Kroger Adds Hispanic-Inspired Store Brand

Mercado joins the retailer’s Our Brands assortment

10/2/2023

Kroger's new Mercado private label line includes fresh and packaged foods, as well as beverages like aqua fresca.

The Kroger Co. is welcoming a new member to its family of private label offerings. The grocer announced the launch of the Hispanic-inspired Mercado line, which will be part of the Our Brands portfolio.

The Mercado store brand encompasses more than 50 items across several store categories. Shoppers can find Mercado products at the fresh meat case, as well as in the beverage, snack, side and dessert segments.

[Read more: "Meijer Highlights Hispanic-Owned Businesses”]

The latest private label collection features ingredients that are frequently used in Hispanic recipes as well as solutions for busy lifestyles. Examples of initial offerings include queso fresco, an Oaxaca cheese ball, ready-to-cook flour tortillas, pre-cooked white corn meal, chorizo ground sausage, thin -sliced beef strip steak, aqua fresca and chicharrónes pork cracklin’ strips, among other items.

"Kroger Mercado embraces Hispanic culinary heritage with the quality and innovation our customers have come to know and expect from Our Brands," said Juan De Paoli, VP of Our Brands for Kroger. "We are thrilled to offer authentic products that are accessible and exceptional in quality, creating a brand that fills a void for some customers and creates a cultural experience for others.”

The Mercado lineup joins Kroger's other Our Brand lines, such as Private Selection, Simple Truth, Murray’s Cheese, Home Chef, Smart Way, Vitacost and more.

Last month, the grocer announced that it is divesting some store brands ahead of the intended merger with Albertsons Cos., including the Debi Lilly Design, Primo Taglio, Open Nature, ReadyMeals and Waterfront Bistro brands.

The private label sector remains a hotbed of activity and sales. A new report from consulting firm McKinsey & Co. showed that private brands’ share of growth in grocery rose by double-digits from 2021 to 2023, and 44% of consumers report that they are planning to buy more of those products.

Serving more than 11 million customers daily through a digital shopping experience and 2,800 retail food stores under a variety of banner names, Cincinnati-based Kroger is No. 4 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2023 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. Boise, Idaho-based Albertsons is No. 9 on The PG 100. PG also named both companies to its Retailers of the Century list.