FMI Focused On Next Level of Private Brands Growth
Following several years of strong growth of private label products across a host of categories, the conversation is now focused on how to keep sales in the industry strong as economic conditions change and consumer shopper habits evolve.
In a recent blog post on the FMI - The Food Industry Association’s website, Doug Baker, vice president of Industry Relations with FMI, said leaders in the industry need to develop a plan to follow up on the recent success of private brands in an effort to keep the momentum going.
To address this effort, Baker said FMI’s Private Brands Leadership Council (PBLC) identified five focus areas. They include strategic sourcing, education, technical regulatory compliance, ESG/sustainability, and insights and trends. Each focus area is being referred to a subcommittee each of which consists of retailers and suppliers in an effort to identify the best approaches to advance each.
A breakdown of the five areas are below:
Strategic Sourcing
The Strategic Sourcing Workstream will work to develop strategies to find and engage new suppliers. This effort will include standardizing industry terminology and practices unique to U.S. grocery. The group will also work with the FMI Supply Chain Council and Asset Protection Council to foster supply chain security.
Education & Awareness
The focus is to educate professionals including prospective job candidates and current employees about private brands. The Education & Awareness Workstream will tell the industry’s store and focus on working across industry associations, outreach to schools, mentoring, supporting career enhancement and empowering associates to be brand ambassadors for private brand products.
Technical Regulatory Compliance
The Technical and Regulatory Compliance Workstream helps develop industry positions and priorities, such as those impacting labels and packaging, in conjunction with FMI's Government Relations team. The goal is to minimize the number of instances a brand needs to change their packaging, all while ensuring that the consumer has the proper information to make an educated decision when purchasing a private brand product.
Sustainability
The private brands industry aims to drive sustainability progress but often faces hurdles. The Sustainability Workstream is committed to enhancing sustainability alignment between private brand retailers and suppliers to support efforts with packaging and products. The group will engage with FMI's sustainability community, help identify new sustainability technologies and keep the council up to date on relevant federal and state regulatory developments.
Insights and Trends
The Insights and Trends Workstream works with FMI's Research and Insights Department and oversees FMI's private brand research efforts, which include the annual Power of Private Brands studies on consumer and industry trends. This group will also bring additional education opportunities to private brand leaders throughout the year, including as part of council meetings.