With the largest show in its 34 year history, the Private Label Manufacturing Association offered more than 2700 booths for store buyers to peruse at the Chicago area’s Rosemont Convention Center in November. Representing leading grocery stores, drug chains, mass merchandisers and other retailers, attendees met with exhibitors to discuss and view many thousands of products, with nonwovens items crossing several segments.

Nonwovens materials ranged from core content to product layers, stand-alone wipes and more cross categories including health, personal and beauty care, medical/first aid, household, kitchen and cleaning. Several producers have been extending their offerings by moving into more categories, so for instance, adding wipes to their already familiar absorbent core/absorbent pads items.

Surfaces and More
Major private labelers Nice-Pak and Rockline Industries repeated their strong presence being ready to meet with store brand representatives on an extensive array of categories and line extensions. Nice-Pak talks about combining all the right elements for each product: the optimum applicator material and dispensing package with the appropriate formulation for its wet wipes. Rockline, a baby wipes market leader, also offers related products including flushable adult, feminine and toddler wipes that “set the standard in the industry for quality and flushability.” Rockline states, “To give confidence in safely flushing our wipes, our product line is certified by the NSF, the leading third-party expert.”

First Quality is one company that has continuously added to its portfolio of companies and store brand products. The company’s news promotes its vertical integration, from self-manufacturing and packaging components to truck utilization and shipping efficiencies. Emphasizing the “softest components and best barrier properties,” First Quality has seven manufacturing sites and serves more than 50 countries.

Line extensions abounded too. For example, Albaad USA promoted its new “long lasting disinfection wipes” as having a unique wet wipe formulation based on a proprietary technology called Byotrol, a one-of-a-kind safe solution “applying anti-bacterial protection throughout the day.” Albaad is marketing the wipe for all-purpose cleaning, floor wipes and household surfaces; and for skin contact, with hand sanitization and incontinence wipes.

Premier Care Industries, a leading manufacturer of wet wipes, added to its innovation streak beginning last year by introducing two new wipe products at the show. Head 2 Toe is a specialty wipe for kids that aids Moms in cleaning up their kids’ activities including paints, permanent markers and every day messes. Additionally, Premier Care launched a hair dye remover called Color Kleen, which removes hair dye from skin. Both products have a natural based formulation that is gentle to the skin.

On another product front, Bay Converting Inc. displayed its patented biodegradable-compostable sheet that, according to Dan Hilliard, “the consumer has embraced which is evidenced by the year over year growth. We are seeing a much stronger inquiry from our private label community with consumers becoming more educated about the environment, and our customer base is being asked to provide it to these customers.”

The show has long had a reputation for catering to its buyer attendees, but being less open to others. And this year, the exhibitors themselves protected their product secrets more rigorously…even restricting photography of items on open shelves. Is it a sign of more innovations rolling out?

Care is the Word
For skin care and all its permutations in cosmetics, health care, spa pampering and tanning, intimate cleansing and more, there are still plenty of new introductions. No wonder: Len Lewis for PLMA, highlights the ever-growing cosmetics industry. “With expected sales approaching $60 billion in the U.S., alone this year, retailers are looking to get a piece of this profitable pie.” To illustrate, “some are seeking to add private label lines like Duane-Reade’s Studio 35 label, while CVS has continued to heavily invest in its own Make Up Academy brand.” According to PLMA, Lewis suggests the focus on private label is not only due to its sales among supermarkets, drug stores and mass merchants last year, but they are noticing specialty retailers like Sephora are seeing more profits in private label lines.

When nonwovens deliver absorbency as core materials and outer layer cover materials, performance factors are the key to success. Griffin Care of Bridgeton, NJ, has a complete array of incontinence products. The outer layers offer Ever-Dry features, softness, and even a wetness indicator for caretaker convenience. There are breathable briefs as well as bladder control pads for men and women in various levels of absorbency and price points.

Overall, nonwovens products exhibitors feel that the PLMA show is a unique opportunity to showcase their business to the private label community. Says Hilliard of Bay Converting Inc., “The show went very well for us. We thought attendance was good from all classes of trade. The nonwovens business continues to grow at retail in the private label sector as consumers dollars are stretched.”

Private label share in supermarkets has reached 23.4% and dollar share is 19.4%. Total private label sales in the U.S. have surpassed $112 billion. More specific to nonwovens, sales in the private label disposable diapers category went up almost 4% in sales to more than $778 million with a 22% share of the category, while private label disposable training pants dipped 3%, according to IRI data. The recession and subsequent recovery years have had a substantial impact on the disposable baby product market, especially in how parents shop for products, according to Mintel’s “Disposable Baby Products – US – April 2013” report. The report said parents are aware of product costs and are careful to scrutinize their spending, particularly on products like disposable diapers which are used very frequently day-to-day.

Stansbury is an industry consultant.