Report: Store brands show sales increases across the board

New York City -- The Private Label Manufacturing Association reported Tuesday that store brands have capped a decade of strong growth by posting sales increases across all three of the major retail channels in 2010 and pushing dollar market share to new all-time highs in supermarkets, drug stores and total outlets.



According to PLMA’s 2011 Private Label Yearbook, which tracks private label sales and market share trends based on data from The Nielsen Co., in supermarkets, store brands advanced to 19.1% in dollar share and unit share was 23.5%. In drug stores, store brands moved up in dollar share to 14.7% and recorded unit share of 16.2%.



For total outlets, store brands dollar share rose to 17.4%, while unit share came in at 21.8%.



Taking a broader view of the 2010 performance, store brand sales increased by nearly 2% in total outlets -- comprised of U.S. supermarkets, drug stores and mass merchandisers, including Wal-Mart -- while dollar share advanced by almost half a point to a new record level. Overall, sales were $88.5 billion, another all-time high, according to Nielsen.



In supermarkets, store brands sales increased by $1.2 billion and accounted for 100% of the growth in the channel, even offsetting a sales drop of -$149 million by national brands. The picture was much the same in drug stores, where store brands dollar sales increased by $300 million, comprising 60% of all incremental revenue in the channel.



In total outlets, private label was up $1.5 billion while national brands were down $4.6 billion.