Retail Strategies & Supplier Insights

There is a quiet conversation happening in retail right now. It usually does not start with, “We are replacing your item.” It starts with something softer. “We’re reviewing the category.” “We’re looking at value options.” “We’re evaluating our private brand strategy.” Suppliers know what that means. Shelf space is being questioned. Margin is being studied.

Many branded suppliers still see private label as just the cheaper product tucked away at the end of the shelf. That way of thinking is outdated. Private label is no longer quietly in the background. It has grown, become more focused, and plays a bigger role than before. Circana reported on March 31 that U.S. private label sales hit $330 billion in 2025, with a 24% unit share and a 23% dollar share of the market. Circana also noted that private label is now a key growth dr

Private label is no longer a side story. It is one of the main stories in retail right now. PLMA reported that U.S. private label sales reached a record $282.8 billion in 2025 , up 3.3% year over year. National brands grew just 1.2% . Over the past five years, private label dollar sales increased $64.8 billion , and dollar share rose from 19.1% to 21.3% . Unit share reached a record 23.5% . That is not a blip. That is momentum. And the story is evolving. Circana said this we

There was a time when private label mostly meant “cheaper alternative.” Not anymore. Private label sales in the U.S. reached a record $282.8 billion in 2025, and store brands grew 3.3%, nearly triple the growth rate of national brands at 1.2%. They also hit all-time highs of 21.3% dollar share and 23.5% unit share. In food and beverage specifically, private label now holds about 23% market share. That is not a side story. That is the story.

If private label still feels like “the cheap alternative,” you’re reading last decade’s script. Today, store brands are a core strategy. Retailers are building them like real brands—tiered, designed, marketed, and measured like a profit engine. And the numbers are blunt.

Mid-February is when “value pressure” stops being a headline and becomes a buyer conversation. And the signals are getting louder. PepsiCo has said it plans to cut snack prices by up to 15% to boost sales—reported in recent coverage tied to slowing snack volumes and consumer price sensitivity.

Private label (store brands) isn’t “coming.” It’s here—growing, confident, and better funded than ever. In 2024, U.S. store brands set record shares and surpassed $270B in sales; 2025 projections push even higher.

Walmart’s Q2 2024 earnings report shows how American shoppers navigate today’s marketplace and can help you improve your strategy.

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