Consumers are continuing to purchase private label products at an increasing rate, according to new research from The Nielsen Company.
The “U.S. Store Brand Development” found that both private label dollar and unit sales significantly increased for the 52-week period ending July 11, 2009 versus the prior year.
Dollar sales grew by 7.4 percent to $85.9 billion within food, drug and mass-merchandisers (including Walmart), with shares recorded at 16.9 percent. This reflects an increase of 0.7 points from the previous year. Growth peaked in 2008 but then slowed slightly in 2009 with …

Although Australia’s economy may have technically avoided entering a recession, almost two-thirds of Aussies believe that it has, and consumer confidence has plummeted to an all-time low.  Concerns about job security and personal finances have led Australians to change the way they shop, with a focus on value.  Like consumers in Europe and North America, Australians are trying to stretch their dollars further: they are eating out less, entertaining and cooking at home more often and buying more private label goods. 
These changes present a range of challenges for retailers and …

As the “great recession” continues and consumers hear conflicting messaging about when the U.S. economy will improve, shoppers from all income levels are increasingly seeking out and taking advantage of deals at the grocery store. Whether in the form of store promotion or deal or manufacturers coupon, deal rates are up more than 8% from a year ago for households earning more than $70K, a faster rise than the 6% uptick for middle-income households ($30K-$69.9K) and 5% gain for the lower income households earning less than $30K per year.

Those affluent …

The effects of the recession may be seen on the BBQ grill this Fourth of July. Sales of hot dogs have been going up in recent months while register rings for more expensive bratwurst and knockwurst have been declining, according to new research from The Nielsen Company. This is a reversal of sales trends the past several years.
July 3rd traditionally has the highest sales volume for all three types of meat. Consumers were 50 percent more likely to buy hot dogs during the four-week period ending on July 12, 2008 …

Retail grocery prices in the U.S. continue to creep higher overall compared with 2008, according to new research from The Nielsen Company. The good news is price increases appear to be slowing compared with the price spikes experienced by shoppers in the spring of 2008 and 2007.
These were some of the findings from the “Supermarket Pricing Trends” study which looked at pricing of the top-selling items across 45 categories over the course of five years. It concluded by measuring the 12 weeks ending May 16 in total U.S. supermarkets.
Overall, …

Tom Pirovano, Director, Industry Insights

For the past several months, we’ve seen sales for U.S. store brands grow at unprecedented rates with annual sales of $85.5 billion, up by $13.6 billion (+19%) vs. just two years ago. (Nielsen Grocery/Drug/Mass including Walmart). At first, this growth was driven by higher prices for milk and other commodities. Then the economy got even worse, and many just assumed that shoppers were switching from national brands to store brands to save money.
But what about the other factor we sometimes forget to mention? Could it be …

Tom Pirovano, Director, Industry Insights
I recently shared some thoughts on how CPG manufacturers can protect their brands from private label expansion. Of course, it didn’t take long to hear back from retailers asking for tips on growing their own brands so here are a few private label ideas for our retailer friends.

Study the category consumer before going upscale. Consumer understanding is the common thread among top-selling brands. It’s not enough for a retailer to roll out a quality product in premium packaging.
Disguise your premium store brands. Many consumers still associate …

Our CPG world is one where technology is rapidly evolving and transforming how consumers receive, seek and use information to impact buying and shopping decisions. This makes our jobs exciting and challenging at the same time as it is harder than ever to manage the ever-changing technology landscape and almost impossible to control.

At the Consumer 360 Conference yesterday Malcolm Gladwell gave some fascinating remarks on compensatory learning. I thought it was a perfect frame for what Nielsen is doing in the area of Shopper Management. The basic message is that some people, or businesses or processes, achieve greatness through continuous and iterative improvement. That is precisely the path we are in Shopper Management at Nielsen.

Collaboration is the theme vividly painted at The Nielsen Company’s Consumer 360 morning kick off – as attendees found themselves consumed in data illustrating a continuously changing consumer mindset, fed by an ongoing shift in consumer psychology. And the message was clear from the start: collaboration at the retail-vendor level will be key the successfully navigating this challenging, changing landscape.