Research Outline

Grocery Store SKUs

Goals

To understand the number and value of total SKUs versus owned brand SKUs of the top grocery store chains.

Early Findings

Kroger

  • Kroger has 4,064 stores and has managed to become the 2nd largest grocery chain in the U.S.
  • Kroger's website has 69,793 products listed for sale online across 16 categories, with a focus on grocery and organic food.
  • Kroger's Grocery category is the largest being sold online at 23.6K.
  • Kroger's own brand name products are sold the most at "4,560, while Simple Truth (2,188) and Private Selection (927) follow at 2nd and 3rd position respectively."
  • Revlon (650 products), Maybelline (610 products) and L’Oreal (506 products) are also among their top branded cosmetic products.
  • "More than 50% of products for sale are Kroger Private Label brands."
  • In 2018, Kroger added 1,022 “own brand” items. Each of their supermarkets stocks an average of more than 15,000 private-label products such as pet food, clothes, furniture, meal kits and office supplies. Their 16 house brands currently account for more than 30% of unit sales.

Albertsons

  • Over the past couple years, Albertsons Cos. has been adding items to its private label brand portfolio, with sales penetration reaching 25.3% in the first quarter of fiscal 2019.
  • In 2018, Albertsons Cos. introduced "around 1,100 new products to its own brands; many from O Organics and Open Nature, which have grown 11.5% over the last year and currently represent 23.6% of the total natural and organic sales at Albertsons Cos.’ stores."
  • In 2018, O Organics reached sales of $1 billion, and has grown to include over 1,200 products, including roughly 300 that were introduced in 2018 in produce, dairy, meat, deli, snack and baby categories.
  • Open Nature introduced 175 new products in the past year and is on track to becoming the company’s "fifth $1 billion brand." Their new items include a full line of sun care SKUs.
  • Albertsons is planning to expand its own brands (particularly Open Nature) in the pet food, wellness products for adults and children, and hygiene products categories.