Walmart earns top spot in Kantar report for 23rd consecutive year
For the 23rd year in a row, Walmart received the top spot among retailers in Kantar’s 2019 US PoweRanking report.
Walmart, which offers several lines of private brands, maintained the top spot because of clarity of strategy, supply chain, digital resources and manufacturer belief in future performance, according to Kantar, a Boston-based data, insight and consultancy company.
Cincinnati-based The Kroger Co. was second on the retailer list for the fourth-consecutive year, and Target moved up to the number three position "as a result of significant investment in its omnichannel brand," Kantar stated. Seattle-based Amazon and Issaquah, Wash.-based Costco Wholesale rounded out the top five, while Goodlettsville, Tenn.-based Dollar General climbed into the top 10 this year after ranking 13th in 2018.
All of the retailers have been building their private brands programs the past few years and feature some of the most notable store brands in the grocery industry.
Walmart, which offers Great Value, Sam’s Choice, equate and other store brand lines, received a No. 1 ranking in seven of nine metrics in the report, which assesses best-in-class retailers and manufacturers. Chosen by their trading partners (retailers score brands, while brands score retailers), the ranking identifies which companies are the most productive partners, and are ranked according to a range of factors from strategic metrics to business fundamentals.
Walmart’s Steve Bratspies said recently the retailer’s private brands program has come a long way. Bratspies, the retailer’s executive vice president and chief merchandising officer, said at the Barclays Global Consumer Staples Conference in September that he didn’t think Walmart did a good job of running its private label program until the retailer began operating the program “with the same discipline that a branded manufacturer would.” He said Walmart now thinks about product quality, pricing, packaging and promotion, display, sourcing and driving innovation the way a branded manufacturer does.
On the manufacturer side, PepsiCo earned the top position among brands for the fourth year in a row. PepsiCo was recognized for its transparency, ability to collaborate and a demonstrated willingness to partner with retailers for mutual growth, according to Kantar.
An executive summary of Kantar’s report can be downloaded here.