August Private Label Dollar Sales Up, CPG Down (Correction)

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September 28, 2010

Editor's Note: On Tuesday Sept. 14, Store Brands Decisions published an article about August private label and CPG dollar and unit figures that was incorrect. The article below is the corrected version. Store Brands Decisions regrets the error.

Private label dollar sales were up 2.5 percent on a unit sales decline of 0.7 percent in the four weeks ended Aug. 7, 2010 compared to the same year-ago period in U.S. food, drug, and mass merchandiser stores, including Walmart, according to The Nielsen Company.

And despite aggressive promotions and couponing, consumer packaged goods companies did not fare as well -- dollar sales declined 1.1 percent and unit share was down 0.8 percent for the four weeks versus the same year-ago period.

Last year, during the four weeks ended August 8, 2009, private label dollar sales were up 1.4 percent and unit volume was up 4.1 percent compared to the same 2008 period.

While lower CPG prices have been beneficial for consumers, they are hurting retailers and manufacturers, according recent and separate Nielsen retail prices reviews, which revealed that prices were off or flat compared to a year ago, during the four-week period ending June 12, 2010.

Unit prices dropping sharply since March 2009, and the number of items on promotion has gone up, according to Nielsen, especially among CPG who are using more promotions to stimulate sales and thwart private label growth.

Total PL Sales and Units
Total private label sales for the four-week period ended Aug. 7, 2010 reached $6.68 billion, compared to $6.51 billion during the same period the prior year.

The highest private label category dollar sales growth came from fresh meat, up 26.1 percent from $39.5 million to $49.9 million; and fresh produce, up 25.3 percent, from $181.9 million to $227.9 million.

Only one private label category -- dry grocery --experienced a decline in dollar sales during the period, down 1.3 percent during the four-week period.

Total private label unit sales for the four weeks were 3.05 billion, down from 3.07 billion during the same prior-year period. Fresh meat unit volume increased 22.6 percent, from 8.9 million units to 10.9 million units. Combo pack sales increased 22.1 percent, from 1.7 million units to 2.1 million units. Fresh produce units increased 21.8 percent, from 72 million units to 87.7 million units.

Year-to-date private label unit share is 21.8 percent, identical to year-ago units share tallied for the same period last year, and dollar share is 17.5 percent (up 0.5 points from the same period last year), according to Nielsen.

Read These Related Articles:

• Research: Household Products Brands Under Attack as Consumers Still Fixate on Price
• Nielsen on the Global Future of Store Brands
• PLMA Live: Nielsen V.P. Says Store Brands Will Remain Strong After the Recession
• Nielsen: Private Label Has Global Staying Power
• Nielsen Forecasts Long Growth Pattern in U.S. Store Brands

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