Trends in Private label

Euromonitor analyst Carrie Lennard noted some general trends in beauty, including a move to more budget and private label color cosmetics brands, a continued presence by minerals and naturals and strong performance within facial makeup, namely foundation and formulas with antiaging properties. With high-profile exits in 2009 — such as Max Factor withdrawing from the U.S. market — the decision by other players to enter the sector during such a difficult year remains questionable.

Premium fragrance vendors, such as the Estée Lauder Cos. Inc., are shifting toward smaller packs to keep prices down for money-strapped consumers. Celebrities will still fuel fragrance sales in 2010, said Lennard, and fragrance will also move even closer to masstige positioning and distribution.

Hair care “has been hit by the threat of private label, like in shampoo, which is more of a commodity,” Lennard noted, adding hair color has done well as consumers cut back on visits to the hairdresser. “Products such as Clairol Root Touch Up target those cutting back on the salon,” she said.

Department stores are taking a knock in sales as consumers move toward mass channels, such as supermarkets, drugstores and even discounters. “Even though we are seeing an improvement in the economy, people find it easy to trade down, but more difficult to trade back up,” Lennard said. This trend is being seen especially in the men’s category as “there has been a shift toward mass, even though men’s started in prestige. It has shifted down. Men’s skin care is also beginning to mimic women’s with tinted moisturizers.”

According to Euromonitor, a trend toward “cross-category ‘spread betting’ and increased brand diversity has emerged as a key strategy for many players in beauty and personal care as it is seen as being lower risk than putting all one’s eggs in one basket,” said a recent report by the data firm. “Even though the beauty industry is starting to show signs of recovery, 2010 should see more companies shifting their category focus. Euromonitor International predicts that the most popular choices for new category entry will be skin care and men’s grooming.”

Resource: wwd.com

Antibacterial Hand Gel

Reports from around Europe have confirmed that production of Antibacterial Hand Gel is on the increase.

As the numbers of people effected by the out break of the swine flu increases demand for sanitizing and anti-bacterial products have increase.

In Norway it has been reported that there are even shortages of the popular hand gel with supermarkets looking for suppliers to keep up with demand.

This has of course led to increased prices of the product with the exception on some manufacturers in Eastern Europe in particular Poland.

Speaking to one Antibacterial Hand Gel Manufacturer they told me "The demand for the product in Poland has not quite reached the levels that it has else where in Europe." It seams that the media has not help spread the flames of this epedemic in Poland yet. "We have seen our production of this product increase over the last few months but these oders have been from our Export activities". They went on to say. "Our prices are very attractive for wholesalers, agents, and our private label hand gels are proving popular with the supermarkets and discount stores across the EU. We indend to keep prices low and have now problems with the increase demands for production and if needed we can set up additional production lines very quickly".

Antibacterial hand sanitizer can kill 99% of germs, no drying or water is needed making it the perfect traveling companion.

Popular packaging for this product is 50ml, 100ml, 250ml Pet bottles with pumps or flip caps and 50ml, 75ml PE Tubes with fliptops caps.

Private Label News from around Europe

Private label has helped Delhaize profits grow by more than 30%. CEO Pierre Oliver-Beckers said: “Due to measures such as the increased offering of private brand products, improved price competitiveness and store remodelling, consumers have stayed loyal to our stores.”

Albert Heijn in the Netherlands is planning to extend its nonfood ranges by the end of this year.

Auchan plans to launch two new retail formats in the next few years. The first will be Auchan Maison, a large store offering household goods and furnishings. The other format, Auchan Gourmand, will be smaller and emphasise food products.

Two German retailers, Bünting and Kaiser, will start a procurement partnership this month. The programme will involved both A-brands and private label.

UK supermarket retailer Morrisons will revamp 500 of its nonfood lines, including items such as cookware and dinner party goods.

Rewe is testing a new fascia for its hypermarket format in three stores.

Makro and Auchan have created InterCompra in Portugal, a company to negotiate buying contracts for them.

Aldi will offer a range of Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified sustainable seafood in all its Australia stores. The MSC certification process follows third-party evaluations of a fishery’s sustainability.

Co-op in the UK is introducing the Simply Value range in all its stores. Simply Value was created by Somerfield, the supermarket retailer which was acquired by Co-op. The line will now have the cooperative’s logo on its package.

Pharmacy Chain 36.6 in Russia plans to expand its Natura and Naturage cosmetics brands. The Express Care line of new face masks has been introduced and marketed under the tag line “5 minutes for myself”.

UK retailer John Lewis has launched a collection of kitchen furniture and accessories called Leckford, allowing shoppers to customise purchases by mixing and matching colours.

Zabka Polska, a convenience store retailer in Poland, will launch a network of stores under the FreshMarket name. The retailer plans 15 stores this year and as many as 1,000 in the future.

Metcash in Australia is introducing the Signature range through its 1,300 IGA supermarkets. The range will include biscuits, cereals and coffee. More than 40 retailer brands will be consolidated into the Signature brand.