Loblaw launches first premium private-label line

Loblaw has launched President’s Choice Black Label that features gourmet products.

The 200-item line will be at 140 select Loblaw stores the first week of October in neighbourhoods in Ontario and Quebec, according to a Toronto Star article.

Loblaw is following in British grocer Tesco’s footsteps with this high-end line.

The line is targeted to those who seek high-end products in recessionary times, an “affordable indulgence.”

“We look at this is as a bit of affordable indulgence. They may not be able to afford a trip to Italy. But they can experience it,” said Allan Lindsay, Loblaw’s vice-president marketing, to the Star.

The line is priced from $1.99 to $24.99–much less than what they would cost in gourmet stores.

To fete the line, President’s Choice will host a dinner party at the avant garde art gallery, Neubacher Shor Contemporary in Parkdale on Sept. 22, for food media and influencers.

Some of Toronto’s best-known chefs including Marc Thuet and Bertrand Alépée will create a tasting menu based on the products that include smoky bacon marmalade, eight-year-old cheddar and cherry shiraz fruit jelly.

Loblaw’s share of the $11.4 billion market for private-label food is $8.2 billion.

The Black Label products will feature displays that describe how they were sourced, and how they could be used to create a special meal.

The packaging meanwhile, doesn’t use the words “Black Label” instead features a plain black background with photos and descriptive words.