Private label CPG dollar sales rose 2.2%, while unit sales fell 1%, during the four-week sales period ended September 4, 2010, according to research firm The Nielsen Company. In contrast, CPG dollar sales rose 0.4% during the four-week period ending August 8, 2009, while unit sales climbed 3.6%.
Dollar Sales Total $6.7B
Dollar sales of private label prepackaged, UPC-coded CPG goods were $6.71 billion during the most recently tracked four-week period, compared to $6.56 billion during the equivalent period a year earlier. Fresh produce experienced the strongest sales growth rate of any department, rising 26.8% from $183.2 million to $232.3 million. Fresh meat followed closely with 26.1% growth, rising from $41.1 million to $52 million.
Two departments experienced a decline in dollar sales compared to the equivalent four-week period in 2009. Non-food grocery sales fell 3.5%, from $676.6 million to $652.8 million, while dry grocery sales dropped 1.9%, from $2.34 billion to $2.3 billion.
Dollar Segment Share Rises Again
Growth for private label CPG goods in terms of dollar segment share rose fractionally for the 10th straight four-week period. Dollar sales of private label CPG goods increased 0.5 percentage points, from 16.9% of the segment to 17.4%. Branded CPG goods accounted for the remaining 82.6% of the segment.
Every department except dry grocery, which slightly declined, and alcoholic beverages, deli, and non-food grocery, which all remained flat, experienced positive dollar segment share growth compared to the equivalent period in 2009. Three departments experienced a positive dollar segment share increase of 1% or more: fresh meat (4.6%), fresh produce (3.2%), and combo pack (1.7%).
Segment share growth in the dry grocery department declined 0.2% from the equivalent period a year earlier.
Unit Sales Fall to 3.06B
Total unit sales for the four weeks ended September 4, 2010 were 3.06 billion, down 1% from 3.09 billion during the equivalent four-week period in 2009. Fresh produce sales climbed 20.5%, from 73.9 million units to 89.1 million units; while fresh meat sales rose 19.8%, from 9.3 million units to 11.1 million units. Combo pack sales rose 12.6%, from 1.8 million units to 2.03 million units.
On the negative growth side, packaged meat sales fell 5.1%, from 57.2 million units to 54.3 million units, while daily sales fell 4.4%, from 703 million units to 672.1 million units. Dry grocery sales declined 1%, from 1.44 billion units to 1.43 billion units.
Unit Segment Share Stays Flat
Unit segment share remained flat compared to the equivalent period a year earlier, with private label CPG goods accounting for 21.6% of the segment. Branded CPG goods accounted for the remaining 78.4% of the segment.
Three departments reported negative unit segment growth and three departments reported flat unit segment growth. On the positive side, fresh meat had the highest growth rate (3.7%), followed by combo pack (3%), and fresh produce (2.6%).
Meanwhile, only one department had a negative unit segment growth rate of more than 1%, dairy (1.2%). Frozen foods, deli and alcoholic beverage all reported flat unit segment performance.
Store Brands Gain Acceptance
Store brands gaining clear acceptance from a large majority of consumers, according to the Deloitte “2010 Great American Pantry Study.” For example, 80% of consumers believe most store brands are manufactured by traditional national brands, and 74% are more open to trying private labeled store brands than they were two years ago.
A slight majority of consumers (51%) say there are only two or three brands they can’t live without, and less than half (48%) believe traditional national brand products are superior to private label store brand products. And only one-third of consumers (32%) feel they are often sacrificing when they purchase a private label, rather than national, brand.
Looking ahead, increased consumer receptiveness to store brands will likely remain even after the recession concludes. Only about one-third (35%) of consumers say they intend to purchase more national brands once the economy starts improving.
