Aldi, Trader Joe’s, and Lidl were two of several grocery stores to earn 2019 Salute to Excellence awards at the World of Private Label International Trade Show last week in Amsterdam.
The awards showcase innovation in the private label market, and recipients were announced during the trade show hosted by the Private Label Manufacturers Association at the RAI Exhibition Centre. Nominees for the awards included more than 500 food and non-food products from 88 retailers in 23 countries. Products submitted for consideration included food, beverages, home and household goods, and health and beauty items. Retailers who were considered for the awards feature products that follow consumer trends such as free-from, eco-friendly, on-the-go, gourmet, and more. Products were new this past year at supermarkets, hypermarkets, drugstores, and specialty retailers.
Aldi Ireland, Aldi UK, Lidl Germany, and Lidl Netherlands all won awards in the food category. Aldi Sud (Germany) and Trader Joe’s won awards in the wine category. Lidl Netherlands also won an award in the home and health category.
Aldi US won a few categories as well, all of them in the wine segment. The company brought home Best Quality awards for its Cabernet Sauvignon and New World Red wines. It also won the Best Value Award for its Malbec wine.
While American grocers like Aldi US, Trader Joe’s, and Costco were represented in the wine category, no American grocers were mentioned in the food and home and health categories.
Judging panels for the awards included industry experts, chefs, former retailers, academics, nutritionists, journalists, and packaging specialists. Entries were judged based on taste, quality, appearance, packaging, product concept, and value. Also, 350 wines from 40 retailers in 11 countries were judged by panels of Masters of Wine, sommeliers, writers, and industry experts.
The Private Label Manufacturers Association’s website lists other retailers who received the Salute to Excellence award, including Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand for best value for its Prosecco.
You can view a full list of the winners here.
Sources: StoreBrands and Private Label Manufacturers Association
