- List of Walmart brands
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Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., like most large retail and grocery chains, offers store brands, commonly referred to as house brands or generic brands, which are low-priced alternatives to name brand products. Walmart has numerous store brands, each catering to a different consumer need or desire. Almost all products offered under Walmart brands are private label products, and can be found in almost every category at Walmart.
Contents
Major brands
Sam's Choice
Main article: Sam's ChoiceSam's Choice, originally introduced as Sam's American Choice in 1991, a retail brand in food and selected hard goods. Named for Sam Walton, founder of Walmart, Sam's Choice forms the premium tier of Walmart's two-tiered core corporate grocery branding strategy that also includes the larger Great Value brand of discount-priced staple items.[1]
Compared to Great Value products and to other national brands, Sam's Choice is positioned as a premium retail brand and is offered at a price competitive with standard national brands. It typically offers either competitive items in a given product category, or items in categories where the market leader is an "icon" (for example, Coca-Cola in the soft drink category).
Most Sam's Choice beverage products (excluding Grapette and Orangette) are manufactured for Wal-Mart by Cott Beverages. Other products in the line, including cookies, snack items, frozen meals, and similar grocery items are made by a variety of agricultural and food manufacturers.
Competitive pricing of the Sam's Choice brand and store branded and generic goods is possible because of the minimal expense required to market a retail chain's house brand, compared to advertising and promotional expenses typically incurred by the national brands.
Recently, most Sam's Choice-branded products have been replaced by either the relaunched Great Value brand, or the new Marketside brand.
Great Value
Great Value was launched in 1993 and forms the second tier, or national brand equivalent ("NBE"), of Walmart's grocery branding strategy.[2]
Products offered at Walmart through the Great Value brand are claimed to be as good as national brand offerings, but are typically sold at a lower price because of minimal marketing and advertising expense. As a house or generic brand, the Great Value line does not consist of goods produced by Walmart, but is a labeling system for items manufactured and packaged by a number of agricultural and food corporations, such as ConAgra, Sara Lee which, in addition to releasing products under its own brands and exclusively for Walmart, also manufactures and brands foods for a variety of other chain stores. Often this labeling system, to the dismay of consumers, does not list location of manufacture of the product. Wal-Mart contends that all Great Value products are produced in the United States otherwise the country of origin would be listed.
As Walmart's most extensively developed retail brand, covering hundreds of household consumable items, the Great Value line includes sliced bread, frozen vegetables, frozen dinners, canned foods, light bulbs, trash bags, buttermilk biscuits, cinnamon rolls, pies and many other traditional grocery store products. The wide range of items marketed under the Great Value banner makes it Walmart's top-selling retail brand.
The Great Value brand can also be seen in Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Brazil and some Trust Mart stores in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China through a partnership with Walmart. Bharti EasyDay retail grocery stores sell Great Value brand products in India as well.
By mid-summer 2009, Walmart had redesigned the Great Value labels to be predominantly white. The new redesign also includes over 80 new items including thin crust pizza, fat free caramel swirl ice cream, strawberry yogurt, organic cage-free eggs, double stuffed sandwich cookies, and teriyaki beef jerky. Walmart changed the formulas for 750 items including: breakfast cereal, cookies, yogurt, laundry detergent, and paper towels. The new brand was tested by over 2,700 people.[3] Other retailers are following suit with their private label packaging as well.[citation needed]
Equate
Equate is a brand used for consumable pharmacy and health and beauty items, such as shaving cream, skin lotion, over-the-counter medications, and pregnancy tests. Before its takeover by Walmart, the formerly independent Equate brand sold consumer products at both Target and Walmart at lower prices than those of name brands. Equate is an example of the strength of Walmart's private label store brand. In a 2006 study, The Hartman Group marketing research firm issued a report which found that "Five of the top 10 "likely to purchase" private label brands are managed by Wal-Mart including: Great Value, Equate, Sam's Choice, Wal-Mart and Member's Mark (Sam's Club), per the study." The report further noted that "...we are struck by the magnitude of mind-share Wal-Mart appears to hold in shoppers' minds when it comes to awareness of private label brands and retailers."[4]
In mid-2010, the brand underwent a logo redesign, as well as packaging changes similar to the Great Value brand.
Mainstays
Mainstays is a brand marketed by Walmart for its low cost alternative of beddings & ready-to-assemble furniture.
Ol' Roy
Ol' Roy is Walmart's store brand of dog food. Its namesake comes from Sam Walton's bird dog, and has become the number-one selling brand of dog food in the United States, surpassing Nestlé's Purina. Ol' Roy was created in 1983.[5]
Walmart's Ol' Roy brand is a commonly cited example of the success of private label store brands at the expense of traditional ad-driven brands. The brand manager of a competing product said, "Wal-Mart has made a national brand out of Ol' Roy. Nutritionally, it's substantially the same as national brands at significantly less cost."[6] Another commentator said, "It's a dry dog food made especially for Wal-Mart, which is the only place you can buy it, and its attributes have been extolled in not a single TV commercial. Yet Ol' Roy is the top-selling dog food in the US by an annual margin of at least 20 percent, according to Wal-Mart."[7]
In 1998, samples of Ol' Roy (together with various other brands) were subject to qualitative analyses for pentobarbital residue by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary Medicine due to suspicion that the anesthetizing drug may have found its way into pet foods through euthanized animals, including cats and dogs. DNA test for all the samples failed to detect cat and dog DNA but multiple Ol' Roy samples tested positive for the drug, presumably from rendered cattle. The CVM has said that due to the low level of exposure, the risk of adverse effects was low.[8][9]
Parent's Choice
Parent's Choice is the Walmart store brand for baby products, including food, diapers, formula, and accessories. Like other Walmart store brands, its design and packaging was relaunched in 2010. The brand has pages on both Facebook and Twitter, for mothers to interact and share opinions about the brand.
White Stag
Main article: White Stag (clothing)White Stag is a brand for women's clothing, footwear, and basic jewelry. Originally founded in 1931 as a skiwear manufacturer in Portland, Oregon, the company was purchased by the Warnaco Group in 1966, which after the company exited bankruptcy, later sold the brand to Walmart in 2003.
George
George is a brand of more formal clothing for men, women and children. It also consists of dress shoes, wallets, belts, and neckties. It was created by the British retailer ASDA in 1990, and since Walmart acquired ASDA in 1999, it has maintained and expanded it to other markets, notably the United States, Canada, and Japan. The George brand was named after George Davies, who was its original chief designer. Davies is no longer associated with the brand, although ASDA and Walmart have aimed to remain true to the low price business model that he established.
Additional brands
Apparel
- Baby George is a clothing brand for children, organically manufactured for Wal-Mart. The brand is popular because it is organically produced in a chemical free environment.
- Faded Glory is a brand for basic men's, women's, and children's clothing and footwear. It is Walmart's primary clothing brand.
- No Boundaries, usually abbreviated as NOBO, is a line of apparel targeted at teenagers and young college students.
- Simply Basic was previously a brand used for health and beauty items, but is now used primarily for women's sleepwear.
Homelines
- Better Homes and Gardens is a product line with designs inspired from the popular magazine of the same name.
- Canopy is a home product line that features coordinated solutions for rooms and other domestic goods. Some Canopy products are made with organic cotton.
- Hometrends products include small furniture, tableware and various home decor accessories, such as rugs and faux plants.
- your zone is a home product line that tailors toward teenagers and college students
Others
- @ the Office is a brand used for office supplies and stationery.
- Best Occasions is a brand used for party decorations and accessories, such as candles and hats.
- Clear American is used for carbonated and flavored water. Was previously known as Sam's Choice Clear American.
- Color Place is the brand used for paint and painting tools. Color Place paint is made by AkzoNobel.
- Douglas is the brand used for budget priced tires. Models include Xtra-Trac and Touring. Some models are made in a Goodyear plant.
- EverStart is the brand for automotive and lawn mower batteries. The brand is also used for battery related accessories, such as jumper cables.
- Fire Side Gourmet is used for pre-cooked burgers and steaks, and was previously under the Sam's Choice label.
- Gold's Gym is used for athletic and exercise equipment such as weights. Named after and licensed from the chain of fitness centers.
- Holiday Time is used for Christmas items such as Christmas trees, decorations, and wrapping paper.
- Kid Connection is used primarily for children's toys, but was also used for children's clothing and shoes.
- Marketside is a brand of fresh foods usually found in Walmart's deli, produce, and bakery departments, such as salads, soups, breads, and sandwiches.
- Oak Leaf is a brand of low cost wines produced and bottled for Walmart selling at approximately $3 a bottle.[10]
- ONN is a brand used for entry-level electronics (mice, speakers, cables, etc.).
- Ozark Trail is a brand used for outdoor equipment and footwear. (The Walmart Home Office is located in the Ozark mountain region in northern Arkansas.)
- Protege is a brand consisting of luggage and travel accessories.
- ReliOn is a brand of diabetes care products including blood glucose and blood pressure monitors.
- Special Kitty is a brand of cat food and litter.
- SuperTech is Walmart's brand of motor oil. The brand is also used on other consumable automotive products, such as oil filters, windshield wiper fluid, and transmission fluid.
- Walmart Family Mobile is Walmart's exclusive cell phone (postpaid) service provided through the T-Mobile cellular network.[11]
- World Table is a brand consisting of foods inspired by international cuisines, such as sauces, snacks, and frozen foods.
Former brands
- Athletic Works was a brand for athletic clothing until mid-2010, such as gym shorts and running shoes, and has been partially replaced by the Gold's Gym brand and Starter. The brand was also used for sports equipment and watches. The brand was also on men's and women's socks, and men's underwear.
- Durabrand was a brand used for home electronics such as televisions and DVD players. The brand was also used on various small kitchen appliances.
- ilo was another brand of home electronics, consisting of more upscale items such as televisions, small electronics and digital music players.
- Metro 7 was an upscale brand of women's apparel, that was originally released in the fall of 2006, and eventually phased out.
- Puritan was a brand for men's basic clothing including shirts, pants, undergarments, socks, ties, and some accessories. In late 2010, the brand was phased out completely and replaced by Faded Glory (with undergarments and socks and casual clothing) and George (with ties, shirts, and pants and formal clothing).
- Existo was a brand for young men's clothes.
References
- ^ Sara Lee
- ^ Sara Lee
- ^ http://walmartstores.com/FactsNews/NewsRoom/9028.aspx
- ^ http://www.pbmproducts.com/press.aspx?ID=183
- ^ Boyle, Matthew. "Brand Killers Store brands aren't for losers anymore. In fact, they're downright sizzling. And that scares the soap out of the folks who bring us Tide and Minute Maid and Alpo and...." Fortune. August 11, 2003. Retrieved on August 23, 2006.
- ^ Staff Writer"Private label chows unleash strong pet department sales." Discount Store News. June 7, 1993. Retrieved on August 23, 2006.
- ^ "Organizational and Business Storytelling In The News: Story #69 Store brands emerge as viable narratives." February 24, 2004. Retrieved on August 23, 2006.
- ^ Survey #1, qualitative analyses for pentobarbital residue:Dry dog food samples purchased in Laurel, MD, area, March - June 1998 FDA/Center for Veterinary Medicine
- ^ Report on the risk from pentobarbital in dog food FDA/Center for Veterinary Medicine
- ^ [1]
- ^ Walmart Introduces Walmart Family Mobile Powered by T-Mobile, Featuring the Lowest Priced Unlimited Talk and Text Wireless Family Plans
External links
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Key people Assets Amigo Supermarkets · ASDA · Líder · Sam's Club · Walmart Discount Stores · Walmart Market · Walmart Supercenter · Marketside · Project Impact · Walmex · Walmart Canada · Más Club · Seiyu · BompreçoSee also Criticism of Walmart · Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price · History of Walmart · List of assets owned by Walmart · List of Walmart brands · Why Wal-Mart Works; and Why That Drives Some People C-R-A-Z-YAnnual revenue: 
US$405.61 billion FY 2009 ($13.4 billion) · Employees: 2.1 million · Stock symbol: NYSE: WMT · Website: walmartstores.comCategories:- Walmart brands
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