A study to be released at this week's Private Label Manufacturers Association Private Label Trade Show in Chicago says skin care is a difficult, but potentially lucrative, avenue for expanding store brands, said Jim Wisner, president, Wisner Marketing Group, Libertyville, Ill.
Of 10 case studies in the study — “Center Store Renewal: Leveraging Private Label to Drive Growth” — facial skin care was viewed as a particularly challenging category for supermarkets, both because of the range of stores in which skin care items are purchased and the difficulty of finding private-label products among a very cluttered and fragmented category, Wisner said.
The study was conducted by Wisner in collaboration with Information Resources Inc., Chicago, and with the sponsorship of Vi-Jon Laboratories, St. Louis, a producer of private-label HBC products.
Among the private-label best practices for skin care identified in the study were to increase shelf presence and awareness through additional facings, using off-shelf displays and developing more attractive packaging. Retailers in the top tier of performance achieved a private-label penetration index nearly three times the market average and were more successful competing with other channels, he said.
An example of lines that create differentiated approaches to private label are the Lumene and Skin Effects brands of CVS/pharmacy, Woonsocket, R.I., Wisner said. Private label is entering a “next generation,” in which retailers will begin creating private brands that set them apart from both national brands and the private labels of other retailers, he said.
Retailers also need to monitor “activity share,” which refers to the private-label ratio of item selection, shelf space, promotion frequency, lead features and ad space in each category, he added.
“The problem is that too many retailers only measure results, without ever measuring what causes them,” Wisner said. “This is especially acute in nonfood, where supermarkets often do not track private label across all channels or with the same attention that is given to food products. Even small improvements can make a big difference in retaining HBC customers.”
— D.A.