Shelf Impact! Editor Jim George and I have both written a fair amount
about the growing sophistication of private label package design.
Now, in an interesting turn of events, Canadian retailer Loblaw has
gone retro with their No Name brand, back to the bold packaging that it
used in 1978--a product name in black lower-case typeface against a
lemon-yellow background. The packaging has no product shots.
Think “generic.” What lead to the change? According to the article on
the Edmonton Journal’s website,
Loblaw had been following the growing trend to upscale the package
design to go head to head with national brands.
The problem? "Two years ago it was spectacular packaging, similar in
many cases to what the national brands were offering," says Ian Gordon,
senior vice-president of grocery at Loblaw. Like Loblaw’s private
brand sister, President’s Choice.
In other words, Loblaw blended in perfectly. And consumers had to hunt to find the store brand.
By going back to a simple, bold, black on yellow package, Loblaw’s No Name brand screams from the shelf.
And a no frills ad campaign adds to the branding. TV spots have been
stressing the return to simplicity, with an offer for shoppers to try
the No Name brand and return it if they are unhappy.
“The ad jokes that the guarantee itself does not have a name -- you just get your money back."
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Shelf Impact! Editor Jim George reacts...
"Packaging is about perception, and a big reason P/L has grown so much is the packaging has finally begun to catch up, in many cases, with the product quality. P/L brands are finally beginning to have meaning with consumers and fit into their life styles, rather than just serve as the cheap generic alternative.
Loblaw's sets P/L thinking back 20 years. Its package looks different than all other brands on the shelf, yes, but it is not distinctive. It makes the product a commodity but not a brand, because it makes no attempt to establish a meaningful relationship with shoppers. Not sure I would buy this product in that package.
Two thumbs down."
