U.S. shoppers continue to purchase store brand products, consumer poll finds

NEW YORK New consumer polling data shows that an overwhelming majority of U.S. supermarket shoppers will continue purchasing store brand products after the recession is over, the Private Label Manufacturers Association reported last week.

A poll of nearly 800 grocery shoppers conducted earlier this month by GfK Custom Research North America found that 91% of shoppers say they will keep buying store brand products after the recession ends. Conversely, only 8% of the consumers polled said they will stop buying these products.

And well into the recession, shoppers still are switching to store brands. The poll found that 35% of shoppers are trying store brand products in categories where they had previously only purchased national brand items.

The GfK poll found that 9-of-every-10 shoppers agree that the store brand products they buy are just as good as, or better than, national brand products.