On the first conference call with analysts after being named CEO, Joseph Magnacca took the opportunity to call out the company’s private label program and his desire to reinvigorate development in it.

Kroger reported this week that sales in 2012 rose 4 percent, excluding fuel, from a year earlier, adjusting for an extra week in the 2012 calendar. The company also said that it would begin talking about corporate brand share in non-grocery items this year.

Grocery chain Publix said earnings for 2012 rose from a year ago, finishing up the year with a sluggish fourth quarter.

Supervalu announced this week that it will make executive changes leading up to the sale of five of its banners to Cerberus Capital Management, including a new leader of its private brand division.

The largest convenience store chain in the world announced a pair of new private label additions to its menu with two premium sandwiches, the Steakhouse Roast Beef and Bistro Deluxe.

Target announced that it would open its first three pilot stores in Canada at 8 a.m. Tuesday in three Ontario towns.

Kohl’s announced earnings for 2012 this week and said that the retailer’s private and exclusive brands have shown strong growth in the past year.

JCPenney CEO Ron Johnson told analysts Wednesday that as part of the retailer’s next transformation, it would pay special attention to promotions and pricing in its private label products.

As Target reported earnings that increase more than 10 percent in the fourth quarter from a year ago, the company talked about its exclusive private label collections creating differentiation in the market.

The world’s largest retailer saw a significant drop-off in private label promotions last week, according to data provided exclusively for PLBuyer’s eReport by Chicago-based market research firm Market Track.