In any supermarket in any town, you will surely find examples of all the different types of brands discussed in this chapter: individual brands, family brands, national brands, store brands, and cobranded and licensed products. This miniproject is designed to give you a better understanding of branding as it exists in the marketplace.

1. Go to a typical supermarket in your community.

2. Select two product categories of interest to you: ice cream, cereal, laundry detergent, soup, paper products, and so on.

3. Make a list of the brands available in each product category. Identify what type of brand each is. Count the number of shelf facings (the number of product items at the front of each shelf) for each brand.

4. Arrange to talk with the store manager at a time that is convenient with him or her. Ask the manager to discuss the following:
a. How the store decides which brands to carry

b. Whether the store is more likely to carry a new brand that is an individual brand versus a family brand

c. What causes a store to drop a brand

d. The profitability of store brands versus national brands e. Other aspects of branding that the store manager sees as important from a retail perspective

5. Present a summary to your class on what you learned about the brands in your two product categories.