Dive Brief:

• Jet.com will soon launch its own private label line of groceries, according to numerous sources. The brand, Uniquely J, will initially release around 60 products, including consumables like coffee, laundry detergent, olive oil and paper towels. There is no word from Walmart or Jet.com officials on when the line will be released. A Walmart spokesman wasn’t immediately able to comment to Food Dive on Friday morning.
• According to The Wall Street Journal, the initial grocery release will be followed by private label pet, beauty and baby products. Jet.com will also begin selling upscale clothing from ModCloth and Bonobos, along with other specialty brands Walmart has recently acquired, sources told The Journal.
• These efforts are seen as a response to Amazon’s own private label development, including the many Whole Foods 365 selections now available on the e-tailer’s site. 

Dive Insight:

The boxing match between Amazon and Walmart continues. After Walmart upped its e-commerce game with free two-day shipping, store pickup and other perks, Amazon countered by buying a retail chain and the formidable brick-and-mortar footprint that came along with it.

Now Walmart has countered with the Uniquely J line through Jet.com, the hip site that represents the retailer’s best chance to nab the same young, affluent consumers who would gravitate towards Amazon and Whole Foods.

Jet, which Walmart bought last year for $3 billion, has rapidly grown its assortment under the mega retailer and the stewardship of co-founder Marc Lore, now head of Walmart’s e-commerce division. By expanding the availability of its exclusive brands, which in addition to groceries includes recently purchased fashion lines, Jet looks to offer unique items that shoppers can find only on its site.

Jet has other advantages, too, including a gamified shopping system that lets shoppers lower their final price by making a series of choices on shipping speed, return policy, and other factors. The site offers free shipping on orders $35 and above, and recently revived its JetCash rewards program. According to a recent report from Field Agent, shoppers prefer Jet.com for packaged groceries over Amazon, Target and even Walmart.com

Walmart is also ramping up its private label selection in stores and online. This week, the retailer announced new branding and additions to its Parent’s Choice baby products line, including the company’s first premium diaper.

All of these moves give Walmart and Jet great competitive positioning against Amazon. But Amazon’s private label assortment, which has grown rapidly in other retail categories, is shaping up to be quite formidable in the grocery space. The e-tailer has its own Wickedly Prime, Happy Belly and other grocery brands, with more in the pipeline, according to sources. With Whole Foods, Amazon has the valuable opportunity to cross-sell its brands in stores and to offer the grocer’s 365 line on its website — which has already sold $1.6 million worth of the line.