Brand Name vs. Store Brand

When shopping for basic products like clothing, food, cosmetics, etc., people usually don't realize that store brands are oftentimes equivalent to the brands you know from advertising and TV.



Take Target for example - They have their own lines of products like bedding, bath essentials, kitchen utensils, trash bins, shoes, bathing suits, you name it (e.g. as in picture above, 'up & up'). Typically, store chains like to make their own brands at cheaper prices than the leading name brand. This is great for us consumers since we get pretty much the same quality as the name brands at a lower price.

Little known fact: Most store brand products are made by the same contracted companies that make the name brands. Why pay more when you can pay less?

Granted, not always is the store brand the better choice. Sometimes they may taste different, fit different, or look different. Change isn't always a bad thing, but sometimes the store brands just don't match up. So be careful, look for the 'Equivalent to XXX brand' on the store brand's label. That way, you can be sure that both the store and name brand products are made in the same way.