Ample Consumption Period Available Until Use-by Dates: A Potential Marketing Position for Store Brands

SUMMARY

Store brands, when moving upscale, inevitably relinquish their value for money appeal and therefore require some quality dimension to compete. This article is proposing that the promise of “generous” use-by dates as a surrogate for quality could be considered as a positioning plank to promote store brands as alternatives to manufactured brands. Logit analysis is employed to explain shoppers' perceptions and responses to use-by dates, of products that they regularly buy, and of alternative products that they have never bought before if the use-by dates of their regular items are perceived to be too short.