Oct 5, 2021
FMI’s “Power of Private Brands 2021” report identifies shortcomings and solutions for private brand promotion on digital channels

Arlington, VA – FMI—the Food Industry Association, released its Power of PrivatePoPB Ecommerce Cover Brands 2021: Accelerating Private Brands in Grocery Ecommerce report today, revealing critical insights on the current state of private brand promotion on digital channels. The report includes valuable data from consultancy FitForCommerce, which mystery shopped 25 food retailers’ ecommerce sites and identified 10 opportunities for food retailers to effectively target consumers with private brand offerings.

“Despite the shift to online grocery shopping brought on by the pandemic, grocery sales nearly doubled in the first month of the pandemic and are still nearly 50% higher than pre-pandemic levels.” said Doug Baker, vice president of industry relations for FMI. “Therefore, it’s no surprise that 61% of survey respondents said ecommerce, home delivery, and click and collect internet sales offer significant opportunities for private brands.”

The study found that manufacturer brands continue to engage consumers in ways private brands have yet to fully utilize, and among the 10 areas where private brands fall short of manufacturer brands in digital real estate, three are most notable:

  • Homepages: Only 20% of food retailers analyzed in the research promote private brands on their homepages.
  • Product Detail Pages: Just 44% of food retailers include multiple product images on private brand product detail pages.
  • Banner Ads, Badges and Stickers: Roughly half of food retailers include banner ads on product listing pages and search pages – but only 20% of the banner ads promote private brands.

“The report offers private brands professionals a valuable resource for their marketing, website and ecommerce teams to work together to create a more dynamic ecommerce user experience and amplify their own brand narrative among digital shoppers,” Baker said.

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