The days of the no frills aisle are over. The bland white and black packaging once used by retailers for their store brands are gone. Today’s private label products are packaged in the same eye-catching, graphic-ridden, bright casings as their branded counterparts. They occupy the same prime real estate on store shelves and offer the same level of performance as the competition.

This is especially true in the private label diaper market where suppliers to retailers have found ways to circumvent patent restrictions and create products that compete effectively with brands like Pampers, Luvs and Huggies. Recent private label diaper introductions offer the same thinness, soft feel and superior fit seen in national brands. They are just as effective and dependable as these products too.

According to Euromonitor, the role of the private label product in diapers is more significant in other paper-related categories like tissue, paper towels or even wipes because, to be successful, the diaper has to work. With today’s social media outlets and other consumer information areas, just one bad review can lead to the end of the product, so retailers have to be careful in selecting their suppliers.

While surely adding to the retailers’ bottom line, more sophisticated diaper products are actually playing a more important role. They are helping retailers establish loyalty, guaranteeing that parents will return to purchase these diapers—and other household goods—again and again.

According to industry experts, Target has been particularly effective at this strategy—not just in its diaper business but throughout its entire grocery business. Brands like Archer Farms and Up and Up have wooed consumers into becoming faithful Target shoppers, and its signature blue and green polka dot diapers are continue to be a customer favorite even when the branded diapers are under heavy promotion.

And, Target is not the only retailer offering a nice diaper product. In fact, nearly every major retailer out there has a competitive offering in the diaper market, and these products have allowed private label’s share of the diaper market to grow consistently year-on-year, forcing national brands to stay cost competitive and to continue product improvement efforts.
In this issue, we report on the private label market (please see page 36) and talk to industry experts who are tracking the importance of these products in consumer categories. The efforts of retailers have been particularly strong in the U.K., where private label products could soon represent 50% of diaper sales. Other areas seeing strength include Western Europe and North America while in Japan, where brand culture rules, private label products are practically non-existent.

In this issue, we also report on the entire diaper market. Associate editor Tara Olivo talks to industry experts who uncover what’s happening in all the subcategories of diapers. Find out what’s going on by turning to page 48.


Karen McIntyre
kmcintyre@rodmanmedia.com