Private brands take center stage on the front page of the Business section in today's New York Times. The article from reporter Stephanie Strom highlights the continued traction of store-owned brands with consumers. Sales of these products took off in the recession and have showed no signs of slowing. According to Strom, over the past three years sales of store brands have grown at 18.2% – more than twice the growth rate of national brands over the same period. The most interesting nugget in the story comes from Janet Eden Harris of Market Force Information. Her company recently surveyed consumers and found that 96% said they bought private-label brands at least some of the time.  "Sometimes I think they don't actually know what is a store brand," she offers.

According to Christopher Durham, of My Private Brand, a strategic partner of our retail brand agency, The more evolved retailers have added brands at multiple tiers, however many are simply mimics of national brand products at a cheaper price. "A small group of progressive retailers have begun to create brands that truly engage the consumer and provide something beyond price, a few examples include: Threshold at Target,, Kindle at Amazon, or Greenwise at Publix," he says.

In the Cusson household, Target's new Simply Balanced brand, shown above, has infiltrated our pantry. The fresh new design and  healthly brand position appeals to my wife as she seeks to make smarter purchases for our family. And I can vouch for the taste. It's good stuff.