Jet.com Exec on Wal-Mart's New Strategy to Take on Amazon
Private-label fans no longer need to compromise! Walt-Mart’s Jet.com launched private-label brand Uniquely J, which boasts better packaging, higher quality, and attractive price points. Jet.com president Liza Landsman joined Cheddar to discuss the strategy.
The perks don’t stop there, Landsman says. The e-commerce company looked at a year’s worth of data, detailing the items most coveted by its core consumers. Among the winners? Fair-trade coffee, PBA-free plastic storage bags, and certified organic products.
“Our insights from those consumers tell us [environmental consciousness is] really an important factor for them, beyond price and quality,” she said on Friday.
The Boston Consulting Group says half of U.S. millennials between the ages of 18 and 24, and 38 percent of those between 25 and 34, agree that brands "say something" about their identity, values, and where they belong. This is often a popular deciding factor for millennials when considering purchases.
Similarly, private labels have gained great appeal with millennials over the past few years. According to market research firm Mintel, more than one-third of U.S. shoppers preferred to buy store-brand products over name brand one.
Wal-Mart, which acquired Jet.com for $3 billion last year as part of its effort to take on e-commerce giant Amazon, is betting on Uniquely J for its reach of “urban, more affluent millennials,” and compete with Amazon in the private label sector.
However, analysts predict that Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods will boost the company’s private labels sales.
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
