Private Label's Invisible Takeover
How store brands stopped being substitutes and started being first choices
Half of global consumers are increasingly purchasing private label products, indicating a shift in brand loyalty and value perception. In 2023, private label products accounted for 19.4% of global FMCG value sales. In Western Europe, that number hit 26%. But focusing on these numbers misses the real story: private labels have quietly evolved from copycat alternatives to innovation leaders.
The old narrative positioned private labels as recession-friendly alternatives. The new reality is far more threatening to established brands: store brands are now often superior products at better prices, developed with the same sophistication as national brands but without the legacy costs and marketing overhead.
In 2024, over half of retailers expected private labels to be their primary growth driver, indicating a continued uptick in growth. This isn't about economic pressure anymore—it's about retailer ambition. Major chains are investing hundreds of millions in private label innovation, hiring former brand managers from P&G and Unilever, and treating their store brands as the stars of their strategy.
The wake-up call for national brands: private labels are no longer playing defense. They're actively targeting premium segments, launching in categories previously dominated by established players, and using their advantageous shelf positioning to capture not just market share, but mindshare.
National brands that survive this shift will be those that fundamentally rethink their value proposition. The ones that don't will find themselves relegated to the commodity status that private labels once occupied.
Sources:
Shopify CPG Trends Report 2025
Circana CPG Growth Leaders Report 2024
Infosys CPG Industry Outlook 2024