PLMA's 2023 Trade Show to Hail 'The Store Brands Phenomenon'

The largest event for store brands in North America is set for November 12-14 in Chicago

NEW YORK (April 24, 2023) - At a time when store brands have grown to become a $230 billion industry in the U.S., PLMA has announced a fitting theme for its 2023 Private Label Trade Show: “The Store Brands Phenomenon.”

The show will be held November 12-14 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Chicago.

"'The Store Brands Phenomenon' theme is appropriate in many ways," said PLMA President Peggy Davies. "Hailed as dynamic, innovative and pervasive, store brands offer boundless opportunities for retailers, manufacturers and trade suppliers."

The growth of store brands has been strong and steady. By the end of 2022, PLMA calculates that annual store brand sales had increased by 40% over a five-year period. Last year's double-digit gains continued through the first quarter of 2023, according to Circana. Sales and dollar and unit market shares are at all-time highs. 

They are the shopper’s best friend, offering innovation, performance and quality. Store brands accounted for nearly one-third of all new sales flowing into U.S. retailing last year.

And there's more to come. Every day, store brand products are moving into new categories, new chains, new channels, and new platforms.

“Store brands are a powerful retailer component that provides important points of differentiation, competitive advantage and builds consumer loyalty," added Davies.

The 2023 Private Label Trade Show will reflect this expansion. PLMA expects that over 1,500 companies will be exhibiting and 5,000 individuals attending.

"For more than 40 years, PLMA has provided supermarkets, supercenters, drug chains, wholesale clubs, dollar and specialty stores, mass merchandisers, importers and exporters, and e-commerce retailers an exclusive venue to discover the latest food and non-food products, ingredients, flavors, fragrances, and packaging,” Davies said.

For more information on "The Store Brands Phenomenon" trade show, contact PLMA at +1 212 972-3131, email info@plma.com or click here for more information.

About PLMA

The Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA) is a non-profit trade organization founded in 1979 to promote the store brands industry. With executive offices in New York and International Council offices in Amsterdam, PLMA represents more than 4,000 member companies worldwide. In addition to the Annual Private Label Trade Show in Chicago and its World of Private Label Trade Show in Amsterdam, PLMA provides annual conferences, executive education and professional development opportunities. Follow PLMA on plma.com, plmainternational.com, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Store Brand Beverage Numbers Deserve a Toast!

Featured in PLMA’s e-Scanner March 25, 2023 newsletter, created by Tom Prendergast, Director, Research Services

Throughout store brands' steady double-digit gains of 2022, which has continued through the first two months of this year, fully 16 of the 17 departments tracked by IRI showed store brand improvement.

One department demonstrated particularly strong sales performance -- Beverages -- a section once considered impenetrable for store brands due to the powerhouse national brands that inhabit it.

But that dominance may be changing. In this extremely competitive department, store brands have been growing at a faster pace than brands for the past 4, 12 and 52 weeks, reported IRI Unify exclusively to PLMA.

The numbers deserve a toast. Total private label beverage sales in 2022 were $12 billion and dollar sales grew by 19.3%. Double digit growth continued into the new year as dollar sales over the past four weeks totaled 18.6%, only a slight dip from the 20% sales growth in the past three months.  

The Beverages department is the third largest of the 17 tracked by IRI when it comes to national brand and store brand dollar sales ($130B) and second largest in unit sales with over 40 billion in sales. 

The largest category in beverages is bottled water. The category has sales of $6.8 billion in 2022 and dollar sales growth of 23.1%. While dollar sales did slow, from 21.3% over 12 weeks to 20.3% in the past four weeks, it remains the largest dollar sales category in the department.

Water is not the only growth category in this department. When you take a closer look at other areas you see while not everyone is showing growth but the ones gaining sales are especially strong.

For instance, carbonated beverages have increased from 15.8%-dollar sales growth last year to 32.4% in February and 28.9% over the past three months. This growth is also reflected in unit sales, as sales for carbonated beverages grew 4% in the past 4 weeks and 1.2% over the past 12 weeks. While unit sales did dip 2.5% last year, like dollar sales, sales of units of carbonated beverages continued to advance.

Two other growing categories over this period were refrigerated tea/coffee and tea bags. Refrigerated tea/coffee grew from 8.2% in dollar sales last year to 10.7% in the past four weeks. Tea bags had even more dramatic results, as dollar sales went from 5% in 2022 to 12.3% in the past three months to 17.5% in the past four weeks.

Other categories also stood out. These include bottled juices (10%), coffee (15.4%) and ready to drink tea/coffee (15.8%); all had double digit growth in 2022. In the past four weeks, while growth has slowed, it remains positive, ranging from 66.8% for ready to drink tea and coffee to 13.9% for coffee and 10.2% for bottled juices.

Unit sales improvements were also striking. Ready to drink tea/coffee saw units rise from 10.4% in 2022 to 84% over the past 3 months and 75.7% in the past 4 weeks. Coffee unit sales were up 2.8% last year but kept most of that growth in the past four weeks with a 2.5%-unit sales growth.

After decades of being a bottom shelf afterthought in a strong national branded department, store brands are evolving to become a presence if not a player in many parts of the huge Beverages sector.

To find out more IRI Unify data is available to all PLMA members and can be found at plma.com where these statistics and sales of 317 categories and 967 subcategories can be found.

PLMA Announces 2023 Private Label Hall of Fame Inductees
HOF logo

NEW YORK (March 23, 2023) - The Private Label Hall of Fame Class of 2023 was inducted last night during PLMA’s Annual Meeting & Leadership Conference in Orlando. 

Presented by PLMA and Store Brands magazine, the Private Label Hall of Fame was created in 2006 to recognize the men and women who have made significant contributions to the growth and development of the global private brand industry.  

This year, the Hall of Fame honors 16 individuals in four categories: Next Gen Private Label Leader, Private Brand Innovator, Private Brand Champion, and Lifetime Achievement. 

“We proudly celebrate the outstanding achievements of these proven leaders and innovators,” said PLMA President Peggy Davies. “Their hard work and dedication are instrumental to the success of the store brands business.” 


Private Label Hall of Fame Class of 2023
 

         Next Gen Private Label Leader: 

  • Anthony Cera III, Own Brands Manager, Perishables, SpartanNash    
  • Colleen Kangas, President, Purcell International      
  • Angela LePore, Senior Manager, Private Brands Product Development, Simmons Pet Food, Inc.    
  • Kristin Provost, Senior Manager, Category Insights, Topco Associates, LLC                 
     
    Private Brand Innovator:
     
  • Alicia Cook, Category Director, Save A Lot                        
  • Casey Creegan, Manager of Merchandising, Love’s Travel Stops        
  • Roger Scommegna, CEO, Flying Blue Imports         
  • Guido Tremolini, President/Co-Owner, G.S. Gelato

    Private Brand Champion: 
  • Shane Brown, Director, Own Brand Sourcing, Giant Eagle, Inc. 
  • Jill Clark, VP, Sales and Marketing, Dutch Gold Honey, Inc. 
  • Andrea Collaro, Senior Director, Owned Brands, Brand Management/Product Development, Walgreens Co. 
  • Kristie Nicolosi, CEO, The Kingswood Company

        Lifetime Achievement: 

  • Brenda Lord, Vice President, Private Brands, CVS Health          
  • Nancy Ragozzino, President, Ragozzino Foods, Inc.         
  • Andy Russick, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Pacific Coast Producers      
  • Jill Sando, Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer, Target
     
    “The 16 honorees represent the best of the best from across the world of private label and showcase the depth of talent the industry has to offer,” said Store Brands magazine Executive Editor & Associate Publisher Greg Sleter. “This august group of retailers and suppliers have had a major impact on the private label business and will continue to do so in the years ahead.” 
     
    Profiles on all inductees will be featured in the May/June issue of Store Brands magazine, featured on StoreBrands.com, and posted in a special section of plma.com. 

     
    About PLMA 

    The Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA) is a non-profit trade organization founded in 1979 to promote the store brands industry. With executive offices in New York and International Council offices in Amsterdam, PLMA represents more than 4,000 member companies worldwide. In addition to the Annual Private Label Trade Show in Chicago and its World of Private Label Trade Show in Amsterdam, PLMA provides annual conferences, executive education and professional development opportunities. Follow PLMA on plma.com, plmainternational.com, Twitter and LinkedIn.
"How Private Label Packaging Strategies Influence Shoppers Intent to Purchase"
Peggy Davies shares a preview of upcoming Chicago trade show
In Case You Missed It: Fall Baking with Store Brands

Store brands make fall baking easy. Find out what's on the shelves at Dollar General, Price Chopper, Safeway, Stop & Shop and Wegmans.

Watch our report here:

Ideas and Inspiration: Seasonal Favorites at H-E-B, Price Chopper, Target

Retailers are celebrating the fall season with an array of pumpkin spice private label products. Among the offerings:

  • From H-E-B: Pumpkin Spice granola.
  • From Price Chopper: Pumpkin Spice Whipped Topping.
  • From Target:  Harvest Pumpkin Spice Mini Cupcakes and Frozen Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream Bites.

New Data Reveals Value Perceptions of Costco vs. Aldi

How grocery shoppers perceive value at Costco vs Aldi shifts significantly based on generation according to YouGov BrandIndex, a brand and competitor tracking tool.

Costco was named the overall No. 1 retailer for value for money wins the with a net score of 38 among U.S. adults, while Aldi had a score of 35.

Gen Z posted the greatest gap between the two retail brands. Between January and August 2026, Costco recorded a Value score of 44 among Gen Z adults, compared with 32 for Aldi – a 12-point difference in net score.

The gap is smaller among Millennials, at nine points (43 vs. 34), while the picture reverses among Gen X, with Aldi scoring 35 compared with Costco's 33. Among Baby Boomers+, the two brands are tied on 37.

Gen Z is an important part of both retailers' customer bases. According to YouGov Profiles, adult Gen Z Americans make up 18% of Costco's current customers and 13% of Aldi's.

While the year-to-date stats show Costco holding a clear value perception lead among Gen Z, YouGov BrandIndex over time analysis shows a more competitive battle. 
Costco entered 2026 with a substantial value perception lead among Gen Z adults in the U.S., posting a score of 46 on January 1 compared with Aldi's 27.

Despite a clear lead, the gap between the two brands has fluctuated throughout the year. Aldi's Value score climbed through January, reaching a year-to-date high of 41 on January 29. By the end of the month, Costco's lead had narrowed to nine points, with a Value score of 49 compared with Aldi's 40.

Costco's score strengthened again heading into the summer, reaching 51 on June 7, compared with Aldi's 33. By the end of June, Costco held a 13-point lead, scoring 48 against Aldi's 34.

Private Label Award Entries Impress Judges

More than 900 products were nominated this year for PLMA's 2026 Salute to Excellence Awards®. This renowned industry-wide competition celebrates store brand innovation and excellence.

The winners will be announced soon and will be on display at PLMA’s 2026 “Store Brands Marketplace” Private Label Trade Show next month.

In exclusive interviews, judges commended the nominees for flavor, packaging and other innovations.

Watch our news report about the judging process here:

Pet Parents Turn to Store Brands
dog and cat with bowl of dry pet food on white background

The pet category is witnessing rising store brand sales.

Among departments tracked by Circana, Pet Care has experienced strong unit sales growth, climbing 4.5% in all outlets for the 52 weeks ending August 9, while dollar sales grew 3.4% for the same period.

Retailers are offering innovative store brand products to meet the needs of pet owners, such as Chewy’s Get Real dog food line, which features human grade meals made with 10 ingredients or less.

In another example, from Associated Wholesale Grocers, there’s Pure Wonder by Best Choice® pet foods, carried in over 3,400 independent grocery stores throughout the United States.

Private-label pet supplies are equally impressive. Take Walmart’s Vibrant Life cat tree. It earned a 2025 PLMA Salute to Excellence Award® for store brand creativity and innovation.

Best-in-class pet care exhibitors will be among thousands of exhibitors at the 2026 Private Label Trade Show.

Click here for show details and registration information.

Watch our news report about the pet category: