As prices for staples soared in 2021 and 2022, some Americans who had not regularly shopped at Walmart increasingly turned to the retailer known for its affordable prices. Now the company is trying to retain these new customers and attract others with a new selection of plant-based, gluten-free and luxury culinary dishes.
On Tuesday, the retailer unveiled a new private label that it said would “make quality food accessible.” Executives called the Better Goods brand its biggest foray into the private label grocery business in 20 years.
Better Goods’ products include frozen oat milk desserts, plant-based macaroni and cheese, and frozen entrees like chicken curry empanadas and brie phyllo flowers. More than 70 percent of the products will cost less than $5, the retailer said.
“All of our research shows that the customer expects these types of goods,” said Scott Morris, senior vice president of private food and consumer brands at Walmart. “They expect the high-quality ingredients and offerings we offer, and they’re also looking for healthier options.”
The retailer says it is seeing growth in its private label brands across all demographics, particularly among Generation Z shoppers, a group that includes people born in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Analysts are eager to find out whether the retailer can retain higher-income people who started shopping at Walmart in recent years as inflation eases. The company is taking numerous steps to become more attractive to customers. Walmart has announced plans to open new stores and remodel existing ones. It has also changed signs, displays and other visual advertising in a way that analysts say should make the stores more attractive to wealthy shoppers.
While Walmart executives said they would not market Better Goods specifically to higher-income consumers, they acknowledged the assortment could appeal to those shoppers.
“We haven’t necessarily focused on any particular demographic,” Morris said in a phone call with reporters. “But we also know that it can target certain populations in certain ways. That’s why we see this as an opportunity for all customers to further engage Walmart by offering them new choices, new inspiration and new products on our shelves and in the digital experience.”
Walmart has other private label brands, some of which have been around for many years. Mr. Morris said the company has 14 billion dollar brands, eight of them on grocery shelves. The Great Value brand, introduced more than 30 years ago, covers many food products. The company said some Better Goods products would be similar to Great Value items, but it had no concerns that the brands would compete with each other.
“We don’t view it as something that would cannibalize our core value,” Mr. Morris said. “In fact, we view it as very incremental.”
Some of the new private label grocery products are already sold in Walmart stores and online, and most will launch by the end of the year, the company said.
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2024-04-30 12:48:04
www.nytimes.com
