Battle of the Brands: Store Brand vs. Name Brand

What a fun morning on Kicks 101.5!

In an effort to take you “Back to the Basics,” I themed this segment Store Brand vs. Name Brand to show you instances where the store brand is cheaper- or even tastier than the national name brand product.

If you missed the segment, you can catch the podcasts on The Coupon Cutie page of Kicks 101.5.

The Items:

Paper Towels (Brawny $2.19 vs. Publix $1.34)

Potato Chips (Ruffles $3.50 vs. Publix $2.59)

Peanut Butter (Peter Pan $3.29 vs. Publix $3.29)

Cereal (Lucky Charms $3.65 vs. Publix Magic Stars $2.85)

Soda (Sprite $1.89 vs. Publix Lemon Lime $.89)

Plastic Cups (Solo $2.65 vs. Publix $2.79)

Plastic Bags (Ziploc $2.39 vs. Publix $1.47)

*Notes: The Solo Cups were on Buy One Get One Free sale and were cheaper than the Publix brand.  Also, the Peter Pan vs. Publix Peanut Butter might have the same costs associated but note the Peter Pan is almost 2oz. of product less than the Publix brand!

Cadillac Jack and Tug were put to the ultimate test trying to determine which product was the name brand and which was the store brand.

The results:

• Cadillac Jack was pretty spot on- the only item that tripped him up was the potato chips.  He actually thought the Publix brand tasted better than Ruffles.

 

• Tug and I both agreed that we prefer to buy Bounty Paper Towels over the knock off brands simply for ease of cleaning.

 

• None of us like store brand soda!

 

• Sari Rose is also a couponer and she noted that while the store brand is often cheaper, it’s usually NOT during a BOGO sale or clearance sale and she’s right.  See the Solo cups?  They were cheaper than the Publix brand!

A Few Store Brand Tips:

• Sign up for Kroger Home Mailers by creating a Kroger account- they offer store coupons valid on store brand items.
• Always calculate the cost per unit/ounce rather than JUST looking at price
• Look for Publix “Buy Theirs Get Ours Free” promotions to “try” store brand items you may find you like!