I personally don't pay ANY attention to the brand. I think what's most important is the type of needle, what I'm sewing, and making sure the needle size matches the thread. For instance, if I'm sewing knits, I use a ball point needle. When I'm piecing quilts, I use a 12 or 14 topstitch needle. If I'm quilting, I bump it up to a 16 or 18 topstitch, because when you're quilting on a DSM (domestic sewing machine, as opposed to a longarm), you tend to do a lot of pushing and pulling, and it's easy to bend the needle ever so slightly which will result in skipped stitches. A size 16 or 18 needle is thicker and harder to bend. Another reason I like topstitch needles is because they have a larger eye and a groove that runs down the length of the needle. As the needle moves in and out of fabrics, there's a lot of friction on the thread. This groove protects the thread. The larger eye accommodates thicker threads such as a 40 wt thread. Both these features help prevent fraying thread.
Hope this helps.