Supervalu Transitioning its Independents to Essential Everyday

Supervalu Inc. is rolling out its new Essential Everyday private brand line to its 2,000-plus independent grocery retailers nationwide.

This rollout, expected to continue all year through early 2013, will replace Supervalu’s current private brands – Flavorite, Richfoods and Homelife – on more than 2,400 products in key grocery and home goods categories.

“Early results have shown that Essential Everyday is performing very well at our 1,100 Supervalu-owned stores, and we believe that our independent retailers will see a positive customer response as well,” Leon Bergmann, president of Supervalu’s independent business, said of the line, which is currently available in select independent retail locations.

Since last June, Supervalu’s traditional retail stores have been transitioning from their banner labels to Essential Everyday in the cereal, wholesome snacks, pasta and pasta sauce categories. Supervalu officials said extensive consumer testing on the Essential Everyday name and packaging returned very positive results. “In package design research, Essential Everyday outperformed other store brands on measures of purchase interest, perceived value, premium perception and overall appeal,” the company noted. “In addition, the change provides Supervalu with a single, recognizable brand name that will help create efficiencies in advertising and marketing the products on a national and local scale.”

Bergmann said the addition of independent grocers “truly helps establish Essential Everyday as its own national brand, with a reach to more than 3,000 grocery stores and millions of customers every week. Timing and execution of this transition will occur as new product rollouts are completed and in conjunction with our independent retailer’s specific store needs.”

Supervalu will continue to offer three tiers of private brand products, which include Culinary Circle, Stockman & Dakota, Wild Harvest, Equaline and Shoppers Value.

Minneapolis-based Supervalu Inc. operates a network of 4,300 stores composed of 1,104 traditional retail stores, including 798 in-store pharmacies; 1,309 hard-discount stores, of which 922 are operated by licensee owners; and 1,900 independent stores serviced primarily by the company’s traditional food distribution business.