Private label is playing a broader role in Central and Eastern European grocery retail. As retailers improve quality, packaging and range architecture, private-label products can compete on relevance and experience rather than price alone. 

The examples below show four routes of private label growth in CEE: building recognisable brands, raising expectations around taste and convenience, connecting with health-led occasions, and using local partnerships to create authenticity. The opportunity is not to make every range premium, but to build a clear role for each tier and category. 

Poland: Private label moves into brand-building 

Poland shows how private label is becoming more visible, distinctive and brand-led. Rather than treating own-label products simply as cheaper alternatives to national brands, retailers are investing in clearer identities, category-specific positioning and marketing campaigns.  

Żabka’s Good Mood brand demonstrates this shift clearly. Focused on snacks, smoothies, ice cream and sweet treats, it gives Żabka’s private-label offer a more playful and lifestyle-oriented identity. Its collaboration with chef Mateusz Gessler around foodservice and meal products further supports quality perception in ready-to-eat categories, showing how convenience retailers can use private label to make prepared food feel more trusted and appealing.

Eurocash’s relaunch of Kanka dairy adds another angle. By refreshing the brand and expanding it into indulgent and functional dairy products, Eurocash is using Kanka to support smaller, franchise and independent stores that compete against larger chains. This shows that private label brand-building is not limited to discounters; it can also help local store networks offer more recognisable and differentiated products.

Czechia and Hungary: private label raises expectations on taste and convenience 

Brand identity becomes more powerful when it is supported by a clear product promise. BILLA Czechia’s Milora range brings the cues of artisan pastry shops and ice cream parlours into the supermarket, with an emphasis on flavour, texture and treat occasions. This positions private label as something shoppers can actively desire, not simply accept as a cheaper substitute.  

For CEE retailers, indulgence can be a useful route to premiumisation because the value is easy to communicate through recipes, formats and packaging. The strategic test is whether the range creates a recognisable occasion and quality cue, rather than adding another undifferentiated tier.  

SPAR Hungary offers a different quality-led private label through fresh meat and meal solutions. For the 2026 grilling season, the retailer prepared more than 30 in-house-produced grill products, including marinated meats, burgers and sausages. Its Regnum production capability supports control over product development and consistency, while ready-to-cook formats reduce preparation time for shoppers.

In CEE, private label can build credibility by solving a specific occasion well, whether that is an affordable treat, a seasonal gathering or a quick meal at home. 

Romania: Private label expands into healthier snacking  

Lidl Romania’s relaunch of Alesto shows how private label can move into health- and lifestyle-led positioning. The nuts, seeds and dried-fruit range has been refreshed with a clearer identity centred on quality, wellbeing and responsible snacking. By linking the brand to everyday occasions, from work to exercise and at-home consumption, Lidl broadens its relevance beyond a functional product offer.

This also shows how discounters can connect wellness claims with products and occasions that shoppers already understand. Nuts, seeds and dried fruit can combine convenience, enjoyment and plant-based cues without making the proposition overly technical. However, retailers should keep health communication specific and credible, while maintaining accessible price points and clear pack navigation. 

Romania: Local partnerships offer an alternative route to differentiation 

Private label is not the only way for a retailer to create an exclusive and locally relevant offer. Carrefour Romania’s ‘De aici, de aproape’ programme connects small producers and artisans located close to stores with modern retail channels, giving regional products greater visibility while preserving the producers’ own identities.

The programme listed more than 1,400 local products at an earlier stage of its expansion. These products are not owned by Carrefour, so the model should be viewed as a retailer-curated alternative to private label. Its value lies in combining the retailer’s reach with the provenance and distinctiveness of local producers.  

This model sits between branded products and private label. It offers authenticity, provenance and stronger local relevance than standard national brands. In CEE markets, it can help retailers build loyalty and differentiation while supporting domestic producers without owning the brand. 

Looking forward: Private label moves into a more strategic role 

Together, these examples show that private label in CEE is moving into a more strategic phase. Price and affordability remain important, especially in value-conscious markets, but retailers are now using own brands to do much more: build stronger brand identities, improve taste and quality perception, expand into meal solutions, respond to health trends and create more distinctive local offers.  

Private label is likely to become less about imitation and more about ownership: owning the product experience, the shopper relationship and the reasons customers choose one retailer over another.