50%. That is the new private label unit share across Europe's top six grocery markets by Circana report. Half of the basket.
But look at the exact numbers. Spain leads with 59%. Netherlands is 56%. Germany and the UK are at 52%. France hit 46% and Italy 36%.
This is not abstract data. It is a guy standing in the supermarket aisle. His rent is up. He looks at the shelf. The big brand coffee is €6. The store brand is €3.50. He grabs the store brand. He tries it at home. It tastes fine. He never buys the expensive brand again.
I see this happening fast. Supermarkets stopped making their own brands just cheap. They made them good. Now big names are bleeding volume.
Here is the reality for the market:
Retailers: You won the price war. But do not drop the quality. If your private label gets worse, that guy will switch to another supermarket.
FMCG: You are losing shelf space. You cannot just change the box color and ask for more money. Offer real value or you die.
SME: This is your gap. Supermarkets need reliable local factories to make all these store brands. Go pitch them. Be the supplier behind the label.
Brand loyalty is expensive. And right now, people just stopped paying for it.