PepsiCo's Frito-Lay Losing Ground as Shoppers Trade Down to Store-Brand Chips

IndustryEarnings

โดย TheStreet·

Summary · why it matters

PepsiCo's Frito-Lay is losing salty-snack volume to store brands as national-brand chip prices push consumers toward cheaper alternatives. Casey's General Stores CEO Darren Rebelez said on his company's earnings call that national brand chip units are down around 8% while Casey's own chips are up 16% in units, adding that national brand manufacturers "just price themselves out of the market" after taking years of price increases primarily in chips. PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta acknowledged on his company's second-quarter earnings call that while Frito-Lay is gaining U.S. salty-snack volume share, the volume fell short of expectations, blaming a weaker consumer driven mainly by gas prices. Frito-Lay dominates the salty-snack market with an estimated 62% share, according to an SEC filing from rival Utz Brands. The shift fits a broader trade-down: private label rose 210 basis points to 23.5% in dollar share and 5 basis points to 24.9% in unit share for the 52 weeks ended April 18, per NielsenIQ data cited in Daymon's Summer 2026 Private Brand Intelligence Report, while national brands grew dollar share by 110 basis points but lost 76 basis points of unit share. McKinsey's The State of Grocery North America 2026 found 47% of shoppers trading into private label, and noted private label is now growing roughly three times faster than national brands even as inflation has moderated.