IGA is 100 years old in 2026. That makes us a true heritage brand. Obviously, we are very proud of our heritage and the growth we are having as the brand modernizes and improves.
This milestone got me thinking about our brand, and the process of building a national brand. But before I get into that, let's play a game: match the tagline to the brand. For example, if I say “Think Different,” you would say, "Apple." How would you answer for these famous taglines?
Easy right? You know the answers:
Big brands spend hundreds of millions of dollars to link their brand to their advertising taglines. At their best, these phrases are the ultimate simplification of the brand’s core promise. The best are memorable, certainly, and often powerful. But they are so good because they are also honest.
Apple’s core philosophy for technology was to merge industrial design and tech into a single, easier-to-use offering. FedEx does in fact get things across our planet overnight. And BMW builds awesome cars because of their passion for engineering and performance.
Great brands are only great because they make a powerful promise to their shoppers. But distilling your brand promise down into just a few words to be used in a 30-second TV commercial is way more difficult than it looks. That’s why there are so many bad ones.
When asked, “What does your brand do better than anyone else?" executives often can’t answer the question simply. And if they do, they blaze away with buzzwords and generic promises. “We drive shareholder value through quality customer service, superior value, and a wide selection of brands shoppers love,” is a description of what you do, but it isn’t a brand promise.
A brand promise – and the advertising tagline that supports it – demands you simplify and focus on the one big thing you do really well. Which makes creating a single brand promise for a chain of independent grocers so tricky. Stores like ours have different offerings and different strengths. Some have scratch bakeries and history of artisan offerings; others are focused butchers with the highest quality meat department; others on ready-to-eat meals and convenience.
The thing they all have in common though, no matter what they sell or where they are located, is their “localness.” Independent grocery stores are tied into communities in ways no national chain can copy. We customize assortments, create experiences, and focus on the communities so that each store is unique to the audience it serves.
That’s why IGA’s tagline is “Local Equals Fresh.” It’s a simple phrase, easy to understand, and exactly what we do. You want the freshest meat, produce, sandwiches, smoked meat, seafood? We are more grounded in the local supply chain than anyone else.
What’s great is that shoppers love the value of “localness.” They already believe local retailers and restaurants are more likely to buy from regional farms and suppliers than national chains. And they love the idea that the food we sell spends less time on a truck or in a freezer than the stuff at Walmart or Costco.
It’s great because it is true – whatever we make, bake, cut, or assemble is likely made with fresher ingredients than anything a national chain could create. “Local Equals Fresh” is credible, it’s honest, and it matches our brand DNA.
Last week The New York Times Crossword asked readers to identify the brand associated with the tagline “Local Equals Fresh.” The answer was IGA of course!
It’s a small thing that tells a bigger story. When your brand promise matures and becomes a part of the consumer mindset, you know you are winning. When people can say your tagline and shoppers can match it to your brand over any other, you know you’ve created world class brand recognition.
For decades, shoppers identified IGA with “High Quality,” “Quality Service,” and "Trust” more than any other grocery brand. And now they are adding in “Local” and “Fresh,” too.
How cool is that? Traditional brand marketers tell you it will be a minimum of $30 million a year and five years to reach brand awareness in the U.S. today. For IGA to get there for way less is a real testament to the credibility of the promise.
At 100 years old, IGA has one of those unique and precious brands that get stronger with its heritage yet continues to be relevant to shoppers young and old. Very very few U.S. brands can say the same thing.
Be proud of the brand you own and the value that your shopper puts on what we do. And have fun celebrating 100 years with us!