals at its Long Island, New York, stores, it profiled Rajbhog Foods, Jackson Heights, Queens. The profile included a photo of company president Sanjiv Mody and images of products, including paneer tikka masala made with spinach cilantro rice.
  • Amazon has introduced Recurring Reservations, which lets shoppers have their preferred pickup or delivery time automatically reserved each week. Shoppers can add items they may have forgotten at any point before the shopper begins picking groceries. They pay only when ready to check out, and modify or cancel at any time, with no obligations.
NOTABLE QUOTABLE
"We're doubling down on our investment in our popular Own Brands offerings to help shoppers maximize their budgets.”

- Jason Cunningham, Vice President, Own Brands, SpartanNash, on the launch of the new premium private label line Finest Reserve by Our Family.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
The Future of Disruptive Food

Do disruptive foods like insect protein bars and pickle-flavored ketchup still generate consumer excitement? Tom Bailey, Executive Director, Consumer Foods & Food Service, U.S. Rabobank Wholesale Banking North America, provided answers in a recent PLMA Lunch and Learn speaker presentation. Full presentation is free to PLMA members.

TREND ALERT – Click & Collect Impulse Sales

In an effort to boost impulse sales for online shoppers, Harris Teeter offers special pricing on private brands with delivery or pickup orders. Recent deals featured discounts on several Simple Truth and Harris Teeter-brand items exclusively for pickup or delivery orders.

PLMA News and Happenings
State of the Industry Webinar Series Scheduled

Join Store Brands and the Private Label Manufacturers Association for a power-packed State of the Industry webinar series. Held on a quarterly basis, the webinars will reveal hidden drivers behind private label's continual rise; the evolving consumer mindset and their growing appreciation for private label's value proposition and more.

PLMA President Peggy Davies spoke at the March 8 webinar and will appear again at the Dec. 6, 2024 session at 2 p.m. EST. Others will be held May 3 and July 26 featuring MaryEllen Lynch, Principal, Circana. Register for one or all four sessions.
 

Taste Trends to be Revealed March 28

At PLMA’s next Lunch and Learn on March 28 at 12:30 p.m., join Jocelyn Carter, Activation Marketing Director at Kerry, as she outlines five taste trends that Kerry predicts will have the greatest influence and impact on consumer taste choices in 2024. Learn more and register here.

Keryy 2024
New Interview Series to Feature PLMA Member CEOs

PLMA has announced the launch of Lunch with Leadership, a series of noontime interviews featuring five of the leading store brand CEOs in the U.S.

The series will focus on how these corporate leaders view their organization now and where they believe it fits in the future of American retailing and the store brand supplier community. The five interviews will be revealed by PLMA one at a time on successive Thursdays, from April 4 to May 2.

The April 4 kickoff session will feature Harry Overly, president and CEO of Flagstone Foods. Following Overly, other interview subjects will include Ann O'Hara, President, Huhtamaki North America; Lou DeMent, CEO of Giovanni Foods; Camilo Romero, CEO of Luker Chocolate; and Joe Mollica, CEO of LNK International, Inc.

For more information, contact PLMA at info@plma.com or +1 212-972-3131.

Become a PLMA Member

Did you know PLMA members receive discounted rates to attend November's Private Label Trade Show and PLMA’s Executive Education program?

Members also get access to UNIFY+ monthly sales data covering over 317 food and non-food categories and over 950 subcategories and much more. Becoming a PLMA member is an investment that delivers actionable real-time solutions so that your business thrives today and is prepared for tomorrow’s challenges.

Click here for information, or contact the membership team at memberservices@plma.com.

Events

PLMA's Lunch and Learn, Thursday, March 28, 12:30pm (ET)
Presented by Jocelyn Carter

Features top executives from the US Store Brands Industry.