About Christopher Durham

Christopher Durham is the president of the Velocity Institute. Prior to this he founded the groundbreaking site My Private Brand. He is the co-founder of The Vertex Awards. He began his retail career building brands at Food Lion and Lowe’s Home Improvement. Durham has worked with retailers around the world, including Albertsons, Family Dollar, Petco, Staples, Office Depot, Best Buy, Metro Canada. Durham has published seven definitive books on private brands, including Fifty2: The My Private Brand Project and Vanguard: Vintage Originals.

Get Your Velocity Sustainability Summit Now!

Join us for the 2022 Velocity Institute Sustainability Summit, October 18-19, 2022 in Cincinnati Ohio. The Summit will bring the excitement of live in-person events back with a gathering in Cincinnati. Kroger, RiteAid, Misfits Market, Giant Eagle, United Dairy Farm will headline this years groundbreaking event. The Summit is a Private Brand/ Private Label event

Get Your Velocity Sustainability Summit Now!2022-09-27T18:56:28-04:00

Wakefern Announces First Own Brands Supplier Innovation Summit

Wakefern Food Corp. announced this week the winners of its first Own Brands Supplier Innovation Summit. The event which was held in July, gave manufacturers the stage to pitch new innovative products to Wakefern brand executives. Winners may be included in one of their Vertex award-winning private brands Bowl & Basket and Wholesome Pantry. The

Wakefern Announces First Own Brands Supplier Innovation Summit2022-09-27T18:46:37-04:00

Marks & Spencer Launches New Vegetarian Range

UK-based retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) is launching a new range of Retail Brand (private brand) vegetarian meals, Veggie, in response to customers' growing demand for more vegetarian choices.Available this past week ahead of World Vegetarian Day (October 1st), the range includes a choice of 14 delicious vegetarian meals developed by the retailer’s in-house chefs.

Marks & Spencer Launches New Vegetarian Range2022-09-26T20:32:56-04:00

Trader Joe’s Taste of the Season: Pumpkin Cheesecake Croissants

This year’s holiday Trader Joe's tasting panel didn’t need much convincing to vote an enthusiastic “YES!” on the latest Retail Brand (private brand) Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Cheesecake Croissants. Each Croissant starts as a roughly four-inch square of all-butter dough. (Perhaps they are using “croissant” loosely, as these are not traditional, crescent-shaped croissants.) Their supplier tops

Trader Joe’s Taste of the Season: Pumpkin Cheesecake Croissants2022-09-26T20:31:51-04:00

Misfits Market to present at Velocity Sustainability Summit

Today we are excited to announce that Morgan Drummond Sr Director of Private Brand Development MISFITS MARKET will take the Velocity Institute Sustainability Summit stage. The groundbreaking event will bring together the Retail Brand (private brand) industry to discuss the role sustainable packaging, ethical/equitable sourcing, and authentic marketing. This is a can't miss presentation that

Misfits Market to present at Velocity Sustainability Summit2022-09-25T17:19:18-04:00

Kroger CIO Yael Cossett Shares Seamless Strategy

Heather Haddon reporter at the Wall Street Journal interviews Yael Cossett Chief Digital Officer at Kroger ALast week at the Groceryshop 2022 convening in Las Vegas, Kroger Co. Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President Yael Cosset shared the grocer's seamless strategy and changes in shopping trends."We know our customers have different needs based

Kroger CIO Yael Cossett Shares Seamless Strategy2022-09-25T16:45:24-04:00

Trader Joe’s Celebrates Fall with Salted Maple Ice Cream

For our latest autumnal indulgence, we’re reaching for the freezer. That’s because Trader joe's has tapped into a new, limited-edition Retail Brand (private brand) Ice Cream flavor that is sure to become a customer favorite—Salted Maple! Mmmm... mmmaple. Made by the same supplier responsible for some of the retailers past holiday hits, Trader Joe’s

Trader Joe’s Celebrates Fall with Salted Maple Ice Cream2022-09-25T16:44:19-04:00

Sprouts Farmers Market: Product Sourcing Manager, Our Brands

Req ID: 207953 Geographic Location: Phoenix, Arizona Sprouts Location: 9900 - Corp HQ Position Type: Full-Time Overview The Our Brands Team is growing and looking to add a Sourcing Manager to our team to drive continuous improvement of existing Sprouts Branded products (Our Brands) and to support product development by focusing on driving better buying

Sprouts Farmers Market: Product Sourcing Manager, Our Brands2022-09-25T16:41:04-04:00

Velocity Talks with Juli Lassow: Sustainability Summit Preview

Welcome to Velocity Talks a weekly interview series in which Velocity Institute President Christopher Durham discusses the state of private brand, retail, and careers with retail executives and thought leaders from around the world. The series has taken a break through the summer and we are back for the fall. This week begins a

Velocity Talks with Juli Lassow: Sustainability Summit Preview2022-09-22T19:47:10-04:00

Aldi UK Launches Brrriliant New Ice Cream

Calling all ice-cream fans – Aldi UK is launching a tasty new range of Retail Brand (private brand) Ice Cream Tubs (£2.29, 480ml) inspired by well-loved chocolate brands Dairy Milk, Oreo and Flake. From September 19th, shoppers can say hello to creamy, cost-effective post dinner treats, coming in at 30% cheaper than their counterparts! Available

Aldi UK Launches Brrriliant New Ice Cream2022-09-22T16:35:18-04:00