{"id":371129,"date":"2026-01-15T10:14:14","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T10:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/371129\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T10:14:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T10:14:14","slug":"how-regional-grocers-capture-the-100b-private-brand-opportunity-part-3-build-the-engine-to-scale-advertising-marketing-branding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/371129\/","title":{"rendered":"How Regional Grocers Capture The $100B Private Brand Opportunity – Part 3: Build The Engine To Scale – Advertising, Marketing & Branding"},"content":{"rendered":"

In Europe, private brand accounts for 30% of grocery sales.
\nIn the U.S., the number is 19%. The gap is closing, however, and
\nthe coming shift in market share represents $100 billion in sales.
\nThe regional grocers that capture their share of private brand
\ngrowth will be the ones that 1)commit to an identity<\/a>; 2)develop a compelling flagship category or
\nitem<\/a>; and 3) build the engine to scale. In this
\nseries, we discuss key considerations for each stage of
\ngrowth.<\/p>\n

Grocers elevate private brand from side project to strategic
\npillar when they support the program with dedicated people and
\ndeliberate processes.<\/p>\n

Following the launch of the flagship \u2014which we discussed in Part 2 of this
\nseries<\/a>\u2014 the program should have great momentum. To
\nsustain it, the grocer will need to build systems, and the most
\ncritical components will
\nbepeopleandprocesses.<\/p>\n

On the people side, grocers must define roles and
\nresponsibilities. On the process side, they must establish
\ntimelines and structures. Detailed frameworks in these areas create
\nthe accountability needed to ensure quality, encourage innovation,
\nand enable speed.<\/p>\n

Building systems starts with examining the current assortment
\n\u2014 including the flagship \u2014 and evaluating capabilities,
\nidentifying bottlenecks, and testing repeatability.<\/p>\n

If grocers scale before they have a strong operational
\nfoundation, product quality wobbles, branding drifts, and
\ncredibility erodes fast.<\/p>\n

Grocers who proceed purposefully at this stage, on the other
\nhand, will reap the benefits of speed when it counts: in category
\nreviews, new product development, vendor collaboration, and
\nmore.<\/p>\n

\"1731192a.jpg\"\/<\/p>\n

People<\/p>\n

A mature private brand program is the innovation engine of the
\ncompany.It drives continuous evolution, meets customer needs, and
\nsupports differentiation. It’s a high-stakes endeavor, and it
\nrequires dedicated resources who focus on these areas as top
\npriorities.<\/p>\n

For that reason, many grocers who successfully leverage private
\nbrand establish a Center of Excellence, concentrating talent and
\nensuring strategic focus and tactical execution.<\/p>\n

Defining the roles<\/p>\n

They build in-house capabilities in category and product
\ndevelopment; sourcing and quality assurance; in-store execution;
\nbranding, packaging and marketing; and analytics. Centralizing
\nthese functions \u2014 regardless of where they’re placed in
\nthe overall organizational structure \u2014 allows for end-to-end
\nownership of the process.<\/p>\n

It’s not uncommon for grocers to be daunted by the scope of
\nbuilding a dedicated team for private brand, but this upfront
\ninvestment is what equips the program for long-term impact.<\/p>\n

The vision is for private brand to be a strategic pillar of the
\nbusiness, and strategic pillars cannot be outsourced.<\/p>\n

Setting expectations<\/p>\n

As grocers consider where in the organizational structure
\nprivate brand should be placed, they must understand that every
\noption comes with pros and cons. Setting up private brand for
\nsuccess will mean increasing its shelf space, ad space, marketing
\npresence, manpower and more. Category-level budgets will need to be
\nadjusted to allow private brand to develop into a competitive
\noption, and the disruption of the status quo will result in
\nconflict.<\/p>\n

To minimize that conflict, leadership needs to be transparent
\nabout the goals for private brand; acknowledge how its
\nprioritization is expected to impact sales and margin in the short
\nterm and over time; and clarify roles, responsibilities and
\ndecision rights.<\/p>\n

Building the team<\/p>\n

A private brand program has much in common with a startup, and
\nthe people charged with leading it should embrace that dynamic.
\nGrocers should look for the following characteristics as they
\nassign existing personnel and make new hires.<\/p>\n

\"1731192b.jpg\"\/<\/p>\n

Grocers shouldn’t confine themselves to traditional retail
\nhiring pools as they build this team; brand specialists or
\nprofessionals with CPG experience can be great fits in these roles
\nand bring different yet highly relevant perspectives.<\/p>\n

Integrating the operation<\/p>\n

Too often grocers let private brand exist in a silo, which
\nrelegates that team to an advisory role in category management
\ndecisions rather than giving them true agency. For private brand to
\nreach its potential, it must be thoughtfully woven into the
\nmerchant organization. When that happens, strategic decisions at
\nthe top can permeate into category management processes.<\/p>\n

Processes<\/p>\n

Grocers with leading private brand programs don’t waste time
\nreinventing the wheel every time they launch a new product, range
\nor brand. They adhere to carefully crafted, comprehensive,
\nend-to-end processes \u2014 scrutinized and revamped during the
\nflagship phase \u2014 for category reviews, new product
\ndevelopment, vendor collaboration, go-to-market and other critical
\ncomponents of the business.<\/p>\n

Shorter timelines<\/p>\n

The advantage of this approach is the ability to be more
\nresponsive to the needs and desires of customers. Investing time
\nupfront in creating scalable, repeatable processes is what allows
\nnew products to go from design to debut in as little as nine months
\ninstead of the 20-24 months that is common in the industry.
\nIt’s what enables 3-5 category reviews to happen simultaneously
\nso that 30-40 categories are being studied and refined every
\nyear.<\/p>\n

Fidelity to brand identity<\/p>\n

These processes keep packaging, quality control and marketing
\nstandards for private brand consistent for categories across the
\nstore. They shape and guide vendor selection and collaboration.
\nEstablishing brand and product guardrails is never the most
\nexciting part, but none of the fun product development will be as
\nsuccessful without it.<\/p>\n

Ability to keep up with the customer<\/p>\n

The traditional grocery environmentdoesn’t support the speed<\/a>at which a
\ncompelling private brand program must be able to respond to
\nshifting consumer trends. Relyingpurely on a calendar tied to
\nnational brand resets means new products aren’t added when
\nthey’re at peak relevance. Timelines are frequently pushed to
\ngive preference to holidays and promotions.<\/p>\n

Clarity on accountability<\/p>\n

Too often, progress gets stalled when decision-makers delay. The
\nlack of a centralized project management team means a lack of clear
\nownership at each step \u2014 and therefore a lack of the
\naccountability that is needed to keep momentum and move projects
\nforward.<\/p>\n

Strategic pillar<\/p>\n

Creating a private brand program that delivers an advantage over
\npeers in the long term requires some transition and discomfort in
\nthe short term. For grocers intentional about the people and
\nprocesses they put in place to underpin the program, however,
\nprivate brand will be not only a stronger contributor but a primary
\ndriver of differentiation and growth.<\/p>\n

Bringing private brand to the center of the business is no small
\nfeat, but it can have a transformational impact. Historically,
\nproximity alone could win grocers a certain amount of business, so
\nit was sufficient to offer an assortment heavily reliant on
\nnational brands and very similar to what was offered by
\ncompetitors. Today, grocers must cultivate a unique assortment to
\nwin trips, and private brand will play a leading role in that
\nevolution. It’s both a remarkable opportunity and a massive
\nundertaking.<\/p>\n

To validate this approach, executives need only look at which
\nretailers have gained market share and how effectively they have
\nleveraged private brand to deliver the “whole package” of
\nvalue consumers are seeking \u2014 quality, innovation and
\naffordability.<\/p>\n

Retailers should expect more shift in share ahead; customers are
\nrevealing what they want, and non-traditional channels are the ones
\nlining up to give it to them.<\/p>\n

Grocers who haven’t yet moved with conviction in this area
\ncan still catch up, but the window is closing fast. It’s time
\nto act.<\/p>\n

Want more?Here’s additional private brand
\ninsight from our team of grocery experts.<\/p>\n

How regional grocers capture the $100B opportunity
\n\u2014 Part 2: Develop the flagship<\/a><\/p>\n

How regional grocers capture the $100B opportunity
\n\u2014 Part 1: Commit to an identity<\/a><\/p>\n

The $100 billion opportunity for U.S.
\ngrocers<\/a><\/p>\n

The (enormous) Private Brand Opportunity \u2014
\nand how manufacturers help grocers realize it<\/a><\/p>\n

Grocery Shopper Perspectives 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

The content of this article is intended to provide a general
\nguide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
\nabout your specific circumstances.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In Europe, private brand accounts for 30% of grocery sales. In the U.S., the number is 19%. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":43492,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[59,57,58,50,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-371129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-kingdom","tag-gb","tag-great-britain","tag-greatbritain","tag-news","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=371129"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371129\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43492"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=371129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=371129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=371129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}