Private-label fans no longer need to compromise! Walt-Mart’s Jet.com launched private-label brand Uniquely J, which boasts better packaging, higher quality, and attractive price points. Jet.com president Liza Landsman joined Cheddar to discuss the strategy. The perks don’t stop there, Landsman says. The e-commerce company looked at a year’s worth of data, detailing the items most coveted by its core consumers. Among the winners? Fair-trade coffee, PBA-free plastic storage bags, and certified organic products. “Our insights from those consumers tell us [environmental consciousness is] really an important factor for them, beyond price and quality,” she said on Friday. The Boston Consulting Group says half of U.S. millennials between the ages of 18 and 24, and 38 percent of those between 25 and 34, agree that brands "say something" about their identity, values, and where they belong. This is often a popular deciding factor for millennials when considering purchases. Similarly, private labels have gained great appeal with millennials over the past few years. According to market research firm Mintel, more than one-third of U.S. shoppers preferred to buy store-brand products over name brand one. Wal-Mart, which acquired Jet.com for $3 billion last year as part of its effort to take on e-commerce giant Amazon, is betting on Uniquely J for its reach of “urban, more affluent millennials,” and compete with Amazon in the private label sector. However, analysts predict that Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods will boost the company’s private labels sales.
