The UAE has emerged as the Middle East region’s top brand-building country with 15 out of the top 50 regional brands in 2013 with a brand value worth $14.48 billion, according to a recent study published by Brand Finance, the world’s largest independent intangible assets and brand valuation consultancy.  

 

The value of the UAE brands constitutes 37 per cent of the total value of $39.33 billion of the top 50 Mena brands. With a brand value of $4.1 billion, Dubai carrier Emirates leads the list, followed by Etisalat (brand value of $3.4 billion). 

 

Besides topping the airlines and telecoms industries list in the region, the UAE also dominated the Mena real estate sector with Emaar Properties (brand value of $468 million) and the commercial services sector with DP World (brand value of $681 million).

 

A total of 29 brands out of the 50 are from the UAE and Saudi, constituting 70 per cent of the total brands’ value in The Middle East, a clear indication of the dominance of the two business power-houses of the Middle East; though Saudi comes second with a marginal difference, with a total of 14 brands compared to UAE’s 15 brands, but Saudi recorded the highest ever growth of 11per cent in total brand value.

 

Hany Mwafy, the managing director, Brand Finance Middle East said: “With offices in more than 22 countries, Brand Finance publishes  tables of the most valuable brands at both the global and regional level, providing crucial insights to brand managers and broader business community. Being the one and only brand valuation study to target the region, the BrandFinance Mena 50 serves as a benchmark of the Middle East’s top brands.”

 

The Brand Finance study was published in the region in collaboration with Virtue PR & Marketing Communications.

 

According to the study, Etisalat is the most valuable telecom brand in the Middle East, followed by STC. Etisalat’s Saudi brand Mobily had the highest growth at 55 per cent.

 

"The GCC is still in early stages of developing its own brands organically.  However, the pace is accelerating, with Emirates, Etihad, Etisalat, Jumeirah and Al Jazeera leading the way by becoming truly global brands," explained Mwafy. 

 

"The recent rebranding of Qtel to Ooreedoo demonstrates the growing self-confidence of GCC brands appealing globally to Arab audiences. Bold marketing actions and big marketing budgets are now driving the organic growth of GCC brands.  In the coming year we expect to see further growth in the number of acquired western brands, together with significant organic growth of home grown brands," he added.

 

This year the Middle East Top 50 witnessed a growth of 5 per cent compared to 2012 which is below the global level of 2013 brands’ value growth at 12%. However, the brand value to enterprise value of total Middle East brands is only 7% compared to the global level of 16 per cent.

 

Though most of the banks in the Middle East witnessed a drop in their brand value, they still hold dominant positions in the top 50 List: 26 brands out of the top 50 are from the banking sector. QNB leads the way in the 7th place, a remarkable achievement for a brand that was ranked 39th in 2009. 

Kuwait Finance House saw the highest growth ratio at 67 per cent and Arab Bank was the only brand carrying the Jordanian flag to be featured in the Top 50 Middle East list.

 

According to Mwafy, the businesses in the Middle East have successfully laid the foundations of strong tangible assets, whether in manufacturing, service or distribution. 

 

"They must build on their existing successes focusing on the intangibles; emulating local champions such as Emirates, to capture market share, deliver for the global consumer and deliver superior financial performance," he stated.

 

"The GCC has some of the wealthiest investors and sovereign wealth funds in the world.  GCC has been investing in highly branded US and EU businesses.  Shell, Barclays, AMEX, Citi, Harrods, Sainsbury’s, Paris St German and Manchester City are just some of the global brands at the receiving end of GCC investor interest," he added.-TradeArabia News Service