Exploring Private Label Perception through Projective Techniques: Insights for Retail Brand Strategy and Business Performance

Purpose: This study uses projective techniques to explore how consumers perceive private labels and provides retailers with actionable findings for developing successful private label strategies. Design/Methodology: The research employed a qualitative design using two projective techniques, word association and a combined sentence completion and role-playing task, on a sample of 98 graduate students from the University of Zagreb. Findings: Projective techniques help uncover how consumers evaluate private labels by using a rational risk–reward analysis based on price and quality. Spontaneous associations confirm that price and affordability remain the primary mental triggers, but the decision to purchase is a value-driven substitution, frequently rationalized as receiving “equal quality at a lower price”. The study establishes a strong link between private labels and the retailer’s identity. Practical Implications: From a managerial perspective, the results indicate that retailers must move beyond simple low-price positioning and focus on communicating superior value and tangible savings. Managers should address quality polarization by actively improving product quality, cooperating with local suppliers, and using explicit quality-assurance claims to mitigate perceived risk. At the same time, they should recognize that confidence in private labels is fundamentally tied to the retailer’s image. Originality/Value: What is new in this study is the use of projective techniques in this context, which leads to several specific implications for retailers.