David Jones appears to have struck the jackpot.
A recent survey by Roy Morgan has revealed that almost four in every 10 Australians aged 14+ buy more stores’-own products than those of well-known brands.
Roy Morgan Research group account director – consumer products Warren Reid said this data suggests recent moves by retailers to add private label to their offering could be a step in the right direction.
This includes department store David Jones, which recently announced its plans to add new DJs-own brand labels to its portfolio in an effort to boost sales in this profitable area.
“Long gone are the days when home-brand products were instantly recognisable thanks to their black-and-gold packaging or the store’s name emblazoned on the label. Nowadays, unless you’re looking really carefully, it can be difficult to pick which products are stores’-own.
“Department store David Jones plans to build on its repertoire of private-label products by adding four new lines to their fashion menu, with the goal of improving sales in this product category.
"If these new products are of the same quality and style you’d expect from such a high-end retailer, then today’s private-label brands could well become ‘exclusive’ brands in their own right.
“The key to success with these new private-label brands will be how much effort and resources David Jones puts into branding activity,” Reid said.
However, Reid also noted that the Roy Morgan survey results also hinted that attitudes to private label also depend on the shopper demographic.
The percentage of shoppers which agreed they would buy private label was marginally higher among shoppers at discount stores such as Target (38 per cent), Big W (40 per cent) and Kmart (43 per cent). Meanwhile, David Jones customers are less likely to agree (22 per cent), as are Myer and Harris Scarfe customers (27 per cent and 26 per cent respectively).
Different kinds of customers differ dramatically in their attitudes to home-brands. Shoppers at Kmart are more comfortable and accustomed to buying store-branded labels, as are Big W and Target customers. The attitude of Harris Scarfe shoppers to stores’-own products has become similar to that of Myer customers over the last four years,” Reid said.
