Lead Story

No room for store brands

Private labels are the mainstay of global retailers but it will be a while before they make their mark in India

Illustration by Kishore Das

Great Value is the largest private brand at Walmart. Grocery products from Great Value, with brands such as Equate (pharmacy), Mainstay (low-cost furniture and bedding), Ol’Roy (dog food), Dr Thunder (soft drink) and Parent’s Choice (baby products) bring in close to 40% of the big-box retailer’s revenues of $421 billion. Similarly, UK-based retail giant Tesco earns 50% of its £64 billion revenue from private brands. Its two private labels Tesco Value and Tesco Finest are worth £1 billion each.