China's private label market is poised for tenfold growth.

About the Show

The 19th Private Label Fair Asia (PLF 2026) will be held at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC) from December 3 to 5, 2026. As a leading professional B2B trade event in the Asia-Pacific region dedicated to the retail private label industry, this edition is expected to occupy 60,000 square meters of exhibition space, bringing together over 1,300 exhibitors and attracting more than 20,000 professional buyers.


Organizer: Internatonal Sourcing (Shanghai) Advertising Co., Ltd.

Established in 2017 and headquartered in Shanghai, we are a professional exhibition agency focusing on the retail sector. Our flagship exhibitions include the "Private Label Fair Asia" and "Fresh Food In Modern Retail Trade Show." Each year, we gather over 1,100 manufacturing enterprises and attract more than 20,000 professional visitors, effectively fostering collaboration between retailers and suppliers and driving industrial upgrading.

The company is committed to building an efficient platform connecting retailers with manufacturers. Through close collaboration with local governments, we organize industry matchmaking events, forums, and other activities in nearly 20 cities across China, promoting precise matching of supply chain resources and earning widespread recognition in the industry. We also actively engage in global exchanges, having invited over 50 international retail experts to share insights in China and established partnerships with trade promotion agencies and commercial offices of multiple countries in China, facilitating market entry for more than 300 international enterprises.

Looking ahead, we will continue to deepen our commitment to the retail sector, leveraging our professional and international perspective to drive the innovative development of China's retail ecosystem.


WHAT ARE PRIVATE LABEL PRODUCTS?

Private label products encompass all merchandise sold under a retailer's brand. That brand can be the retailer's own name or a name created exclusively by that retailer. In some cases, a retailer may belong to a wholesale group that owns the brands that are available to only the members of the group.


WHAT PRODUCTS ARE SOLD AS PRIVATE LABEL?

Major supermarkets, hypermarkets, convenient stores and discounters offer products under the retailer's brand. Private label covers lines of fresh, canned, frozen, and dry foods; snacks, ethnic specialties, pet foods, health and beauty, over-the-counter drugs, cosmetics, household and laundry products, DIY, lawn and garden, paints, hardware, auto care.


WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF PRIVATE LABEL?

For the consumer, private label represents the choice and opportunity to regularly purchase quality food and non-food products at savings compared to manufacturer brands, without waiting for promotional pricing.
Private label items consist of the same or better ingredients than the manufacturer brands, and because the retailer's name or symbol is on the package, the consumer is assured that the product meets the retailer's quality standards and specifications.


WHO MAKES PRIVATE LABEL?

Manufacturers of private label products fall into three classifications:
• Large manufacturers who produce both their own brands and private label products.
• Small and medium size manufacturers that specialise in product lines and concentrate on producing private label almost exclusively.
• Major retailers and wholesalers that operate their own manufacturing plants and provide private label products for their stores.


The current development status of private brands in major Asian and European countries

With the continuous segmentation and fragmentation of China's retail market, the traditional commodity circulation model has been unable to meet market demands. It is increasingly difficult for the market to be covered by a single model, and the cost for brands to establish market channels through traditional models is also rising. In this market environment full of uncertainties, private label models represented by cooperation models such as private label, original design manufacturing (ODM), and original equipment manufacturing (OEM) are increasingly valued by many manufacturing enterprises. This transformation, which reshuffles the existing market share due to private label business models, is widely recognized as a blue ocean market with certain growth in the future. PLF has been cultivating the Chinese retail market for more than a decade and has always been at the forefront of the private label field, providing numerous buyers with private label cooperative factories. The earlier you join the private label market, the earlier you can enjoy the dividends of the private label blue ocean market!

The development history of China's private brands

  • Initial development of private brands: 1978-2003

    1. At the beginning of reform and opening up, the department store and drugstore industries developed their own brands earlier than the supermarket industry.

  • The first climax of private brand development: 2004-2008

    1. During this period, China's retail industry underwent a comprehensive opening to foreign investment, frequent food safety incidents, and the global financial crisis.

  • The second climax of private brand development: 2009-2015

    1. This is a transitional period driven by changes in the competitive environment. In the previous stage, the competitive pressure from foreign capital had a greater psychological impact than a practical one.

  • The third climax of private brand development: 2016-2021

    1. With the rise of new retail, mobile internet, regional retailers, and the internet celebrity economy, as well as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, China has ushered in the third climax of its private label development.

  • The fourth climax of private brand development: 2022-present

    1. China's private brands will evolve towards 3.0. The core of private brand 1.0 is price competitiveness, the core of private brand 2.0 is product competitiveness, and the core of private brand 3.0 is brand competitiveness.