A Conversation with Mark Baum

In July 2013, Mark Baum joined the Food Marketing Institute (FMI), Arlington, Va., as senior vice president and chief collaboration officer. With more than 32 years of experience in a wide variety of roles across consumer packaged goods and retail, Baum now engages retailer, supplier, manufacturer and service provider CEOs to help raise the bar on industry collaboration at all points of the food retail chain.

Private Label ⇨ Store Brands asked Baum to discuss what’s going on in the store brand industry overall — and where he sees opportunities for future growth.

Private Label ⇨ Store Brands: What are the most exciting store brand categories right now, and what makes them so exciting?

Mark Baum: The first category that comes to mind is ice cream. And I know: Who doesn’t like ice cream? We have witnessed consumers’ taste changing as they seek to explore new flavors and tastes, and consequently, private brand ice cream has moved along with the consumer. The second category is more about lifestyle than products, and I’m referring to natural and organics. From consumables like canned and frozen organic vegetables to natural toothpaste and pet food, food retailers are offering choices to their consumers who embrace a food-aware lifestyle.

PLSB: Which private label categories aren’t getting the attention they deserve in terms of product development?

Baum: There are a few categories where private brands have not explored much in the way of differentiation, and the low penetration for private brands in these categories reflects an opportunity to innovate. These categories are:

• ■ Snacks/chips — Walk the aisle and look at the multiple flavors, sizes and shapes, and you’ll witness a missed opportunity among private brands’ snack and chip categories.
• ■ Cookie/crackers — Not since Dave Nichol launched [Loblaw’s] President’s Choice Decadent Chocolate Chip Cookie [in 1987] has any other retailer made much progress in this category.
• ■ Laundry detergent — The category has tremendous upside potential, but the brand owner may not realize the potential if the company is merely focusing on matching the national brand.

PLSB: Much has been said about the importance of retailer/supplier collaboration to achieve store brand product and packaging differentiation. How important do you believe such partnerships are?

Baum: Collaboration and partnerships are critical to long-term success for both brand owners and suppliers. It takes two interested parties to discover, innovate and create new and better products. Conversely, with national brands, the retailer has little influence on development and other aspects of a product’s development. But even with the intimacy that a brand owner and supplier have to create private brand products, there are some challenges to building trust in these relationships.

PLSB: Who is your greatest hero, and what makes him or her such an inspiration?

Baum: That would have to be my parents — both my mom and dad. They are retired; he was an attorney, she was a paralegal and his office manager. They worked together, and they still play, love and laugh together — every day. And at the end of the day, they have always been there for me and my two brothers.

PLSB: How would you sum up your work philosophy?

Baum: I am purpose-driven and learned early in my career that a “golden attitude” serves you well in the workplace. I believe strongly in FMI’s slogan: “feeding families — enriching lives.” We should strive every day to fulfill that mission to the best of our abilities. I also believe strongly that we should work hard to make a difference.