How brand portfolios have changed:a study of grocery suppliers brands from 1994 to 2004

This study examines the changes in brand structures based on a repeat audit of brand portfolios by leading grocery product suppliers. It compares results from content analyses of four hundred leading suppliers' brands sold to Tesco and Sainsbury's in 1994 and 2004. The brand structures used have changed although not uniformly in extent or direction. There is now more complexity in the way brand names are used. An extended typology of brand structures is incorporated. Propositions drawn from latest thinking on the use of brand portfolios are compared with the findings implications discussed.