One unique aspect of the upcoming PLB 360 Conference that will generate significant buzz is the side-by-side evaluation of private label products and their equivalent branded alternatives.

The National Confectioners Association’s Sweets & Snacks Expo will take place May 21-23 at McCormick Place in Chicago. If you’re planning to check out the more than 3 acres of candy and snacks, make sure to stop by booth 1380 to try chocolate from PRAIM Group, a food licensing, marketing and distribution company.

When jockeying for competitive advantage in any industry, the ability to mine valuable information—and act quickly and judiciously with that knowledge—often factors directly into the bottom line while building your reputation.

 A retailer’s branding includes its corporate ethos, and the new grocery concept from actor Wendell Pierce helps point to the future of consciousness-driven businesses.

Many supplier-retailer relationships in private label are kept confidential and quiet, for a variety of reasons. But some suppliers are using their status as a vendor for a major retailer to bring their private brands forward.

A new whitepaper from Schawk shows that the expansion of the private label industry in Russian is far from certain.

So we might think back to 2012 and remember some of the more memorable moments in private label, but what did you think were the most important stories of the year? What did you come to our website and read time and again?

Had a chance to look over a study that was unveiled during the PLMA show last month, been meaning to read up on it for a while. Shikatani Lacroix out of Canada put together a look at those relationships in conjunction with Hotspex to create a Re:Store index of the top companies who met customers’ emotional needs and their satisfaction, as well.

With the current revamping of packaging on a host of Great Value products at Walmart, the days of a dominant private label with plain white packaging could be on the way out at Walmart.

Been meaning to write about this one for a while. One of the companies that caught my eye headed into the National Association of Convenience Stores show in October was a sign maker called Watchfire.

The May 2013 Issue of Private Label Buyer includes a cover story on deli choices, as well as Category Insights on milk and juice and cheese products. Check it out today!