Private label

A private label, also called a private brand or private-label brand, is a brand owned by a company, offered by that company alongside and competing with brands from other businesses.^[1][2] A private-label brand is almost always offered exclusively by the firm that owns it, although in rare instances the brand is licensed to another company.^[3] The term often describes products, but can also encompass services.

The most common definition of a private label product is one that is outsourced, in which a firm is contracted to make a product under another name.^[4][5][6] However, it can also define products made in retailer-owned firms.^[7][8] For example, in 2018, The Kroger Company had 60% of its private brands produced by third parties; the remaining 40% was manufactured internally by plants owned by Kroger.^[9] Private-label producers are usually anonymous, sometimes by contract. In other cases, they are allowed to mention their role publicly.^[10][11]