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SPECIAL REPORT

Amazon, Apple remain world’s most valuable brands

DUBAI, June 30, 2020

Amazon maintained its position as the world’s most valuable brand, growing 32% to $415.9 billion, while Apple maintained its position as the second most valuable global brand (+14%, $352.2 billion), according BrandZ, a global brand equity database.

Having first entered the BrandZ Global Top 100 Most Valuable Brands ranking in 2006, Amazon’s value grew by almost $100 billion this year and accounts for a third of the Top 100’s total growth.

Technology brands continued to dominate the top of the ranking, representing over a third (37%) of brand value in the Top 100 and growing overall by 10%.

Microsoft regained the no.3 position (+30%, $326.5 billion) ahead of Google (+5%, $323.6 billion) at no. 4, due to the growth of its cloud-enabled workplace ecosystem that incorporates Office 365 and Microsoft Teams, allowing people to maintain ‘business as usual’ during the lockdown.

The world’s most valuable brands have seen their total brand value increase by 5.9% despite the economic, social and personal impacts of Covid-19, according to the 2020 BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands ranking released today by WPP and Kantar. The total brand value of the Top 100 global brands reached $5 trillion, equivalent to the annual GDP of Japan. It has increased by 245% since 2006, when the total brand value first reached $1 trillion.

The Top 100 most valuable brands have shown they are more resilient and less volatile in the current crisis than they were during the global economic crisis of 2008-9, adding an additional $277 billion of brand value growth over the past year. The BrandZ strong brands portfolios continued to outperform the market, including the S&P 500 and MSCI World Index, and even in the current crisis dipped less than the global average.

The ranking uses valuations data incorporating stock price performance from April 2020 to reflect the impact of Covid-19.Against a backdrop of uncertainty, those companies that have consistently invested in longer-term marketing and in building strong brands have managed to stave off the worst of the crisis. Prior to the global pandemic, total brand value of the Top 100 brands was set to increase by 9%.

Asian brands represented a quarter of the Top 100 brands, including 17 Chinese brands. Alibaba (+16%, no. 6, $152.5 billion) was the most valuable Chinese brand with Internet services giant Tencent (+15%, no. 7, $151 billion) one place behind.

This year’s BrandZ Top 100 showed that innovation and creativity are key drivers of growth as people spend more time online. One of the most exciting new brands, short video-sharing social network TikTok (no. 79, $16.9 billion) was the highest new entry this year, offering light hearted, entertaining user-generated content.

The retail sector showed strong performance, growing the fastest (21%) in brand value driven by the major e-commerce players. Over half of brands in the media and entertainment category appeared in the top 20 risers, including Netflix (+34%, $45.9 billion), up eight places to no. 26, Instagram (+47%, $41.5 billion) up 15 places to no. 29, LinkedIn (+31%, no. 43, $29.9 billion), and Xbox (+18%, $19.6 billion), up 22 places to no. 65.

Retail e-commerce brands Amazon, Alibaba and JD (+24%, no. 52, $25.5 billion) demonstrated innovation and agility during difficult times, along with more traditional retailers like Walmart (+24%, no. 27, $45.8 billion), which has invested in its e-commerce capabilities.

Brands have also found new and creative ways to engage with consumers, build trust and create a level of intimacy, particularly in health and wellness. Athleisure brand Lululemon (+40%, $9.7 billion) was one of the fastest risers, having shifted its focus from yoga-inspired wear to work-appropriate clothing, as well as offering online classes for people at home.

Doreen Wang, Global Head of BrandZ at Kantar, said: “Innovation has proven to be a key driver for growth in this year’s Top 100, and a way to prevent decline. Creativity is also an important trait for the world’s most valuable brands. Companies like Amazon, Apple and Google – the tech giants that keep on innovating – successfully combine both to continue being relevant to consumers’ lives and making it easier for them to choose a brand.”

Amol Ghate, CEO Middle East, Insights Division- Kantar, said “It is an unusual year and time as we release the Global BrandZ 2020 ranking with so much uncertainty and flux caused by the Covid19 pandemic, however, the results reassure us and reaffirm our belief that strong brands withstand economic pressures better, and bounce back faster.

“We are seeing that the pandemic has accelerated certain existing trends, and brands that were aligned with these and drove them further are winning in the market by ensuring they stay meaningful to consumers. These brands have enabled people to navigate life better and helped them achieve convenience and comfort in these tough times. They have also done well in balancing the online-offline dynamics of modern life that became even more accentuated during the pandemic.” – TradeArabia News Service




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