Sponsored By

Kroger’s Brad Studer: Private label ‘becoming behemoth of grocery industry’

PLMA Private Label Week session examines inspiration, innovation in own brands

Russell Redman

February 5, 2021

5 Min Read
Kroger Simple Truth Plant Based-new items-Oct2020.jpg
Senior director of Kroger's Our Brands team, Studer said the company's Simple Truth better-for-you brand continues to experience rapid growth and branch into new segments, such as plant-based foods.The Kroger Co.

Some inspiration and creativity could pay off big time for grocery retailers building up their own-brand portfolios as more consumers embrace eating at home, Brad Studer, senior director of Our Brands at The Kroger Co., said today at the Private Label Manufacturers Association’s Private Label Week virtual conference.

Introduced by PLMA President Peggy Davies, Studer led a session titled “The Artful Economics Fueling Our Growth,” giving a peek at Cincinnati-based Kroger’s private-label development practices and growth strategies.

“Private brands are becoming a behemoth of the grocery industry, even more so as a result of the pandemic, which has driven more and more customers to try private brands — in some cases by choice and in others by circumstances, with the pantry-loading that occurred early on,” he said.

Brad Studer2-Kroger-Private Label Week 2021.png“Customers are taking the time to connect around the food and the dinner table like never before.” — Brad Studer, The Kroger Co. (Photo from PLMA)

Citing data from the Boston Consulting Group, Studer reported that private labels now represent 18% of the U.S. grocery market. 

“The industry has shifted, and customers aren’t just looking for private brands for the knockoff of the national brand. These customers are looking for fresh foods and for private brands to be innovators, to introduce new foods and flavors,” he explained. “Customers are turning to private brands for elevated, premium experiences, and all at an amazing value.”

Related:PLMA honors 36 companies with Salute to Excellence Awards

Displaying a sales growth chart of key Kroger own brands, Studer noted that the retailer’s Kroger store brand and Simple Truth better-for-you and Private Selection premium brands eclipsed 2020 year-over-year sales gains in the overall private-brand market, based on IRI data.

“Our culinary food brands and natural/organic brands outpaced the industry, with high double-digit growth in 2020,” he said. “The success of our relentless pursuit for perfection is paying off in terms of results. Our customers tell us they love our brands, and the results show it.”

Kroger Our Brands sales growth-2020-PLMA 2021.pngAmong consumers, there’s a “renewed passion for recreating restaurant meals in the comfort of their own home,” Studer said. According to research from Kroger’s 84.51° data and analytics subsidiary, more than 60% of the retailer’s shoppers are spending more time cooking at home. 

“This trend will accelerate in 2021 as customers look to spice up their routine,” he explained. “Private Selection Tikka Masala Simmering Sauce is a great example of a product that brings a sense of comfort and allows customers to make an incredible, tasty, global-inspired meal at home. Though it has been on the shelf for a few years now, in 2020, this SKU alone has shown double-digit growth. This one SKU is growing the overall category, and the repeat rate of this item is more than double the category average.”

Related:At Albertsons, innovation and diversity bring success to Own Brands

Own brands stand to play a key role in seven foods trends that Kroger predicts for 2021. They are “futureproof foods,” “seeking comfort,” “ketotarian foods,” “restaurant and global flavors,” “mushroom mania,” “for the planet” and “fresh innovation.”

Plant-based foods, for example, continue to exhibit strong appeal to eco-conscious customers focused on sustainability, according to Studer. 

“We hold our plant-based products to the same quality standards as the rest of the portfolio, ensuring we don’t just introduce a product, but we deliver the delicious plant-based products that widely appeal to vegans and flexitarians alike,” he said. “Our Simple Truth Emerge Plant-Based Burgers and Grinds are a great example of this. Though launched just a year ago, we continue to refine and hone the recipe to deliver the best eating experience. Another of our plant-based innovations, Simple Truth Cauliflower Debs, brought to new shoppers to the produce dip set, with half of the sales stemming from new buyers. On the poll side of the equation, we’re creating customer-driven demand for Our Brands by delivering insights to understand what experiences and connection opportunities our customers value and how we can create a desire for them to engage with Our Brands on a deeper level.”

Kroger private-label food trends_PLMA 20201.png

Studer said his team conducts more than 10,000 product evaluations each year and, of that, he has “probably tasted 2,000 of those products.” The Our Brands staff — which he described as a “passionate team of customer-obsessed, food-curious product developers, innovators and brand marketers” — aims to take emerging product concepts “from Post-It note to customer mouths and hearts.” 

The team members also represent the first of the “4 Ps” mantra for Our Brands: People (passionate, food-curious and unique), Perspective (distinct point of view), Performance (high standards) and Pride (accountability and ownership).

“Our department has three primary goals: to provide a clear vision, implement at a pace that matters and instill pride among associates who bring the products to show,” Studer said. “The Our Brands team at Kroger is fueled by a relentless drive of perfecting the craft, the merging art and economics.”

Studer said he’s often asked, “What is the secret to Simple Truth’s sustainable success?” He attributed the robust growth of the brand, one of the largest in the Our Brands portfolio, to meeting customer needs, innovation and strong enterprise support.

“This has been a dynamic time in the food and beverage industry, and it’s going to change the American psyche forever,” Studer noted. “Customers are taking the time to connect around the food and the dinner table like never before.”

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

Stay up-to-date on the latest food retail news and trends
Subscribe to free eNewsletters from Supermarket News

You May Also Like