Sep 9 2010
GROUP360 Worldwide has sponsored the industry’s first store brands package design study to help retailers benchmark their practices and plans against the broader store brands retailing market.
The Store Brands Decisions Packaging Design Retailer Benchmarking Survey released today provides recommendations to retailers, manufacturers and design agencies for an emerging industry within the consumer packaged goods (CPG) segment that is predicted to grow exponentially. More than 57 percent of shoppers say they purchase store brands, up from 36 percent 10 years ago.
“This study allows us to evaluate and develop our competencies to support retailers’ interests,” said Mark Rutter, president and CEO, GROUP360 Worldwide, a design and marketing communications firm with expertise in the store brands category. “One of the key insights most relevant to our services is the evidence of retailer interest in outside resources that include strategy development. Firms that offer a complete suite of services, or ‘integrated route-to-market’, as part of a comprehensive package design offering are best positioned to help store brands become more successful.”
Survey respondents included 36 companies operating more than 58,000 stores and generating more than $900 billion in annual retail sales. Data was gathered from a combination of executives from store brands management, executive management and packaging design. Respondents provided information and analysis directly related to store brands trends, strategy development, creative design, execution, use of technology and more.
The key findings include:
- Store brands are expanding exponentially to meet the needs and budgets of many different consumer demographics: One in every three shoppers expects to buy more store brands in the year ahead;
- Technology is playing a more significant role in store brands development, including packaging design, as new store brands proliferate: More than a third of companies reported using packaging management software to track projects;
- Using an outside design or consulting firm to establish all or part of a chain’s packaging design strategy has become a common practice: Only one-third of respondents indicated strategy is strictly in-house;
- Motivation to make package design changes include developments in consumer trends and product trends, as well as government regulations: Two-thirds of retail chains undertake complete redesigns every four years or more;
- Design budgets are increasing and funding practices will become more diverse: Forty-five percent of respondents reported an increase in budgets in 2010.
The increased demand for variety and intensifying competition have prompted intense change regarding how retailers approach package design strategy development, creative design and execution. Store Brands Decisions’ survey – conducted in April and May of this year – examines and forecasts packaging design trends, and specifically highlights strategy development as the largest area of planned change in the packaging design process by retailers. Engaged retailers are examining the role of specialized external resources at every stage of the design process, according to the study.
“We conducted the industry’s first study on retailer brand packaging design specifically so that retailers can benchmark their practices and plans against the broader store brands retailing market,” said John Failla, president and editorial director, Store Brands Decisions. “We are excited about the insightful analysis captured in our survey and how the results can help further support the store brands industry.”