One secret of store brands—or “private label” brands with seemingly bargain quality—is that they’re often made by the same companies that manufacturer big name products. So instead of paying twice as much for the same (or very similar) product, buy the just-as-good carbon copies. Here’s a look at some of the many products you can save a ton of money on.
Not Just Knockoffs: How Private Label Brands Work
Private label brands are owned by the retailer or supplier but the items are made by other manufacturers and just packaged differently. Some examples include Costco’s Kirkland Signature products and just about everything at Trader Joe’s. Reynolds Wrap, McCormick, and Birds Eye are all producing versions of their aluminum foil, spices, and frozen and canned vegetable products for store brands.
The potential savings are great. According to the Private Label Manufacturers Association, we can save more than 30% on average by shopping supermarkets’ private labels instead of national brands:
Among individual food items the cost savings ranged as high as 62% for white sandwich bread, 48% for macaroni and cheese, and 47% for hot chocolate. Savings on average for non-food categories were led by sinus spray (the store brand version cost a full 53% less), body lotion (36% less), and cold medicine (30% less).
Unfortunately for us, retail stores and their manufacturing partners prefer to keep mum about their relationships, so we can’t assume that a generic white bread is made by the likes of Pepperidge Farm or Wonder Bread. Sometimes the generic version is produced by a manufacturer who only makes store brands. With a little bit of sleuthing, though, we did find quite a few examples of store brands that are most likely (if not certainly) manufactured by the same companies making the national brand equivalent.
Store Brand Products That Are Just Like the National Brand
In general, you can’t go wrong buying from Costco or Trader Joe’s. Sometimes the products are co-branded with national brands (e.g., Costco’s Signature blend house coffee with the Starbucks logo on it), but even the privately labeled products tend to have a major manufacturer behind it.
Costco’s Kirkland Signature Products
Shampoo is said to be made by Pureology
Super Premium ice cream is made by Humboldt Creamery
Tuna fish is made by Bumble Bee
Diapers are likely made by Huggies
Liquor: Jim Beam makes the bourbon, Grey Goose makes the vodka, and the Scotch is a Macallan 18
Costco has such strict standards on what can get the Kirkland Signature label, that sometimes the brands even make better versions for Costco than their own.
Trader Joe’s
Pita chips are from Stacy’s (a division of Frito-Lay)
Yogurt from Stoneyfield Farm
Indian food made by Tasty Bite
Take Tasty Bite, which makes much of Trader Joe’s Indian food. The Tasty Bite Punjab Eggplant ran $3.39 at a Whole Foods in Manhattan. The seemingly identical Punjab Eggplant that the Stamford, Conn., company makes for Trader Joe’s is more than $1 cheaper.
The Huffington Post did a side-by-side taste test of many of Trader Joe’s brands and found these to be identical:
Cream of tomato soup: Pacific ($2.49 at Trader Joe’s vs. $4.69 regularly for Pacific)
Organic shells and white cheddar: Annie’s Homegrown ($1.49 vs. $3.29)
Pretzel chips: Snack Factory ($2.19 vs. $3.69)
Vegetarian Chili: Amy’s ($2.29 vs. $4.19)
Other Nearly Identical Products
Costco and Trader Joe’s aren’t the only places to shop and save. Many high-end brands have “sister” companies which share the same manufacturing process and materials, but simply are priced lower:
Saks Fifth Avenue’s Platinum clothing line is said to be produced in the same factory as Armani clothing
Victoria’s Secret pantyhose is manufactured by Hanes and made in the same factories as DKNY stockings
Old Navy, Gap, and Banana Republic often use the same materials (e.g., for jeans), but just different cuts
Makeup is one place you can definitely save, since many of the major cosmetics companies are owned by the same parent company. L’Oreal, for example, owns Lancome, Maybelline, and Garnier; Estee Lauder owns not just Mac, Clinique, and Bobbi Brown but also cheaper brands sold at Kohl’s (Flirt1 and American Beauty). Find dupes at the Makeup Dupe List.
We learned that Girl Scout cookies are made by a Keebler subsidiary and the Keebler versions taste quite similar
Whether or not a major brand is behind the generic or cheaper versions, there are some products you should always buy generic and times when the brand name really makes a difference. That said, consider this just a friendly reminder that there may be more to those store brands than meets the eye—and giving them a try can save you lots of dough. Literally.
Photos by Vask, Huffington Post.