• Brandweek, Friday, July 10, 2009 8:44 AM

The NPD Group says 24% of all food and beverages served in American homes last year were store brands, and 97% of all households consume private label foods on a regular basis. While consumers say price and value are their driving motivations, Barbara Grondin Francella reports, most respondents also feel the quality of store brands is often equal to, or in some cases better than, name brands.

7-Eleven, which has expanded to more than 200 private label products in recent months, is working to add nearly 100 more items to its 7-Eleven and 7-Select brand lineup by the end of the year. "We started with product categories that offered the most potential and are now offering private label in just about every category," says Tom Gerrity, 7-Eleven's senior product director. An important component of the program is packaging and labeling.

IRI's Sally Lyons Wyatt warns retailers to maintain a balance between branded products and private label items. "If the private label products start impacting sales in the category overall because of a heavy push of those items, that's bad," she says.

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