When do you require a brand-name product?

Exactly this!

I’m amazed at the number of people who insist on Q-Tips. Who knew?

What are they doing with them? It’s like saying I only use Acme rubber bands!
I use Target (Up & UP) double-sided cotton swabs on sticks all the time and am perfectly satisfied.

That’s interesting, because around here (Australia) almost the opposite is true.

While generic brand food can sometimes be good, it’s inconsistent and there’s no mistaking it for the brand names. I used to deal with a large supermarket chain, and I know that back then the generic stuff wasn’t made by the large brands; it was usually made by small manufacturers who were trying to scale up. Not sure what the deal is now.

And I’ve often found generic cleaning products to be at least as good as the brand names.