Retailers, CPGs see growth in private labels

A solid majority of retailers and manufacturers believe there's more market share growth ahead for store brands even after the economy improves, according to a poll from the Deloitte consulting company. 

A survey of top level executives revealed 77% of CPG executives and 90% of retail executives believe private label sales will increase or even increase significantly in the U.S. by 2012. The findings are part of Deloitte's "The Battle for Brands in a World of Private Labels" study. 

Deloitte sees "mounting evidence" that "national brands are losing their hold on the consumer. As a result, consumers are more willing to try new and different brands and believe they have more convenient access to a wider array of product choices." 

The report also cites the growing importance of shopper data. "Stores let retailers collect cross-category sales data, determine product placement, and influence on-site consumers. Retailers use point-of-sale transaction data at a granular level to analyze and understand consumers' preferences between national and store brands, and 94% of surveyed senior leaders at consumer product and retail companies agree that retailers can improve the way they use point-of-sale data to promote store brands."