Marketing Private Label Lines

With decreases in manufacturing costs, advancements in technology and greater access to digital marketing tools, distributors are able to present their private label lines more professionally than ever before. 

At Dade Paper in Miami, the company treats their private label line just like any other national brand, says Laura Craven, director of communications. The products are listed alongside national brands in their printed and online catalogs, as well as in a separate catalog created specifically for the house brand. Marketing the products online in bundles has helped the company sell their private label line to more customers, including in Latin America and in the Caribbean. It helps that the products are manufactured with high quality ingredients, and presented in attractive packaging, Craven says. 

Years ago, many private label products were bottled in bland white containers, or packed up in plain brown packaging. Printing attractive packaging and labels was expensive, and out of many distributors' reach. Today, distributors can afford to invest in full-color printing, as printing costs continue to come down. Distributors are also taking advantage of other low-cost marketing tools including social media, blogging and video to market their products to customers. 

“We’ve gotten more savvy as distributors,” says Chris Martini, director of marketing and special projects at Central Sanitary Supply in Modesto, Calif. “Earlier, it was tough for us to justify the costs. Now, the quality of private brands are on the same bar as national brands.”