The new Walmart Great Value packaging is being critiqued out of context and deserves more credit.
White is bold
First, when its on the shelf, it will stand out if for no other reason than its predominantly white. So many other companies inundate store shelves with bold colors and fancy fonts. This makes a statement with the absense of flashiness and a font that you can read from half an aisle away.
Value is the product
Second, the actual product is understated, meaning they are relying on the product in the context of being among other products in its category. If you’re in the coffee section, you’ll simply see the white canister with “Great Value” on it and “know” thats the coffee.
Will Jim on the loading docks buy it?
Third, its designed for a lower common denominator shopper on a budget. They don’t care if art directors love it, they want Jim from the loading docks to buy it.
It’s their style
Sure, it’s generic, but so is Walmart. It fits their style, which I’m sure is no accident. I’m sure it fit the creative brief, the direction, and the approval process. People love to bash Walmart, let alone any design work other than theirs, so I expect a less than warm reception.
A miraculous singular message
Its borderline brilliant that despite who knows how many “managers” oversaw this process, they managed to stay on a singular message – “Great Value”. I am withholding judgement until its on the shelves and there are numbers to prove how it effected sales. However, I think its going to work.
5 Comments
Thanks for the link. I have a tendency to agree with you on the design, although I think it is a bit awkward, it seems to be coming to life in store.
Walmart Great Value even in the new white packaging still sucks. I want my brand products not this crap. Try it, it is crap
The ‘brands you want for less” what happenned to this? I don’t want great value
Great Value – hmmmm…I haven’t found it to be so. I have tried the following products:
>Great Value crackers and they taste OLD – like they were wet and dried out and boxed.
> Their cherries – something is REALLY wrong with those. They taste like gasoline.
> The Lasagna noodles oven ready – they actually were not too bad.
> They are selling Great Value Chicken breasts in competition with Perdue. I noticed that the pricing of the Great Value brand is as much as Perdue USED to be. $11 approx. Now Perdue is priced at $15. There is no marking of where the chicken from Great Value came from. (I don’t want to buy plain bag chicken!)
What I have found is that the pricing of Great Value products is only a LITTLE bit lower if there is a comparable brand name product next to it. If they are all out – then the Great Value product is the same or MORE!!!
What will happen is I will shop elsewhere – even at outlets for the major bulk of canned goods and non-perishable products.
I am not saving money by throwing products away!
I want the food to TASTE good not bland and old.
I agree with the comments about how poor the quality of Great Value products are. I am sick of Walmart and there Great Value crap. First they put other retailers out of business. Now they are trying to put great product brands out of business. By reducing the shelf space for national brands at Walmart, the largest retailer, these great national brands are at risk of losing business. In addition to the Great Value overkill on the shelves, the pricing of the national brands is higher than it is at local competitors. Walmart sucks and I will never buy grocery items from them again.