Business
UK-based agency BRANDED Opens Miami Headquarters
UK-based agency BRANDED announced the opening of a new US headquarters in Miami, Florida, to join its offices in the UK, Hong Kong, and India this week. The news coincides with the introduction of a new brand positioning of "The agency for the Age of Acceleration." and a new message, "Brilliant Ideas. Brilliantly Executed." The repositioning focuses their offering to more effectively serve Retailers and Retail-owned Brands (private brands.) "Bringing over four decades of experience to the table, we understand the challenges that retailers face in establishing a unique and effective private brand," said Jamie Richards, CEO of BRANDED.
Private Brand Helps Drive Q4 Sales at Loblaw
This past Thursday Canadian retailer Loblaw Companies Limited announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter ended 12.31.22 and the release of its 2022 Annual Report - Financial Review. Loblaw continued to deliver strong financial and operating results in the fourth quarter. Retail segment sales grew 9.7% reflecting strong growth in both Food and Drug businesses. Drug Retail sales growth was driven by continued strong demand for cough and cold products and strength in high-margin beauty and cosmetics categories. Food Retail sales reflected the Company’s efforts to provide value to its customers. The Company’s Discount stores outperformed, benefiting
Walmart Private Brand Penetration Grew 160 Basis Points In Q4
Yesterday (February 21) Bentonville giant Walmart held its Q4 2023 Earnings Call. Doug McMillon, President, Chief Executive Officer & Director, Walmart, Inc. began the call on an optimistic note:“Good morning, everyone, and thanks for joining us. We're excited about our momentum. The team delivered a strong finish to the year, and as our results in the last two quarters show, we acted quickly and aggressively to address the inventory and cost challenges we faced last year. We built momentum in the third quarter and that continues. We're well-positioned to start this fiscal year.For fiscal 2023, we added $38 billion in
Treehouse Foods Energized by Private Brand
Earlier this week TreeHouse Foods, Inc. reported results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2022. Steve Oakland, TreeHouse Foods Chief Executive Officer and President, said, "I'm incredibly proud to have closed out 2022 as a more focused company, operating in faster growing, more profitable categories. Today, we are better positioned to capitalize on the strong market dynamics in private label snacking & beverages. The macro-environment continues to support a clear consumer shift toward value, as demonstrated by private label unit share gains for 54 consecutive weeks in the categories in which we operate. Importantly, in
Michaels Crafts to Host Inaugural Innovation Summit
Craft and hobby retailer Michaels is hosting its first-ever Innovation Summit in collaboration with RangeMe and ECRM to discover new and unique products to add to its assortment. “Michaels is always on the lookout for the latest and greatest products to empower our customers to bring all of their creative dreams to life, whether that’s handmade arts and crafts, seasonal décor, or celebrating important moments,” said Eileen Miller, SVP - General Merchandise Manager for Michaels. “At our inaugural Innovation Summit, we look forward to meeting with top-quality suppliers to discover new products that will enhance our assortment and give
Lowe’s Kobalt Tools Celebrates 25th Years
Last week Lowe’s Home Improvement held its annual Store Managers Meeting at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. As a part of the gathering Executives and store managers celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Retailers-own Brand (private brand) Kobalt Tools. Attendees documented the celebration across social media with posts on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. Kobalt launched in 1998 as a line of mechanics tools. The Lowe’s Owned brand has since extended to a full line of tools and power tools. Excited doesn't begin to explain how i feel to be at Lowes SMM!!!
DSW Expands Its Retail-Owned Brand Portfolio with Purchase of Keds
Designer Brands, the parent company of retailer DSW, has purchased shoe brand Keds. The acquisition adds the brands to the retailers growing portfolio of Retail-owned Brands as they attempt to double sales of its private brands by 2026. DSW bought Keds from Rockford, footwear manufacturer Wolverine Worldwide. "Our growing strength in owned brands is evident, given that just twelve months ago, the athleisure category was a massive white space opportunity for us, and we now control high-quality brands across multiple price points," said Doug Howe, incoming chief executive officer and president of DSW. "Our acquisition of Keds, which has
Harris Teeter Announces Supplier Diversity Summit
Kroger-subsidiary NC-based grocer Harris Teeter announced today that it will invite diverse product suppliers to apply to join a virtual Supplier Diversity Summit. The summit will occur March 28 - 30, 2023. The retailer will work to identify and increase sourcing from suppliers that are at least 51% owned, operated and managed by people who are: disadvantaged, disabled, LGBTQ+, military veterans, minorities and/or women and sell grocery, general merchandise and/or beauty and personal care products “Our goal is for Harris Teeter – our people and our products – to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve,” said Danna Robinson,
2023 Velocity Call for Speakers for Our Groundbreaking Events
Are you or is there someone in your organization who is an experienced and dynamic speaker who can help retail and private brand professionals develop strategies, skills, and a mindset that drives private brand excellence? If so, we invite you to speak at one of our 2023 events. Our 2023 calendar includes 7 cities: Toronto, Canada, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Charlotte, North Carolina, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Austin, Texas, Chicago, Illinois, two Live Online Summits and the Vertex Awards. Speakers should inspire, entertain, and engage through interactive presentations or panels providing practical, actionable takeaways. Speakers will receive access to the entire event.
Private Brand Grows at John B. Sanfilippo & Son in Q2
Early last week John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc. announced financial results for its fiscal 2023 second quarter ended December 29, 2022. “During the second quarter, net sales increased over $21 million, or 8.3%, compared to last year’s second quarter, and we delivered strong bottom line growth as our diluted EPS increased 27.2% to $1.45 per share. Our strong quarterly performance resulted from numerous continuous improvement initiatives, a focus on reducing our operating costs, and selling price alignment efforts initiated last fiscal year as a response to inflationary cost increases. We continue to see strong demand for our products,
