The creation of strong brands interests manufacturers and distributors, as well
as researchers. However, previous investigations of brand equity have focused
almost exclusively on manufacturers’ brands, without considering the brand
equity of store brands. A few exceptions analyse store brands from an aggregate
perspective, without differentiating their types. The present study instead considers
the effect of store brand tiers (e.g. generics, standard, premium) on brand equity.
An experimental design compares scores for different store and manufacturer
brands across branded and unbranded tests. Store brands, including premium
ones, suffer a brand equity disadvantage compared with manufacturers’ brands.
Generic store brands are at a clear disadvantage; premium store brands do not
differ from standard store brands in terms of brand equity.