by Triple Water Astrology

Created on: March 19, 2007   Last Updated: February 17, 2009

Wal-Mart's Equate brand offers a decent value to consumers. The Equate brand is particularly appealing when the active ingredient in, for example, an over-the-counter medication is exactly the same as in a name brand item. Some consumers prefer name brands, but others will simply choose what amounts to the same thing for a lower price.

A savvy shopper will probably buy some name brands and some store brands. A person might prefer a certain brand of shaving cream or lotion and stick with their favorite brand, which is being a wise consumer. Price is not the only consideration. Rubbing alcohol, for example, is just rubbing alcohol, so why not buy the Equate brand? Buying something with the difference literally just the packaging - which is only used to hold the product - is also being a wise consumer.

Equate is Wal-Mart's exclusive in-store brand. Many consumers have probably bought the Equate brand, since Wal-Mart is the dominant retail chain in the United States and it's also undeniably popular with many consumers. Wal-Mart usually also has a very good selection of brands and products to choose from, so why not buy the health and beauty products when you're there anyway instead of buying from a more expensive drug chain or supermarket? Wal-Mart probably has more control over the quality of its brands because of its clout as a retailer and because of its resources due to its size. The consumer can rest assured that Equate will carry the quality that is expected of any other consumer good or service, especially with personal products.

A critical product - such as a pregnancy testing kit - may entail some research online. Comparing brands for something critical would be best, not necessarily to compare prices, but to see what the product with the highest accuracy might be. Once again, you might be buying the same item in different packaging - but for that, wouldn't you rather be 100% sure?

Some people are more finicky than others. Occasionally someone will buy the highest priced item because they assume it's the highest quality good and they don't have time to compare brands. Also, some consumers don't stop to think about whether a good that costs $2.29 is better than a similar good that costs $1.79. Even for die-hard money savers, quality counts and testing out a lotion or other health item once to see if it's satisfactory may be in order. Read the labels! If products differ according to the label, more discernment is obviously called for. Ironically, you might run across a product where the cheaper store brand is preferable to the more expensive name brand!

Wal-Mart sets the standard for the retail industry, whether consumers or other retailers like it or not. However - Wal-Mart, no matter how big it becomes, still must defer to the consumer. The Equate brand is often a nice alternative to name brands and offers a good value for consumers.

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