white label meaning: definition, etymology

white label

adjalso spelled white-label

Etymology US, 20th century. Originally used for musical vinyl records whose labels had been torn off or covered with a white label by competing DJs to conceal which records they were using.

Business, Marketing Being a generically manufactured product, rebranded with the marketer's or retailer's trade dress: synonym of private label.

Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Sciences Unbranded; being a brand name product which has had a white label applied to remove branding so that it can be resold for cheaper without undercutting the value of the brand.

Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music Being a vinyl record with a white label or white background (rather than artwork), typically used for test records or promotion.

2014, Chris Cunningham, quoted in Piers Martin, Aphex Twin: ‘His music is a perfect mix of mystery and adrenaline’ (in The Guardian) https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/sep/19/aphex-twin-richard-james-bjork-ian-rankin I started going to the record exchange in Camden two or three times a week to look for the Rephlex white labels or test pressings that would end up there. I actually got one of the original Caustic Window vinyl LPs from there.

white-label

verb

To sell (another manufacturer's product) in this manner.

white-label

adj

Describing a non-branded product manufactured by one company and sold by another, especially by a supermarket as a basic or economic alternative to a branded product.