Sprouts Farmers Market turned over a new leaf in its ongoing private label revamp with the debut of private brand Real Root in early October.
Real Root is replacing Sprouts Essentials, the specialty grocer’s former personal care private brand, with a new name, logo and packaging while keeping the same quality standards, Jac Ross, vice president of Sprouts Brand, said in an interview.
The new health and wellness brand consists of more than 130 body care, personal care and home fragrance items like shampoo and conditioner, Epsom salt with fragrance, bar soap, body wash and bath fizz. Real Root also offers specialty seasonal scents like apple bourbon, pumpkin spice and candy cane that will rotate throughout the year.
“[The term] ‘essentials’ has changed over time to mean something different, to mean basic, and we wanted to make sure that our customers understood these [products] are anything but basic. They are really developed so that you feel like you’re treating yourself,” Ross said about Real Root’s development.
Real Root’s packaging is deep green to reflect luxury, Ross said, adding that product labels make sure to highlight three attributes of each item, such as vegan, cruelty-free or paraben-free.
Over the past two years, Sprouts has been on a mission to consolidate its private label lines into three distinct categories — food, health and wellness, and vitamins, Ross said.
The grocer first tackled its food category. Earlier this year, it completed the process of bringing the formerly separate private label food lines and products under the Sprouts brand. During that time, the grocer also began to slowly introduce Real Root in-store and online, Ross said.
Sprouts’ second phase was its health and wellness department. To differentiate between categories, the grocer ushered in the new name, Real Root, which will serve as the only store brand in the health and wellness section.
Next year, Sprouts plans to debut its revamped private label line for its vitamin department, but it has not yet shared the name of the brand or when it will be available to shoppers.
Private label has been a lucrative sales category for Sprouts over the past few years, representing 20% of its annual revenue during fiscal year 2023. During its most recent call with investors, CFO Curtis Valentine said the Sprouts brand comprised 23% of its total sales during the grocer’s third quarter. CEO Jack Sinclair also noted on the call that Sprouts has released more than 300 new Sprouts brand items so far during fiscal 2024.
