Private label, the table has turned. POSIVETELY.

Maria Teresa Manuelli Editorial director

There was a different atmosphere during the last edition of Marca By BolognaFiere tradeshow, held on January 18-19. Walking through the stands and talking with the manufacturers, you could finally feel the pride of producing for brands of different distributors and the gratitude for the good choice made several years ago, which turned out to be a solid lifeline and a growth opportunity, in such a difficult period for the brand industry. However, less than a year ago, in April 2022, during the previous edition of the trade show (postponed due to the Covid-19 restrictions), the atmosphere was totally different: more than one company described its collaboration with the PL as ‘a necessary evil for getting on the shelf’ or ‘the price to pay for their collaboration with the large-scale distribution’. What has changed in these few months? A lot, actually. Starting from the fact that consumers, after the pandemic, plunged into a scenario of war and inflation. A war that we thought was going to end soon, which instead, has undermined the basis of the Western economy, leading to skyrocketing production costs, from raw materials to energy. And while the shopping cart of Italians in 2022 had to face a very high inflation, private labels started to grow, turning into consumers’ favorite in this period of crisis. PLs, in fact, have continued to grow, by recording a trend in volume equal to + 2.9%, despite the major impact of inflation. This is a cross-channel growth encompassing hypermarkets, supermarkets, mini-marts and discounters (see p. 20). And it helped generate value on all the production supply chain: 7 PL partner companies out of 10 estimated a turnover increase, according to a survey carried out on the exhibitors of Marca 2023. So what’s the future for PLs and its partners? According to the Position Paper, created for Adm - Associazione Distribuzione Moderna by The European House - Ambrosetti, the forecasts are largely optimistic: PLs won’t simply widen their supply and be more attentive to the promotion of their products, but will also be able to meet the evolving consumers’ needs. In fact, they will be more focused on the premium segment, more sustainable, and will greatly contribute to the promotion of certified, Made-in-Italy products - on average every brand proposes 125 Dop and Igp PL references - and of those who produce them. And the credit for this optimistic forecast goes to the foresight of large-scale distribution and the companies that were able to predict it wasn’t the ‘price to pay’, but, rather, a great opportunity of high-added value production in the long term.