Kathie Canning, writing in the Costco Connection (Oct 2009), where your humble corespondent also writes on occasion, says the days of brand loyalty are waning along with our economic well-being.
Private label items no longer say BEER or POTATO CHIPS. In fact, a survey shows that nearly 80% of buyers view these positively—and no longer think of them as Brand X.
Why should they? Private label foods are often made by the same companies making the big boys. A&P long had Eight O’Clock Coffee, Sears has Kenmore.
Then TV took over and touted the brand names and we went along. Besides, those black & White generic packages (BEER) were lame.
So the brand equivalents came along—a little sex appeal, lower price. Costco has Kirkland Signature, Target Archer Farms, and Safeway O Organics.
These are lot cheaper, too—an average of 27%!
Private labels are both food and non-food.
So grab for VALUE and go home and have a BEER. You can afford it!
