A peek at private label consumer electronics trends

1. Short term, there is no mystery to private labeling, it's all about gross margin; plain and simple.2. The biggest difference between the branded products and private label clones is quality.3. All too often a product audit that attributes all the relevant costs to the private label products shows the retailer is actually making no more net profit on house brands and sometimes less.4. So, long...

Market shares of Private Label have been changing.Why has it been principally at Opening Price Points?Why it may creep into higher price positionings?

And they are. Whether it’s manufacturers opening retail stores or retailers getting into the manufacturing business, it’s happening, and it’s working. Apple, Sony, Nokia, and Bose retail stores; Sear’s Craftsman, Safeway’s Organics, Best Buy’s Insignia, Costco’s Kirkland brands are a few good examples of where it’s working.