Lo sviluppo dei prodotti alimentari a marchio commerciale: strategie delle imprese e comportamento del consumatore

The paper investigates the competitive relationship between private labels and national brands in the processed tomato industry, both empirically and theoretically. Results of the empirical analysis indicate that the consumers’ willingness to buy private labels is positively related to the perceived quality and to the price differential with national brands, while it is negatively related to the perceived risk of “making a wrong purchase”. On the theoretical ground the paper suggests that retailers supply private labels mainly to enhance their market power, considering both the buying and the selling power. This latter finding raises serious concerns about the possible anti-competitive effects of private labels.