IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ags/ualbsp/139931.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Estimating Price Rigidity in Vertically Differentiated Food Product Categories with Private Labels

Author

Listed:
  • Bocionek, Milena
  • Anders, Sven M.

Abstract

Due to the rapid development of private labels and their segmentation into quality levels, the question arises how they have an effect on price ridigity. There is also much discussion about the impact of private label development on wholesale prices. Based on the roughly availability of appropriate data, questions in regard to the wholesale price are fairly unanswered. This paper fills this research gap by applying two approaches to analyze retail pricing behavior on the basis of weekly scanner data including the wholesale price of a chain distributing in Canada. The results of two case studies indicate higher price rigidities for private labels, especially for premium private labels in the case of salad dressings. Price variability is rather explained by price promotions than changes in the wholesale price. Long-term contracts and stable wholesale prices might be the result of increasing power by retailers due to rising private labels market shares.

Suggested Citation

  • Bocionek, Milena & Anders, Sven M., 2012. "Estimating Price Rigidity in Vertically Differentiated Food Product Categories with Private Labels," Staff Paper Series 139931, University of Alberta, Department of Resource Economics and Environmental Sociology.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:ualbsp:139931
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.139931
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/139931/files/SP-12-03.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.22004/ag.econ.139931?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Daniel Hosken & David Reiffen, 2004. "Patterns of Retail Price Variation," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 35(1), pages 128-146, Spring.
    2. Fabio Rumler & Alfred Stiglbauer & Josef Baumgartner, 2011. "Patterns and Determinants of Price Changes: Analysing Individual Consumer Prices in Austria," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 12(3), pages 336-350, August.
    3. Owen, Ann & Trzepacz, David, 2002. "Menu costs, firm strategy, and price rigidity," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 76(3), pages 345-349, August.
    4. Cotterill, Ronald W & Putsis, William P, Jr & Dhar, Ravi, 2000. "Assessing the Competitive Interaction between Private Labels and National Brands," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 73(1), pages 109-137, January.
    5. Elizabeth Powers & Nicholas Powers, 2001. "The Size and Frequency of Price Changes: Evidence from Grocery Stores," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 18(4), pages 397-416, June.
    6. Dutta, Shantanu & Bergen, Mark & Levy, Daniel, 2002. "Price flexibility in channels of distribution: Evidence from scanner data," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 26(11), pages 1845-1900, September.
    7. Anil K Kashyap, 1995. "Sticky Prices: New Evidence from Retail Catalogs," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(1), pages 245-274.
    8. Herrmann, Roland & Moser, Anke, 2003. "Price Variability Or Rigidity In The Food-Retailing Sector? Theoretical Analysis And Evidence From German Scanner Data," 2003 Annual Meeting, August 16-22, 2003, Durban, South Africa 25867, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    9. Robert L. Steiner, 2004. "The Nature and Benefits of National Brand/Private Label Competition," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 24(2), pages 105-127, March.
    10. Robert C. Blattberg & Richard Briesch & Edward J. Fox, 1995. "How Promotions Work," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 14(3_supplem), pages 122-132.
    11. Sofia Berto Villas-Boas, 2007. "Vertical Relationships between Manufacturers and Retailers: Inference with Limited Data," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 74(2), pages 625-652.
    12. Levy, Daniel & Bergen, Mark & Dutta, Shantanu & Venable, Robert, 1997. "The Magnitude of Menu Costs: Direct Evidence from Large U.S. Supermarket Chains," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 112(3), pages 791-824.
    13. Levy, Daniel & Lee, Dongwon & Chen, Haipeng (Allan) & Kauffman, Robert J. & Bergen, Mark, 2011. "Price Points and Price Rigidity," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 93(4), pages 1417-1431.
    14. Sergio Meza & K. Sudhir, 2010. "Do private labels increase retailer bargaining power?," Quantitative Marketing and Economics (QME), Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 333-363, September.
    15. Andersen, Torben M., 1994. "Price Rigidity: Causes and Macroeconomic Implications," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198287605.
    16. Fiona Scott Morton & Florian Zettelmeyer, 2000. "The Strategic Positioning of Store Brands in Retailer - Manufacturer Bargaining," NBER Working Papers 7712, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Hellberg-Bahr, Anneke & Pfeuffer, Martin & Spiller, Achim & Brümmer, Bernhard, 2011. "Using Price Rigidities to Explain Pricing Strategies in the Organic Milk Chain," 2011 International European Forum, February 14-18, 2011, Innsbruck-Igls, Austria 122003, International European Forum on System Dynamics and Innovation in Food Networks.
    18. Lal, Rajiv & Matutes, Carmen, 1994. "Retail Pricing and Advertising Strategies," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 67(3), pages 345-370, July.
    19. Levy, Daniel & Dutta, Shantanu & Bergen, Mark & Venable, Robert, 1998. "Price Adjustment at Multiproduct Retailers," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 19(2), pages 81-120.
    20. Christophe Bontemps & Valérie Orozco & Vincent Réquillart, 2008. "Private Labels, National Brands and Food Prices," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 33(1), pages 1-22, August.
    21. Ross D. Hickey & David S. Jacks, 2011. "Nominal rigidities and retail price dispersion in Canada over the twentieth century," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 44(3), pages 749-780, August.
    22. Herrmann Roland & Moeser Anke & Weber Sascha Alexander, 2005. "Price Rigidity in the German Grocery-Retailing Sector: Scanner-Data Evidence on Magnitude and Causes," Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization, De Gruyter, vol. 3(1), pages 1-37, February.
    23. B. Verhelst & D. Van Den Poel, 2010. "Price rigidity in Europe and the US: A comparative analysis using scanner data," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 10/684, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
    24. Weber, Sascha A., 2009. "Ausmaß und Determinanten von Preisrigiditäten im deutschen Lebensmitteleinzelhandel - Eine emprische Analyse mit Scannerdaten," Theses 94613, University of Giessen, Institute of Agricultural Policy and Market Research.
    25. Ellickson, Paul B., 2006. "Quality competition in retailing: A structural analysis," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 521-540, May.
    26. Judith A. Chevalier & Anil K. Kashyap & Peter E. Rossi, 2003. "Why Don't Prices Rise During Periods of Peak Demand? Evidence from Scanner Data," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 93(1), pages 15-37, March.
    27. Richards, Timothy J. & Hamilton, Stephen F. & Patterson, Paul M., 2010. "Spatial Competition and Private Labels," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 35(2), pages 1-26, August.
    28. Sam Peltzman, 2000. "Prices Rise Faster than They Fall," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 108(3), pages 466-502, June.
    29. David Besanko & Jean-Pierre Dubé & Sachin Gupta, 2005. "Own-Brand and Cross-Brand Retail Pass-Through," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 24(1), pages 123-137, July.
    30. Richard J. Volpe & Chenguang Li, 2012. "On the Frequency, Depth, and Duration of Sales at High–Low Pricing Supermarkets," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(2), pages /, March.
    31. Nakamura, Alice O. & Nakamura, Emi & Nakamura, Leonard I., 2011. "Price dynamics, retail chains and inflation measurement," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 161(1), pages 47-55, March.
    32. Herrmann, Roland & Möser, Anke & Weber, Sascha A., 2009. "Grocery retailing in Germany: Situation, development and pricing strategies," Discussion Papers 41, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Center for international Development and Environmental Research (ZEU).
    33. Sanjay K. Dhar & Stephen J. Hoch, 1997. "Why Store Brand Penetration Varies by Retailer," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(3), pages 208-227.
    34. Fiona M. Scott Morton & Florian Zettelmeyer, 2000. "The Strategic Positioning of Store Brands in Retailer - Manufacturer Bargaining," Yale School of Management Working Papers ysm145, Yale School of Management.
    35. Halvorsen, Robert & Palmquist, Raymond, 1980. "The Interpretation of Dummy Variables in Semilogarithmic Equations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 70(3), pages 474-475, June.
    36. Narasimhan, Chakravarthi & Wilcox, Ronald T, 1998. "Private Labels and the Channel Relationship: A Cross-Category Analysis," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 71(4), pages 573-600, October.
    37. Martin Eichenbaum & Nir Jaimovich & Sergio Rebelo, 2011. "Reference Prices, Costs, and Nominal Rigidities," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(1), pages 234-262, February.
    38. Richard J. Volpe & Chenguang Li, 2012. "Erratum: On the Frequency, Depth, and Duration of Sales at High–Low Pricing Supermarkets," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(3), pages 375-375, June.
    39. Pradeep K. Chintagunta & André Bonfrer & Inseong Song, 2002. "Investigating the Effects of Store-Brand Introduction on Retailer Demand and Pricing Behavior," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(10), pages 1242-1267, October.
    40. Bergès-Sennou Fabian & Bontems Philippe & Réquillart Vincent, 2004. "Economics of Private Labels: A Survey of Literature," Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization, De Gruyter, vol. 2(1), pages 1-25, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ray, Sourav & Snir, Avichai & Levy, Daniel, 2023. "Retail Pricing Format and Rigidity of Regular Prices," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, pages 1-1.
    2. Bittmann, Thomas & Loy, Jens-Peter & Anders, Sven, 2017. "Cost Pass-Through And Product Differentiation," 2017 International Congress, August 28-September 1, 2017, Parma, Italy 261145, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    3. Snir, Avichai & Levy, Daniel, 2021. "If You Think 9-Ending Prices Are Low, Think Again," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 6(1 (Forthc).
    4. Sascha A. Weber & Sven M. Anders, 2007. "Price rigidity and market power in German retailing," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(7), pages 737-749.
    5. Herrmann Roland & Moeser Anke & Weber Sascha Alexander, 2005. "Price Rigidity in the German Grocery-Retailing Sector: Scanner-Data Evidence on Magnitude and Causes," Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization, De Gruyter, vol. 3(1), pages 1-37, February.
    6. Edward S. Knotek, 2010. "The roles of price points and menu costs in price rigidity," Research Working Paper RWP 10-18, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
    7. Ying, Xiongwei & Anders, Sven M., 2013. "Competition between Private Label and National Brand for Health-differentiated Food Product: A Canadian Retailing Case," 2013 Annual Meeting, August 4-6, 2013, Washington, D.C. 151280, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    8. Levy, Daniel & Müller, Georg & Chen, Haipeng (Allan) & Bergen, Mark & Dutta, Shantanu, 2010. "Holiday Price Rigidity and Cost of Price Adjustment," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 77(305), pages 172-198.
    9. Levy, Daniel & Snir, Avichai & Gotler, Alex & Chen, Haipeng (Allan), 2020. "Not all price endings are created equal: Price points and asymmetric price rigidity," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, issue forthcomi.
    10. Hoffmann, A. & Loy, J.-P., 2010. "Sonderangebote und Preissynchronisation im deutschen Lebensmitteleinzelhandel," Proceedings “Schriften der Gesellschaft für Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften des Landbaues e.V.”, German Association of Agricultural Economists (GEWISOLA), vol. 45, March.
    11. Hökelekli, Gizem & Lamey, Lien & Verboven, Frank, 2017. "The battle of traditional retailers versus discounters: The role of PL tiers," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 11-22.
    12. Snir, Avichai & (Allan) Chen, Haipeng & Levy, Daniel, 2022. "Zero-ending prices, cognitive convenience, and price rigidity," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 519-542.
    13. Chen, Haipeng (Allan) & Levy, Daniel & Ray, Sourav & Bergen, Mark, 2008. "Asymmetric Price Adjustment in the Small," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 55(4), pages 728-737.
    14. Virgiliu Midrigan, 2011. "Menu Costs, Multiproduct Firms, and Aggregate Fluctuations," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 79(4), pages 1139-1180, July.
    15. Ray, Sourav & Chen, Haipeng (Allan) & Bergen, Mark & Levy, Daniel, 2006. "Asymmetric Wholesale Pricing: Theory and Evidence," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 25(2), pages 109-201.
    16. Gabrielsen, Tommy Staahl & Sorgard, Lars, 2007. "Private labels, price rivalry, and public policy," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 403-424, February.
    17. Raj Sethuraman, 2009. "Assessing the External Validity of Analytical Results from National Brand and Store Brand Competition Models," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 28(4), pages 759-781, 07-08.
    18. Giulietti, Monica & Otero, Jesús & Waterson, Michael, 2020. "Rigidities and adjustments of daily prices to costs: Evidence from supermarket data," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    19. Li, Chenguang & Sexton, Richard J., 2009. "Impacts of Retailers’ Pricing Strategies for Produce Commodities on Farmer Welfare," 2009 Conference, August 16-22, 2009, Beijing, China 51720, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    20. Berck, Peter & Brown, Jennifer & Perloff, Jeffrey M. & Villas-Boas, Sofia Berto, 2008. "Sales: Tests of theories on causality and timing," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 26(6), pages 1257-1273, November.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Demand and Price Analysis;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ags:ualbsp:139931. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: AgEcon Search (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/drualca.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.