Generic is the new brand
This will date me, but I remember buying six-packs of BEER. Generic beer. I was pretty broke at the time, so I didn’t care that it was generic. Tasted fine to me. Those were the days. “Generic” was in. Down with brand names! Up with saving money!
Eventually, though, people equated plain white packages of PEAS (or cans of BEER) with low quality. So, generics became “store brands,” private-labeled goods meant to compete with brand names on price. But, in 1991, according to a study conducted by industry group Private Label Management Association, only 12% of us would admit to purchasing store brands.
In 2006, 41% of us say we frequently buy store brands. They call this the “Target effect.” In the early 90s, Target set the trend by offering their own brand of products that were well-designed and well-priced, and people responded. Retailers like Costco and OfficeMax are applying the same principle to their products, on everything from cruises to ink pens, and they are having some success. Read the whole story in this article in today’s Business Week.
I am a frequent purchaser of store brands. When it comes to food items, I seldom struggle with the decision. Brand-name food manufacturers private-label the same products. It is a few cents cheaper and the quality difference is marginal, in my opinion. There are exceptions, of course – if I feel the need for a gourmet product, I go for the big label. Day to day, though, store brands are just fine with me.
As for other consumer goods, I am probably a lot like most of you. If it’s designed well, the price is attractive, and the function is the same or nearly the same as the brand name, I will go for the store brand.
I have seen this swing occur before, particulary in clothing and accessories. For a period of time, you’re no one if you aren’t wearing a sweater that screams a designer name across your chest. Then suddenly that will seem “so 3 years ago.”
I recently reported about a Japanese clothing company opening a new store in New York City. Uniqlo, called “the Gap of Japan,” is known for it’s almost anti-designer, generic look. It was arguable whether their design sensibilities, as well as their commodtity-priced clothing, would go over in the U.S. Dave, over at Pop Buzz UK had a story not long ago about the trend toward the very “unfashionable” Plimsolls, cheap rubber soled shoes that are being snapped up by very fashionable celebs like David Beckham.
I say these are just signs of the trend toward a new brand – Generic. Keep watching.
Trends, Generics, Store Brands, Plimsolls, Uniqlo, Designers, Brand Names
Leave a Reply