COP3 Dissertation

Name: Jane Hansesgaard Degree Program: BA (Hons) Graphic Design 2014/15 Why do we choose certain brands over own brands?

Is the rise of supermarket own brands changing our shopping habits?

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CONTENTS List of Illustrations ……………………………………………………………………

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Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………

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Chapter 1: The Rise of Brands for Food ………………………………………………

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Chapter 2: An Iconic Food Brand …………………………………………………….

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Chapter 3: Supermarkets and Their Own Label Brands ………………………………

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Chapter 4: Waitrose and Aldi …………………………………………………………

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Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………

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Illustrations ……………………………………………………………………………

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Bibliography …………………………………………………………………………..

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Appendix 1 ……………………………………………………………………………

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Appendix 2 ……………………………………………………………………………

51-54

Appendix 3 ……………………………………………………………………………

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Fig 1 Harwell, G.L. (1946) ‘Uncle Ben’s Converted Long Grain Rice’ [Packaging] Available from http://whowasuncleben.blogspot.co.uk/ [Accessed 29.11.2014]

Fig 2 Mars (2007) ‘Uncle Ben’s Converted Long Grain Rice’ [Packaging] Available from http://www.unclebens.com/Products/White-­‐Rice/Original-­‐Converted#.VHmCzIfgWX0 [Accessed 29.11.2014]

Fig. 3 Heinz Tomato Ketchup branding over the years. Available from http://chutzpah.typepad.com/slow_movement/2009/04/iht-­‐an-­‐icon-­‐despite-­‐itself.html [Accessed 29.11.2014]

Fig. 4 Heinz Tomato Ketchup branding 2014. Available from http://www.heinz.com/media/images/ketchup_bg2.jpg [Accessed 29.11.2014]

Fig. 5 Geoghegan T. (2013) ‘Heinz Baked Beans can (1895) Available from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-­‐21689069 [Accessed 29.11.2014]

Fig. 6 Heinz Baked Beanz can (2014) Available from http://www.tesco.com/groceries/product/details/?id=252261477 [Accessed 29.11.2014]

Fig. 7 Distribution of market shares, UK supermarkets. Available from http://uk.kantar.com/consumer/shoppers/2014/1811-­‐kantar-­‐worldpanel-­‐uk-­‐grocery-­‐ share-­‐data-­‐november/ [Accessed 19.11.2014]

Fig. 8 UK Wages and Inflation during recession. Available from http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/6994/economics/uk-­‐wage-­‐growth/ [Accessed 19.11.2014]

Fig. 9 Waitrose Point of Sale, ceiling level.

Author’s own photo, Waitrose, 60 Westgate, Otley, LS21 3AS, 22.11.2014

Fig. 10 Waitrose Point of Sale, category imagery Author’s own photo, Waitrose, 60 Westgate, Otley, LS21 3AS, 22.11.2014

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Fig. 11 Waitrose Product Placement, tinned food area.

Author’s own photo, Waitrose, 60 Westgate, Otley, LS21 3AS, 22.11.2014

Fig. 12 Aldi’s Point of Sale at ceiling level.

Author’s own photo, Aldi, Keighley Road, Skipton, BD23 2TA, 22.11.2014 Fig. 13 An aisle in Aldi Author’s own photo, Aldi, Keighley Road, Skipton, BD23 2TA, 22.11.2014 Fig. 14 Shelf in Aldi Author’s own photo, Aldi, Keighley Road, Skipton, BD23 2TA, 22.11.2014 Fig. 15 Waitrose shop with receipt Author’s own photo, 22.11.2014 Fig. 16 Aldi shop with receipt Author’s own photo, 22.11.2014

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INTRODUCTION This dissertation aims to explore the reasons consumers choose certain brands over others, focussing on food and supermarket brands in the UK. It looks at the power of established manufacturers’ brands versus own labels and investigates whether a change is currently taking place in brand loyalty and shopping habits.

Doing the weekly shop is no longer as simple as buying the essentials needed for survival, instead it presents us with a plethora of products offering the same thing, but branded differently. This demands from us time to compare and pay attention to detail in evaluating what we are getting for our money. In and amongst this we are also very aware of what our shopping destinations say about us to other people, as Lury puts it ‘we are what we eat, drink, wear, wash our hair with - 'brandographics' is replacing demographics and psychographics’ (Lury, 2001, p3).

In the following body of work established manufacturer’s brand will be referred to as manufacturer’s brand. The dissertation is split into four main chapters.

The first chapter will be historical in focus and will address how the term ‘brand’ evolved into a valuable asset. Four books on branding form the main sources of research. The chapter refers to Klein (2010) in her comprehensive account of the emergence of the brand and will be compared with Lury’s (2001) and Olins (2003) observations of factors that helped shape brands. It looks at the discovery of the consumer from the views of Humphery (1998) and through this some of Packard’s’ Eight Hidden Needs will be analysed.

Following this, the second chapter will look at the food brand Heinz as a case study, which will bear an important relevance to chapter one due to Heinz being one of the first brands born. It aims to identify some of the characteristics of a successful manufacturer’s brand building on theories identified in chapter one. It is informed by historical facts from Heinz’s website (2014). Views on how Heinz engages with their audience are taken from the writings of brand strategists Baruchin (2013). Evidence of the brand awareness will be displayed through rankings from Kantar Worldpanel, a trusted source due to being the UK’s largest single source of continuous consumer and shopper insights.

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From here the dissertation leads on to concentrate on the grocery market today approached through a statistical methodology. It summarizes the current distribution of market shares between the supermarkets and how this has been shaped by a period of change through the recession using statistics from Kantar Worldpanel (2014). It looks at branding aspects as well as consumers’ brand perception and loyalty in terms of own label building on Olin’s (2003) and Lury’s (2001) theories. Reportlinker (2014) and The Grocer (2014) are referred due to their coverage of up to date industry news. Primary research is introduced through a comparison of own labels from what is referred to in the market as ‘The Big Four’, Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrison’s.

The last chapter features a case study of Waitrose and Aldi, the two supermarkets at each end of the value spectrum with the purpose of identifying the reasons for their growth. This chapter has been approached mainly through primary research to add depth to the outcome from a different perspective, whilst at the same time assessing to what extent theories examined in previous chapters appear to be in place.

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- CHAPTER ONE THE RISE OF BRANDS FOR FOOD

Looking back to when the idea of branding first began, Klein informs us ‘that the first massmarketing campaigns, starting in the second half of the nineteenth century, had more to do with advertising than with branding as we understand it today’. She writes ‘the recently invented products – the radio, phonograph, car, light bulb and so on, were the news themselves and that was almost advertisement enough.’ (Klein, 2010, p5) Lury adds; ‘it was the 19th century that saw the dawn of branding and the industrial revolution caused its birth.’

He explains that people were taking on a new way of thinking

‘By that time an increased proportion of people worked for a manufacturer and not themselves. They no longer needed to mark the products they produced as their own, rather what they produced was collectively produced for one company.’

(Lury, 2001, p5-6) During this time mass production became facilitated due to the rise of railways. (Lury, 2001, p6) From this point on new products as well as old, basic staple products were being massproduced and a need for a means of distinguishing one product from another developed.

‘The first task of branding was to bestow proper names on generic goods such as sugar, flour, soap and cereal, which had previously been scooped out of barrels by local shop keepers. In the 1880’s, corporate logos were introduced to mass produced products like Campbell’s Soup, H.J Heinz pickles and Quaker Oats cereal’ (Klein, 2010, p6) Packaged goods resulted in a new relationship between consumer and goods. Shopping became a depersonalised, distanced experience compared to previously, when the local shopkeeper weighed out goods and acted as an advocate for quality. Klein explains how attempts were made through branding to reconnect the consumer with the products by using family titles in the names. This would imply a connection with homemade food and a sense that it was made by a person whom the consumer could relate to.

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‘Logos were tailored to evoke familiarity and folksiness in an effort to counteract the new and unsettling anonymity of packaged goods. Familiar personalities such as Dr Brown, Uncle Ben, Aunt Jemima and Old Grand-Dad came to replace the shop keeper, who had previously acted as an advocate for products’. (Klein, 2010, p 6) This need for familiarity and a story around a product would become one of the principles of branding, as Davis claims ‘a brand’s heritage is still a core part of its story’, regardless of whether the brand has remained family owned or not.

‘Many brands play on the fact they remain committed to their roots and the values (social or otherwise) of their founders, this sense of brand lineage can provide a strong story for a brand.’ (Davis, 2009, 16) Fig. 1 shows the first branding of Uncle Ben’s Converted Long Grain Rice in 1947, featuring a person with a friendly smile that consumers can engage with. The name Uncle Ben was in fact chosen in honour of a rice farmer, renowned for exceptional quality of rice (UncleBen’s, 2014). The image in Fig. 2 shows that the same identity, albeit brought up to date, has remained largely the same in today’s branding.

Olins informs that it took a while before brands were recognized as having an identity. He mentions that formerly brands were simple household goods that were nothing more than boring everyday product which were replaceable. The brand was a symbol of consistency used to reflect standard quality and price and that the image of the brand projected and sustained the product. Unlike today, where we tend to take a product’s functionality for granted but use the image of the brand to reflect our own image. (Olins, 2003, p14) Advertising came to represent a channel of speaking to the potential consumer. Klein talks about the realization in advertising that branding was not just scientific, it was also spiritual could in fact conjure a feeling.

‘By the end of the 1940’s, there was a burgeoning awareness that a brand wasn’t just a mascot or a catchphrase or a picture printed on the label of a company’s product; the company as a whole could have a brand identity or a corporate consciousness’, as the ephemeral quality was termed at the time.’ (Klein, 2010, p6-7)

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Davis observed another angle and writes; ‘it was undoubtedly the growth of post-war economies and an expanding middle class that gave impetus to brands and a rising consumerism.’ (Davis, 2009, p17) Prior to extending further on branding, Humphery’s reminds us of ‘the discovery of the consumer’ in the 1930’s, an important point in relation to the emergence of the brand, as the development of the two could be seen to be closely linked. He refers to the views of ‘Professor Elizabeth Levett in her contribution to the book ‘Self and Society: Social And Economic Problems from the Hitherto neglected Point of View of the Consumer’.

‘History begins with discontent, with development, slow or sudden, of new desires.

The desires, Levett was referring to in an essay entitled ‘The Consumer in History’, were those aroused by commodities.’ (Humphery, 1998, p21) The ‘desires aroused by commodities’ looking at it from Packard’s point of view could be translated as some of the ‘eight hidden needs’ he claims we all have. (Packard, 2007) As consumers started to recognise a pleasure of consumption and choice, a sense of power followed. Having a sense of control and power over others due to being able to make your own purchase decisions can imply a feeling of moving up the social order and thereby an increased sense of worth. (Packard, 2007, p89, 92)

Retailers moved towards giving the consumer greater 'power' from a notion of the consumer as autonomous, as an individual faced with a plethora of choices and increasingly free to make the choices she or he desired. Humphery explains ‘It was a conceptualisation of consumption as ‘servicing the individual’ rather than ‘provisioning the community’.

(Humphery, 1998, p22) Again putting the consumer in a position of power.

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The discovery of the consumer arrived at the same time as a new form of retailing emerged in the form of self-service.

‘According to most retailing histories the supermarket emerged as a particular retail form in the United States of America during the 1930's. The worldwide spread of this retail form, however, has not simply been a process of transference; it has also been one of permutation. The supermarket emerged within countries outside the United States at different times and, in doing so, took on local as well as global characteristics.’ (Humphery, 1998, p3) According to Humphery the supermarket emerged in England in the mid 1950's. From his writing it is understood that within a timespan of 15 years Britain saw a huge development pioneered by Jack Cohen, the founder of Tesco. Cohen visited the United States several times during the 1930’s and 1940’s to study developments in self-service. As a result by 1955 Tesco stores were almost all self-service. The concept appealed in particular to working class customers who were attracted by the savings and probably also by the lack of formality and pressure to buy. (Humphery, 1998, p72-73) Linking this to Packard’s theory, the working class customers would feel less exposed when shopping. Being in control resulted in feeling more confident in their identity. (Packard, 2007, p87, 92)

Sainsbury opened its first self-service store in 1950 and the first British supermarket in the London suburb of Lewisham in 1955.’ (Humphery, 1998, p73) Following this period of transformation the journey continued for both retailer and consumer. As pointed out by Blythe ‘consumer behaviour is dynamic, changing and evolving’ (Blythe, 1997, p2).

With consumers now left to make their own decisions, the importance of branding became more apparent. The shift from producing products to producing brands begins at this point. In the following quote, Klein explains how this resulted in the adman taking on a new role.

‘The search for the true meaning of brands – or the ‘brand essence’, as it is often called – gradually took the agencies away from individual products and their attributes towards a psychological/anthropological examination of what brands meant to the culture and to people’s lives. This was seen to be of crucial importance since corporations may manufacture products, but what consumers buy are brands.’

(Klein, 2010, p7) 10

This suggests that consumers now identified themselves with brands and recognised a connection between brands and self esteem. In the views of Packard, a sense of emotional security was being offered by the identity of the brand, making a connection between the roots of the consumer and the promise of the brand. (Packard, 2007, p86-87, 93) In Cato’s book ‘Go Logo’ the views of Katie Warner are relayed.

‘With every purchase, we evaluate the emotional investment we are making into the brand and the benefits we gain from the experience. As with human friendships, the brands we choose give us a sense of familiarity and comfort, built over time through trust and consistency. We long to be warmed by the love our brand exudes, and if the product gives us what we desire and the brand messages promote an emotionally uplifting experience, slowly and surely our sense of belonging grows stronger.’ (Cato, 2010, p104) Although the consumer had already reached the point of buying into brands ‘it took several decades for the manufacturing world to adjust to this shift. It clung to the idea that its core business was still production and that branding was an important add-on’. (Klein, 2010, p7) Klein refers to ‘the brand equity mania of the eighties’. She writes the defining moment arrived in 1988 when Philip Morris purchased Kraft for $12.6 billion; six times what the company was worth on paper. The price difference was the cost of the word ‘Kraft’. She continues ‘with the Kraft purchase, a huge dollar value had been assigned to something that had previously been abstract and unquantifiable – a brand name.’ (Klein, 2010, p7-8) A translation to Marx’s beliefs can be assumed here, in that is not the supposed value of a commodity product that is used to determine its value to people; it is what it can be used for that gives the product its real value. (MIA, date unknown) This chapter has looked at the transformation from a functional product to a valued brand. It has highlighted that mass production and the introduction of self-service helped shape the essence of branding. With the help of especially Packard’s theories, the chapter served the purpose of identifying a link between the journey of the brand and the newly discovered consumer, which has made a lasting mark on the principles of branding. In the next chapter we will look at one of the first food brands, Heinz, and identify how some of these main characteristics of branding discovered in this chapter have been applied to their brand.

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- CHAPTER TWO AN ICONIC FOOD BRAND In the previous chapter we learned from Klein that consumers seek a sense of origin and a message of authenticity in order to engage with a brand. This section will expand on this theory and attempt to demonstrate how consistency and remaining true to the value of a brand can build brand loyalty. The focus will be on Heinz, being one of the first brands born.

Theories put forward in the previous chapter by Davis (2010) will form examples of factors that have helped the brand survive.

Koehn puts forward an interesting point in her analysis of Heinz and other entrepreneurs, when she asks ‘How did individual entrepreneurs and companies translate a few buyers’ curiosity about new products into widespread customer loyalty?’

‘They had a powerful understanding of what rapid social and economic change meant for consumers needs and wants. They have used their knowledge of both supply and demand sides of the economy to create high quality goods, meaningful brands, and other connections with customers – and they built elite organizations that worked to satisfy and then anticipate buyers’ changing preferences. (Koehn, 2001, p2) To ‘satisfy and anticipate’ are terms to pick out especially from her quote. The key factors to apply to Heinz would be their continuous product adaptation to suit the needs of time. Their prestigious manner of representing themselves towards their customers has gained respect, trust and recognition. Olins’ statement is putting the same message forward as Koehn, but in different words also cementing the fact that if we feel understood and looked after we value a brand.

‘The power of a brand derives from a cautious mixture of how it performs and what it stands for. When a brand gets the mix right, it makes us, the people who buy, feel it adds something to the idea of ourselves.’ (Olins, 2003, p16) We see the proof of this from statistics placing Heinz as the most highly rated food brand by consumers in a poll published by YouGov Brandindex in 2011. (Heinz, 2014) Again in 2013, 12

Heinz claimed second position after Warburton in the Kantar Worldpanel, UK Ranking of food. (Brand Footprint, 2014) Heinz and L. Clarence Noble, two young American businessmen, launched Heinz and Noble in 1869 by bringing their first product, ‘a pure and superior’ grated horseradish to market.

Shortly after Heinz launched F & J Heinz Company with two of his relations in 1876 and this was the birth of Heinz Tomato Ketchup. Ten years later the ketchup was launched in the UK, through famous London food store Fortnum and Mason. (Heinz, 2014) Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup became next to be imported by the UK in 1910 and went on to include Baked Beans, Spaghetti and Tomato Ketchup until UK production commenced in 1920 (Heinz, 2014). Humphery’s comment, picturing the circumstances of the time, comes in relevant in this context.

‘Dianne Barthel has explored the manner in which commodities such as massproduced chocolate took on the feminized symbolism of luxury and transgression.

Tinned food also took on the symbolism of affordable luxury and convenience.’

(Humphery, 1998, p28) From this we understand that Heinz tinned products at the time were classified in the same luxury category as chocolate and thus perceived as desired products appealing to middle class people. In connection with this Humphery displays evidence of Veblen’s trickle down theory (Veblen, 1899, p7-8) in his following quote.

‘The middle class took eagerly to factory-­‐prepared foods such as soups, sauces, tinned and frozen meats, jams and packet jellies. Indeed Hamish Fraser notes that for the British middle class certain 'new' foods took on definite status, while the lower middle classes used such status foods to disguise their real income’ (Humphery, 1998, p28)

In other words, the lower middle class were imitating the middle class in an attempt to better themselves.

‘Members of each stratum accept as their ideal of decency the scheme of life in vogue in the next higher stratum, and bend their energies to live up to that ideal.

On pain of forfeiting their good name and their self respect in case of failure, they must conform to the accepted code, at least in appearance.’ (Veblen, 1899, p7-­‐8) 13

During the Second World War ‘Heinz Baked Beans were classified as an “essential food” by the Ministry of Food as part of the wartime rationing system’ (Great British Diet, 2010) putting a stamp on the products as a trusted source of nutritional goodness. Another recognition came in 1954 when it was granted as Purveyors of Heinz Products to HM Queen Elizabeth II. (Heinz, 2014) adding further to the prestige and consistency of the brand.

A historical moment arrived in advertising in 1967, when Maurice Drake invented the phrase ‘Beanz Meanz Heinz’ during his pub lunch. A slogan that turned out to beat Nike’s ‘Just Do It’ and named top advertising slogan of all time forty five years later. (Gerges, 2012) This shows that the brand awareness and loyalty very much lives on. ‘Drake says in his interview with Gerges:

‘I still find it incredible that over 40 years later, the seemingly timeless ‘Beanz Meanz Heinz’ still continues to have relevance and brand power, still appealing to generations in an ever-­‐changing world.’

In this same interview, Nick Ashbury calls the slogan ‘a piece of pure commercial poetry.’

(Gerges, 2012) This shows us how powerful slogans can be to consumers, when they identify with them. However, ‘a slogan needs the ‘special characteristics’ of the brand to tie in with it’s advertising, as quoted by Olin’s in last chapter (Lury, 2001, p6).

We see this demonstrated in the first Beanz Meanz Heinz TV advert. Heinz is playing on a connection between their brand and family home, when a boy announces he wants to travel the world, but decides to post phone it when his sister threatens to eat his beans. (Heinz, 2014) The Heinz slogan takes on a different effect to Nike’s motivational slogan, as in this case it is not so much the promise of reaching a goal, but more the notion of ‘there is only one kind of baked beans and it is Heinz’. Baked beans become synonymous with Heinz and Heinz becomes synonymous with home and family, once again extending on Packard’s theory of our roots being a key part of our sense of identity. (Packard, 2007, p93) Looking at the visual aspect of the Heinz branding, we see that the iconic shape of the label has stayed true to the brand since its launch. Fig 3 shows the earliest bottles of Heinz ketchup and how the shape of the bottle has evolved but the shape of label remained the same. This validates one of the characteristics of effective branding pointed out by Cato in previous 14

chapter, ‘the brands we choose give us a sense of familiarity and comfort, built over time through trust and consistency.’ (Cato, 2010, p104) Baruchin extends on this view ‘From a design perspective Heinz marries its definitive products with brand identities that are textbook case studies in the long-­‐term management of iconic brands. If it ain’t broken, don’t fix it. Tend to it. It’s this custodian mentality that keeps these definitive brands alive and well’. (Baruchin, 2013)

He continues to talk specifically about the label on the ketchup bottle: ‘In 2009, Heinz retired the pickle from the Ketchup label, where it stood for over a century. An illustrated tomato replaced it. How many consumers even noticed that move? Have you? If you haven’t, it’s because the overall integrity of Heinz’s brand identity system is so carefully maintained. Maintaining the iconic shape of the label, choosing illustration over photography, carefully crafting any tweak to the classic typography to make it look even more classical-­‐cool.’ (Baruchin, 2013)

Fig. 4 shows one of the current bottles featuring the illustrated tomato. What Baruchin is pointing out, is that subtle changes that are hardly noticeable present no risk to the consumer of getting confused by thinking the product inside has changed.

He also comments on Heinz Baked Beanz.

‘The development of the design has stayed loyal, increasingly going back to its roots and making the best of them – identifying what is truly iconic and adding the playful touch of illustrated saucy beans spilling out of the holding shape.’

(Baruchin, 2013) Fig 5 shows the first can of baked beans with the iconic shaped label and Fig. 6 shows the current branding. We can get the feeling that by maintaining the core elements of branding but updating it carefully communicates consistent quality and promise to the consumer whilst paying tribute to the heritage of the brand. Baruchin adds a simple piece of advice.

‘By respecting the heritage of your brand, you are showing you respect the audience who remained loyal to it and the product that made it great in the first place’. (Baruchin, 2013) 15

An element of Packard’s views comes to light in this statement as it focuses on the notion of roots appealing to people’s inner beliefs and sense of belonging. (Packard, 2007, p93) As Fig. 3 demonstrates, Heinz have focussed on packaging innovation and developed new shapes, making them easier to handle which takes us back to Koehn’s comment about the ability to ‘anticipate’ the needs of the buyer. (Koehn, 2001, p2) To this we can also apply Klein’s argument from earlier that a crucial requirement for a brand is to be aware of ‘what it means to people’s lives’. (Klein, 2010, p7) For Heinz it is a case of practical solutions in terms of handling and using their products and adapting to people’s fast paced lives.

Heinz is using social media as one of their tools to gauge what their audience needs. Ian McArthur, Marketing Controller at Heinz writes in connection with the 'Social Brands 100 The FMCG Ranking’ ‘Heinz’s social media strategy is to primarily drive engagement and advocacy.

Our priority is to add value to consumers through branded messages that are in touch with their needs and reinforce their love for our amazing brands.’

(Headstream, 2014)

The ranking measures which of the brands, consumers love to buy in store, they are also engaging with across social media. (Headstream, 2014) Heinz Soup ranks at number 7, Heinz Ketchup number 14 and Heinz Beanz number 19.

‘One of the brands key social objectives is to ‘listen as well as talk’ and they use a suite of monitoring tools to track the brand’s mentions globally. ‘By listening to what consumers are saying about the brand, Heinz is able to realign their content accordingly’. (Headstream, 2014)

It is evident that Heinz is putting a lot of effort into engaging with their audience and through this has created their own ‘community’. For the audience this can be seen as a form of praise and recognition for their loyalty, touching on another of Packard’s needs in the ego gratification (Packard, 2007, p89) Words from Cato’s books add to the theory.

‘We all want to become members of a club – cementing our sense of belonging by joining like-­‐minded individuals who have made the same brand choices that we have. Ultimately, most of us are creatures of habit. We make a choice and stick with it, unless we are let down.’(Cato, 2010, p105) 16

This chapter has seen a demonstration of both Olin’s and Humphery theories in terms of the Heinz brand starting out as a symbol of consistency used to reflect standard quality and price which later transformed into a symbol of affordable luxury and convenience used to reflect the consumer’s own image. We saw that a key part of Heinz’s brand loyalty is due to the connection with their audience reflecting Klein’s theory on the spiritual aspect of branding referred to in the previously (Klein, 2010, p6-7). The next chapter will look at supermarkets and gain an understanding of where people are shopping and their views on supermarkets’ own label. In the analysis of their own label branding we will look for evidence of key factors identified in this chapter.

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- CHAPTER THREE SUPERMARKETS AND THEIR OWN LABEL BRANDS In continuation of last chapter’s research into food branding, this chapter will concentrate on supermarkets. It will paint a picture of the distribution of shares between the supermarkets with a focus on highlighting any tendencies in terms of movement and reasons why. This will lead on to an investigation of consumer’s brand perception of own labels. The chapter takes a main interest in the own label of what is referred to in the market as ‘The Big Four’. It is mainly informed through a statistical approach with an element of primary research.

Extending on Olins theory referred to earlier, he also talks about how successful brands can be twisted and shaped and still remain recognizable due to their ability to compress and express simple or complex subtle emotions. Brands that reach out to create a relationship with society, through the emotions they evoke, can override any barriers like ethnicity, religion and language and transfer the feeling that they add something to the essence of ourselves (Olins, 2003, p16, p19-20). Lury adds to this observation that ‘it is our perception, beliefs and feelings about a brand that are most important’. (Lury, 2001, p4) To this extent it can be argued, that where we shop and which food brands we stock in our cupboard can be seen as a reflection of our social status. For this reason branding can play a big role in placing products at different levels. ‘Supermarkets are experimenting more with own label products and have been picking up some hints from big brands about presentation’ (Chittock, 2013) Consumers faced with more choice can be tempted to try new products if price and branding appeal. This adds another perspective to brands as Olins points out.

‘Brands are nothing like as powerful as they look. They are particularly vulnerable to us, the customers. When we like them, we buy them. When we don’t, we walk off.

Customers can be loyal, fickle, slaves to fashion, creators of trends or all of these simultaneously or serially. Above all customers are unpredictable. We do what we feel like.’ (Olins, 2003, p219-220) One could view this as a reflection of the movements of market share between the supermarkets over the past six years. McKewitt offers an overview of the current market.

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‘The latest grocery share figures for the 12 weeks ending 9 November 2014, show that for the first time since Kantar Worldpanel records began in 1994 the British grocery market has fallen into decline, with sales down 0.2% compared with this time last year.’ (McKewitt, 2014) He informs that ‘an average basket of everyday goods such as milk, bread and vegetables now cost 0.4% less than it did this time last year’. This indicates competition between the players has driven prices down. He paints a picture of the performance in the market.

‘The major supermarkets have all had a difficult period, hit by both the flow of shoppers toward the discounters and reduced revenues as they competitively cut prices. Asda has recorded the best performance among ‘The Big Four’. Its sales have fallen in line with the overall market and share has held steady at 17.2%. Sainsbury and Morrison’s have both recorded a decline in share compared with last year with sales down 2.5% and 3.3% respectively. Tesco’s sales are down by 3.7% although it is worth noting that the rate at which it is losing market share has slowed.’ (McKevitt, 2014) The majority of movement taking place in the market is proving to be at each end of the value spectrum with growth from Waitrose as well as the discounters.

‘Aldi continues to benefit from the disruption within the grocery section. Its sales are 25.5% higher than last year and the retailer now has a record high market share of 4.9%. Lidl has also performed strongly with a 16.8% sales increase bringing its market share to 3.5%. At the other end of the market, Waitrose has grown sales by 5.6% taking share to 5.1%’. (McKevitt, 2014) The overall view of distribution of shares illustrated in Fig. 7 still shows Tesco as the dominant player with 28.7% followed by Asda with 17.2%, Sainsbury’s 16.4%, Morrison’s 11.1%, The Co-operative 6.2%, Waitrose at 5.1% sitting very close to Aldi at 4.9% and Lidl at 3.5% (Kantar Worldpanel, 2014) The combined, continual increasing markets share of the discounters is shaking up the market and appears to be diluting the cosy oligopoly enjoyed for decades by ‘The Big Four’.

‘Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons have allowed the interest in Aldi and Lidl to develop as families have looked for ways to battle declining household incomes. Now there might not be anything they can do to stop even more shoppers exploring the discounters.’ (Ruddick, 2014) 19

The announcement above should be seen in the light of the economic situation facing the consumer illustrated in Fig. 8.

‘Since the great recession of 2008, nominal wage growth has fallen behind the headline inflation rate causing a significant drop in real wages. Research from the ONS, stated that in 2012 real wages have fallen back to 2003 levels. Between 2010-­‐12, there has been an annual average drop in real pay of nearly 3%.

Unfortunately, this trend looks to be continuing in 2014’. (Pettinger, 2014)

This is suggesting a change in consumers’ perception of the supermarkets during recession especially when it comes to the discounters. In the search of a way of maintaining their lifestyle, consumers’ brand choices have become more focussed on the rational aspect rather than the emotional aspect. Once the consumer has realised that the quality offered by the discounters is on par with the likes of ‘The Big Four’ but cheaper, worrying about their social image has taken second place. ‘YouGov revealed in July 2014, that the British public has a new favourite brand - Aldi has overtaken John Lewis, the BBC iPlayer and Samsung to top the charts.’ Ruddick continues ‘given that Aldi presently represents less than 5% of spending on groceries in the UK, this is a remarkable achievement. (Ruddick, 2014) Information from Reportlinker dated 30 January 2014 provides us with statistics regarding perception of discounters.

‘54% of consumers believe that the quality of food sold in discount stores is of at least the same quality as that stocked in supermarkets while 45% believe that the continental offerings served in discount stores offer an added level of appeal and excitement to those offered by the major retailers. Additionally, 64% of consumers believe that stores such as Aldi and Lidl allow shoppers to pick up bargains on premium brands.’ (Reportlinker, 2014)

It would appear that discounters are starting to attract consumers from higher demographics.

‘The view that premium quality brands are available in discount stores is shared by both the middle-­‐to-­‐higher income consumers (classified as ABC1) (64%) and consumers with lower income (classified as C2DE) 65%. This attitude among ABC1 class consumers is particularly important as such chains look to target consumers from middle-­‐to-­‐higher income backgrounds and shake off the association with shoppers who are less affluent. (Reportlinker, 2014)

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Looking at brands in terms of products, we see that although consumers are looking for ways of making their money go further, a desire for premium quality brands remains. Heinz’s story told us that heritage of a brand works in favour of gaining brand loyalty, so how do supermarkets’ own label measure up when it comes brand choice? Du Plessis’ theory is interesting in this context.

‘For a person to decide on a specific brand there should be awareness of the brand as one of the alternatives at the time when a choice is being made. The choice will be made based on memories about the brand or, if there are no memories to rely on, the mere presence and awareness of the brand being in the environment of the consumer. The final choice can take a long time to be made after a lot of consideration, or nearly instantaneous with little consideration being given.’ (Du Plessis, 2011, p123).

In other words with no knowledge of the quality of a product, we are motivated through any discriminating influences such as branding, packaging, price and promotional activity.

Statistics published in February 2014 in a survey conducted by Canadean Custom Solutions show a positive trend towards own labels.

‘81% of UK adults are happy to buy private label brands. Approximately three in ten people (30%) say that at least half of the items they buy are store own brands. Biscuits (53%) is the product people are most likely to buy private label.’

(Reportlinker, 2014)

Moreover it confirms that consumers are exercising their sense of power and judgment through becoming more intelligent shoppers.

‘The survey found that 55% of UK adults believe that the quality of private label food and drinks is just as good as branded alternatives. More worrying for branded manufacturers is that 46% of respondents believed that branded and non-­‐branded food and drink is produced in the same factory and it is only the packaging that is different. Furthermore 64% believe that any extra costs associated with branded food are down to advertising costs and non-­‐quality indicators. The results show that if branded manufacturers are to differentiate from private label alternatives, more needs to be done to leverage traits such as quality, authenticity and brand heritage.’ (Reportlinker, 2014)

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Research Manager Michael Hughes pays tribute to strategic work carried out by retailers.

‘The figures show that continued growth of private label is not just a knee-­‐jerk reaction by consumers to a recessionary environment, but the result of decades of investment in product portfolios by retailers.’ (Reportlinker, 2014)

David Bird from retail analysts Datamonitor points out that retailers are reacting to pressure from both supply chain and consumers.

‘There’s push and pull factors from both the retailers and the consumers. The cost of ingredients is going up for food brands while there’s been a decline in spend from consumers. Something’s got to give – and so more consumers are buying own label. Own label rise has been nothing short of spectacular. (Chittock, 2013) Bird says that in most food and drink categories they analyse, own label outperforms wellknown household brands. And it’s not (entirely) about the money.

‘The own label market in the UK is one of the world’s most mature – which means the supermarkets have had plenty of time to discover exactly what consumers want.’ (Chittock, 2013)

With this in mind we will proceed to look at own labels offered by ‘The Big Four’. Starting with the most powerful of them all in terms of market share, Tesco with 28.7% of the market and the first to launch a value range. They operate a ‘good-better-best’ policy in form of three main ranges and four speciality ranges.

Everyday Value (launched in 1993, re-launched in 2012), Tesco Own Brand and Finest* (launched in 1998, relaunched in 2013) make up their good-better-best offer. Healthy Living, Goodness, Organic, Free From are their speciality ranges. (Tesco, 2014) Bamford informs us of Tesco’s triumph at The Grocer’s Own Label Food & Drink Awards, May 2014. Tesco won 29 Gold Awards and 21 Silver Awards. Their Finest* range attracted 22 Gold Awards. Tesco came out as the supermarket claiming the most awards. Paul Beresford, Cambridge Market Research says the range could be a competition to Marks & Spencer.

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‘The success of Finest reflects the transformations in the market. While consumers are turning to discounters for everyday basics, they still seek out treat-­‐worthy but good-­‐value purchases. Tesco has clearly found a winning formula for its premium range to compete head-­‐on with Marks & Spencer when quality and excitement matter.’ (Bamford, 2014)

We can read elements of Bourdieu’s views of a trickle up theory in between the lines of this statement, as he argues that ‘there can be feedback of tastes from the bottom to the top of the social ladder’ as well as the other way around. (Trigg, 2001, p113) In this case customers who normally shop at high-end supermarkets might buy Tesco’s Finest range due its branding and quality being on par with products they normally buy elsewhere.

Finest’s new look had been particularly successful, with consumers rating the packaging of the winning Finest products significantly higher than other entrants in their categories. The use of provenance and variety in names such as Rannoch Smoked Duck Pate and Coquille St. Jacques Scallops encourage consumers to try lines based on the packaging alone. New twists on traditional products and flavours – such as Salted Caramel Sauce and Pork, Honey & Fennel Sausages encouraged wary consumers to try without fear of spending on something completely unfamiliar. (Bamford, 2014)

Beresford revealed ‘Finest winners were seen as ‘new and different’ by 67% if consumers, compared with 51% for all other entrants. (Bamford, 2014) Honey, the lead agency in the rebrand of the Finest range informs us the scale of the success.

‘There was an above average increase in year-­‐on-­‐year sales and some of the products were category defining and hugely successful, achieving sales increases as high as 50% resulting in an uplift of sales of £420 million’. (Honey, 2014)

Asda claiming the second largest market share at 17.2% operates a similar policy of a 'goodbetter-best' offer with their Smart Price, Chosen By You and Extra Special. In addition they offer Asda Organic. (asda.com, 20.11.2014) Asda won 13 Gold Awards and 14 Silver Awards. (The Grocer, 2014) Sainsbury’s with 16.4% market share is matching Tesco and Asda in their offer in terms of ‘good-better-best’ with their Basics, By Sainsbury’s and Taste The Difference. They also offer an organic range, Sainsbury’s SO Organic. (Sainsbury’s, 2014) 2 Gold Awards and 4

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Silver Awards went to Sainsbury at The Grocer’s Own Label Food & Drink 2014 (The Grocer, 2014) Morrisons with a market share of 11.1% is also offering ‘good-better-best’ ranges plus three speciality ranges. M Savers, M, M Signature makes up their ‘good-better-best’ offer. In addition they offer M NuMe – a healthy eating range, Morrisions Free From, Morrisons JFK Just For Kids. (Morrison’s 2014) Morrisons won 1 Gold and 2 Silver Awards. (The Grocer, 2014) Research figures show that consumers are buying into own label and confidence is growing.

The offer across the four supermarkets follows the same pattern across them all with a valuebasic range, a mid range and a premium range plus some speciality ranges. As such the consumer’s expectation when shopping in either of the supermarkets will be similar, unless there is a preference of brand experience. Davis offers a view on how a brand experience can manifest itself through various elements.

‘It brings together both the tangible and intangible elements of the brand through various ‘touch points’. A brand experience endeavours to engage people with a brand at a level that captures the audience’s senses and helps competing brands stand out from each other.’ (Davis, 2009, p20)

On examining the branding across the own labels from ‘The Big Four’ in Appendix 1, we see little visual difference between the brands in the mid range. The value range displays more variation with M Savers standing out from the rest. In the premium range Tesco’s Finest steals the limelight, where Asda and Sainsbury’s branding is almost the same, apart from the shape of the jars. The prices are almost identical – in the value range Sainsbury’s is one penny more than the rest at £0.30, in the mid range Asda is ten pence cheaper than the rest at £0.65.

Finally in the premium range we see £1.50 across the board. We should bear in mind that only one type of product has been compared. However, it still paints a realistic picture of what the consumer is facing.

Looking at an isolated example like this, we can conclude that the consumer’s decision making in terms of where to shop will mainly come down to convenience, habit, loyalty and brand experience. However, looking at the choice of own label within each supermarket there

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is a clear hierarchy of price and visual perception of quality that makes it easy for the consumer to differentiate.

This chapter has highlighted that despite market shares dropping for all of ‘The Big Four’ apart from Asda, they still remain dominant with 73.4% compared to 75.3% in October 2009.

(KamCity, 2010) Through improved branding of own label, sales and brand perception have increased linking in with theories analysed in previous chapter. We learned that the offer across The Big four is of similar nature and mainly differentiated through brand experience and brand loyalty. However, the chapter has shown consumers have become more intelligent shoppers during the recession and have turned to discounters to maintain their lifestyle. Signs of polarising in the market with Waitrose gaining shares at the top and Aldi and Lidl at the bottom tell us consumers are seeking a point of difference. The next chapter will see a case study of Waitrose and Aldi identifying reasons for their claim of market shares.

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- CHAPTER FOUR WAITROSE AND ALDI This chapter will begin with a brief overview of the two supermarkets’ own label offer and their position in the market. It links back to Olins and Packard’s theories from earlier chapters. The main focus is on report findings of an experiment carried out by the author in form of empirical research with the purpose of experiencing the two brands and identifying what attracts consumer to the stores. A scoring scale from one to five, with one being poor and five being excellent, has been utilised to grade each outcome.

Waitrose aims to combine the convenience of a supermarket with the expertise and service of a specialist shop. They operate a ‘good-better-best’ offer of own labels consisting of Essential, Waitrose, Waitrose Organic and their speciality ranges Waitrose Love Life, Waitrose Duchy Organic, Heston From Waitrose. They offer a loyalty scheme in form of their myWaitrose card, offering main benefits such as a free cup of coffee or tea everyday and pay 10% less than Tesco’s prices on 100’s of products, this refers to manufacturer’s brands.

(Waitrose, 2014) As a result 68% of their sales come from myWaitrose cardholders.

(Mayfield, 2014).

Their point of difference is The Waitrose Way, which claims to champion British Produce, tread lightly on the environment, support responsible souring and treat people fairly.

(Waitrose, 2014) These factors all play into the theory of Packard on various levels. Shopping somewhere that cares about the world, local suppliers and the environment, can make us feel good as this automatically puts us in the same category of doing the right thing. We feel rewarded by Waitrose for doing so, which at the same time draws on Olins’ theory, referred to earlier, in terms brands making us feel they add something to the idea of ourselves. (Olins, 2003, p16) Conversely, Aldi focus on providing high quality products as cheaper alternatives to famous brands. (Aldi, 2014). According to Barnes, joint UK managing director, they try to ‘keep the business ‘relentlessly simple’’ he believes that ‘when customers write a shopping list (for Aldi) they know what the price will be.’ (Ruddick, 2013) The low prices, but high quality are achieved through three main factors. A limited range of approximately fifteen hundred lines against Waitrose’s twenty five thousand lines, a parent company that is one of the biggest on 26

the continent allowing them to use their scale and source own label products across the continent and finally a ‘no frills’ model in terms of the stores. (Ruddick, 2013) Although Aldi stock some manufacturer’s brands, their main offer comes in form of their own labels being Everyday Essentials, Specially Selected and Like Brands. (Aldi, 2014) The branding of their Like Brands bear a close resemblance to that of the manufacturer’s brands and according to Shooter a lot of praise have been giving in respect of quality. Shooter published a comparison of 18 Aldi Like Brands versus manufacturer’s brands comparing price and quality. Aldi came out as the winner on taste and price for 13 of them. (Shooter, 2013) She also published research statistics from Nielsen stating ‘almost one in three households now visits Aldi at least once a month and of those, one in five customers is now middle class or upper middle class – up from one in eight a year ago.’ She confirms observations made in previous chapter that supermarkets like Aldi are specifically interested in targeting consumers from middle-to-higher income backgrounds to shake off the association with shoppers who are less affluent. (Reportlinker, 2014) ‘Developments to tempt loyal Waitrose and Sainsbury’s shoppers include its proud proclamation that 45 per cent of its goods and produced in Britain by the same people who supply leading brands.’ (Shooter, 2013)

We are looking at two very different supermarkets in the way they place themselves in the market, however, they would appear to target and attract similar audiences. They sit very close in terms of market share with Waitrose at 5.1% and Aldi at 4.9% (Kantar Worldpanel, 2014) Both supermarkets have won numerous awards. To name a few Aldi has been named Grocer of the Year 2014 second year running and won 8 gold and 10 silver awards at the Grocer Own Label Awards 2014. (Aldi, 2014) Waitrose was named Supermarket of the Year at the Retail Industry Awards in September 2014 having also been named Best Supermarket at the Which? Awards 2014. (John Lewis Partnership, 2014) With the knowledge of this, it would be interesting to see a statement from each supermarket manifesting what they believe to be the reason for customers shopping at their supermarket.

Roman Heini puts Aldi’s success down to one factor: cost. ‘We believe growth is down to one thing – customers demanding true value.’ (Shooter, 2013) Head of Waitrose, Mark Price says ‘you have to work out what customers want. Value isn’t just about price; it’s about quality, 27

the store environment and services, all of those things. We are going to be everything the discounters aren’t.’ (Butler, 2014) From both Shooters (2013) and Butler’s (2014) writings we can conclude that Aldi is about efficiency, quick turn around, consistent cheap prices and quality appealing to the survival instinct in us. Waitrose is about range of price and product, quality and a shopping experience combined with convenience of extra services all reaching in to lift our self worth and stroking our ego. (Packard, 2007, p87-89) Appendix 2 and 3 show findings from empirical research carried out by the author at Waitrose, Otley, West Yorkshire and Aldi, Skipton, North Yorkshire on 22nd November 2014.

Nine identical areas of observation were graded from a scale from one to five, one being ‘poor’ and five being ‘excellent’. For the purpose of relaying the findings in a simple format the observations will be divided into two parts.

Areas considered for ease of shopping include signage and point of sale, shelves and product placement, lighting.

Areas considered in relation to the perception of the brand include outside and entrance, first impression entering the shop, atmosphere, presentation of staff, service and till experience, other contribution factors, overall shopping experience.

In each supermarket three shoppers were observed in order to assess the popularity of own label.

Appendix 2 Waitrose scored five in all nine areas of observation. Products were easy to locate due to product categories clearly signed at ceiling level at the end of each aisle (Fig 9).

Images of some categories of food were in some cases positioned above the top shelves in addition (Fig 10). The shelves were tidy and prices were clearly displayed. Special and seasonal offers were clearly highlighted (Fig. 11).

There was cashpoint near the entrance. The outside area and entrance were tidy and organised with flowers and seasonal items. A smell of coffee and a manned help desk greeted customers coming in. The staffs were professionally attired with shirts, ties and hats where appropriate.

There were main tills and basket tills. The shop assistants greeted shoppers, offered help with 28

packing and cash back together with offering a token to give to charity. ‘Carry to car service’ was advertised at the tills. Extra facilities like butcher, fresh fish, delicatessen, bakery, wine corner, café, and free hot drink for cardholders, high end products such as Heston From Waitrose and Duchy Organic and high level of service contributed a feeling of a speciality shop.

Outcome of shopper observation. Shopper one, a mum with baby and toddler, 60% Essential, Waitrose 30% and manufacturer’s brand 10%. Shopper two, a middle-aged lady, Essential 40%, Waitrose 60%. Shopper three, an elderly gentlemen, Essential 65%, Waitrose 25%, manufacturer’s brand 10%.

It was noticed that manufacturer’s brands chosen included bread and coffee for both shoppers.

Appendix 3 Aldi scored (2) for signage and point of sale, (1) for shelves and product placement and (3) for lighting. The low scores were due to lack of category signage but instead a large amount of ceiling point of sale for individual products (Fig. 12). Some products were lacking prices. In many places the shelves and floor area were untidy (Fig. 14).

It was difficult to move around in the shop due to pallets and boxes being moved or parked in front of products (Fig. 13). The refrigerated area appeared dark.

The outside and entrance scored (1), first impression when entering the shop (2), atmosphere (1), presentation of staff (3) and service and till experience (1). Low scores were graded due to the large amount of goods displayed outside and in the small entrance in an unorganised manner. The atmosphere appeared slightly chaotic with pallets trucks being moved around in the aisles. There was a lack of service at the till with no area to pack but goods being pushed through as quickly as possible to be put back into the trolley and moved away for bagging by shoppers in a different area resulting in handling the goods twice. However, with no basket tills, this system would prove advantageous if shopping only a few items. Due to the amount of low priced high end manufacturer’s brands amongst similar looking Like Brands and aisles of bargain crates, there was a definite feel of getting value for money in terms of cost.

Outcome of shopper observation. Shopper one, a mum with pre-school aged child, Aldi own label 90%, manufacturer’s brand 10%. Shopper two, a middle aged lady, Aldi own label 100%, shopper three, a retired couple with grandchild, Aldi own labels 85%, manufacturer’s brand 15%.

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From this research it is clear why some people choose to move away from ‘The Big Four’.

Both Waitrose and Aldi, albeit very different, have something very unique to offer contrary to the others. At Waitrose the Essential range safeguards similar pricing to ‘The Big Four’ plus offers treats from their speciality products and an enjoyable shopping experience. At Aldi consumers can feel assured that they are getting more for their money without compromising on quality, which can help maintain their lifestyle. It confirms Davis’ point from chapter three that ‘a brand experience helps competing brands stand out from each other’ (Davis, 2009, p20) It also demonstrates that a deep connection to our needs, as per Packard’s theories, in this case survival of lifestyle or ego gratification can make people seek new avenues. Fig. 15 displays goods bought at Waitrose during the research, 15 items costing £46.69 and Fig. 16 shows goods bought at Aldi, 34 items costing £32.91. Evidently it is hard to ignore the price difference between the two and therefore the likelihood that some people would occasionally shop at Aldi whilst still supplementing their needs through Waitrose is perhaps a viable conclusion.

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CONCLUSION The first chapter went through the journey of how functional products emerged into valued brands through mass production and the introduction of self-service. It demonstrated early principles of branding being developed along side the discovery of the consumer self and introduced a connection between the roots of the consumer and the promise of a brand.

Chapter Two focussed on Heinz and demonstrated how some of the theories observed in chapter one had been put into place by Heinz to create an emotional connection with the consumer. It showed how Heinz has achieved high brand awareness and maintained brand loyalty through satisfying the needs of their audience by remaining true and respectful to their roots, and by anticipating the needs of their audience by staying ahead in product and packaging innovation.

In chapter three the attention turned to the supermarkets. We saw that through improved branding of own labels, sales and brand perception have increased. It highlighted that the offer across The Big Four is of similar nature and only differs through brand experience or loyalty. It showed that consumers are seeking a point of difference from the mainstream.

They have turned to both ends of the value spectrum resulting in Waitrose and Aldi gaining market share whilst the combined market share of the Big Four has dropped 1.9 per cent during the recession.

Chapter Four took a different approach through empirical research which highlighted the difference in shopping and brand experience between Waitrose and Aldi with the purpose of gaining an understanding of what is attracting the same audience to these two very different shopping destinations. It became clear that it is their uniqueness and clear message that stands out from the rest and can tempt people to move away from ‘The Big Four’.

Ultimately it is clear that we buy brands that we associate with and trust. We still want brands that reflect our image, but through the recession we have become more rebellious and have learned to take more ownership of our decision makings through daring to think more rationally at times. As creatures of habit we will go a long way to maintain our level of lifestyle and also to maintain our self-esteem. With a considerable improvement of own label branding over the years, it is more acceptable to be seen to buy into this sector. Research 31

carried out in Waitrose and Aldi proved that people were buying more own labels than manufacturer’s brands.

Whilst carrying out the research a clear picture was formed of why they are gaining market share. Shopping in the two supermarkets leaves the consumer with a confidence that they understand what each brand is setting out to achieve. The brand messages are very strong and original making it easy to relate to them, we know where we stand and what to expect. At Aldi we see and experience why they are cheaper and accept it. At Waitrose we understand that we are paying more but choose to ignore it, as we want the experience and the image that goes with it. We make our choices on the basis of that.

Given more words this dissertation would include projections on the future of grocery shopping habits with signs of the disappearance of the weekly shop, more convenience shops opening as well as expansion of online shopping facilities.

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ILLUSTRATIONS Fig. 1

Fig. 2

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Fig. 3

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Fig. 5

Fig. 6

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Fig. 7

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Fig. 9

Fig. 10

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Fig. 11

Fig. 12

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Fig. 13

Fig. 14

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Fig. 15

Fig. 16

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MIA (date and author unknown) ‘Fetishism’ [Internet] Available from http://www.marxist.org/glossary/terms/f/e.htm [Accessed 03.11.2014] Mayfield, C. (2014) 'In the hands of our Partners - John Lewis Partnership Annual Report 2014' [Internet] Available from http://www.johnlewispartnership.co.uk/content/dam/cws/pdfs/financials/annual%20reports/JL P-annual-report-and-accounts-2014.pdf [Accessed 26.11.2014] McKevitt, F (2014) 'Grocery market contracts in historic first' [Internet] Available from http://uk.kantar.com/consumer/shoppers/2014/1811-kantar-worldpanel-uk-grocery-sharedata-november/ [Accessed 19.11.2014] Mintel [Date and author unknown] 'Private Label Food and Drink UK - November 2013' [Internet] Available from http://store.mintel.com/private-label-food-and-drink-uk-november-2013 [Accessed 29.19.2014] Morrisons (2014) [Internet] Available from http://www.morrisons.com/ [Accessed 26.11.2014] KamCity (Author unknown, 2010) 'Kantar Worldpanel UK Grocery Market Share Analysis' [Internet] Available from http://www.kamcity.com/namnews/mktshare/2010/kantar-oct10.htm [Accessed 30.11.2014] Kareem, M. (date unknown) 'Do Your Food Have Racist Roots?' [Internet] Available from http://racerelations.about.com/od/historyofracerelations/a/Do-Your-Food-Products-HaveRacist-Roots.htm [Accessed 15.12.2014] Lawson, A (2012) 'Morrisons introduces new premium own brand' [Internet] Available from http://www.retail-week.com/sectors/food/morrisons-introduces-new-premium-own-brandrange/5040833.article [Accessed 20.11.2014] Pentagram (author unknown, 2008) 'Tesco Finest' [Internet] Available from http://new.pentagram.com/2008/07/tescos-finest/ [Accessed on 20.11.2014]

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Pettinger, T (2014) 'UK wage growth' [Internet] Available from http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/6994/economics/uk-wage-growth/ [Accessed 19.11.2014] Reportlinker (2014) (author unknown) 'Supermarket And Hypermarket Analysis in the UK Shoppers Choose Private Label' [Internet] Available from http://www.reportlinker.com/d0103172795/Supermarket-And-Hypermarket-Analysis-in-theUK.html [Accessed on 03.11.2014] Retail Think Tank (2014) 'The Future of the Grocery Sector in the UK' [Internet] Available from http://www.retailthinktank.co.uk/Media/Default/pdf/Grocery%20Sector%20White%20Paper %20FINAL-1.pdf [Accessed 30.10.2014] Ruddick, G (2013) ‘Changing the 'upmarket' perception of Waitrose’ [Internet] Available from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/10538240/Changingthe-upmarket-perception-of-Waitrose.html [Accessed 12.11.2014] Ruddick, G (2014) 'It may already be too late for Tesco and Sainsbury's, the rise of Aldi and Lidl looks unstoppable.' [Internet] Available from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/10974773/It-mayalready-be-too-late-for-Tesco-and-Sainsburys-the-rise-of-Aldi-and-Lidl-looksunstoppable.html [Accessed 10.11.2014] Sainsbury’s (2014) [Internet] Available from http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/sol/index.jsp [Accessed 26.11.2014] Shakespeare, S (2014) 'Cheaper Supermarket brands are outflanking Morrison’s' [Internet] Available from https://yougov.co.uk/news/2014/04/09/cheaper-supermarket-brands-are-outflanking-morriso/ [Accessed 11.11.2014] Shooter, A (2013) 'The high street copycats: Yes it's cheap - but the real secret of Aldi's success is the ruthless way it apes the look of top brands... and often the quality is even better' [Internet] Available from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2508069/Aldi-successful-copies-brands-improvesquality.html [Accessed 11.11.2014]

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Solo Syndication Ltd (2014) 'Supermarkets and Hypermarket Price Statistics: Supermarket Price War Takes Toll on Aldi' [Internet] Available from http://www.reportlinker.com [Accessed on 03.11.2014] Steiner, R (2014) 'The secrets of Aldi's success: How big German-owned discount retailer has the big UK supermarkets on the run' [Internet] Available from http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-2692087/CITY-FOCUS-How-biggrocers-tough-time-Mail-mans-exclusive-look-Aldi-UK.html [Accessed 11.11.2014] Tesco (2014) [Internet] Available from http://www.tesco.com/ [Accessed 26.11.2014] The Grocer (2014) The Grocer's Own Label Food & Drink Awards 2014, 2014 Winners by Retailer' [Internet] Available from http://www.thegrocerownlabel.co.uk/page/2014_winners_by_retailer.html [Accessed 20.11.2014] Trigg, A (2001) 'Veblen, Bourdieu and Conspicious Consumption' [Internet] Available from http://mx.nthu.edu.tw/~cshwang/teachingeconomics/econ5005/Papers/Trigg=Veblen%20and%20Bourdieu%20on%20Conspicuous%2 0Consumption.pdf [Accessed 30.12.2014] Veblen, T (1899) 'The Theory of The Leisure Class' [Internet] Available from http://web.mit.edu/allanmc/www/veblen2.pdf [Accessed 30.12.2014] Waitrose (2014) [Internet] Available from http://www.waitrose.com/ [Accessed 30.11.2014] Ward Howell International (author and date unknown) 'Aldi creating value through the marketing mix' [Internet] Available from http://www.ward-howell.com/assets/Uploads/Case-Studies/Cases/Aldi-Case-1.pdf [Accessed 11.11.2014]

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Wax, R. (2014) 'Being Human or Not' [Internet] Available from http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ruby-wax/ruby-wax-being-human_b_5702508.html [Accessed 06.09.2014] West, M. (2014) 'UK finally lifts out of depression: Economy passes pre-recession peak after six years in the doldrums' [Internet] Available from http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-2653837/Official-figures-industrialoutput-rises-fastest-rate-three-years-April-economic-recovery-continues-widen.html [Accessed 11.11.2014] Yeomans, J (2013) 'Aldi shines as the big four face squeeze on share' [Internet] Available from http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/channels/supermarkets/aldi-shines-as-the-big-four-face-squeezeon-share/351785.article [Accessed 09.10.2014]

Documentary YouTube (2014) 'Grocer Own Label Food & Drink Awards 2014 Judging YOUTUBE HD' [Internet] Available from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8b9rA09jXII [Accessed 20.11.2014]

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