The strongest brands in the world

Although Nestlé remains by far the most valuable Swiss brand with a brand value of 19 billion US dollars, it has lost 17% of its brand value. In the global ranking, Google displaces Apple from first place and is once again the world's most valuable brand for the first time since 2011. This is according to the "Brand Finance Global 500" ranking of the world's most valuable brands published today by Brand Finance, the world's leading independent brand valuation company. To calculate the brand value, Brand Finance uses a combination of corporate key figures and brand strength, which is measured in the Brand Strength Index (BSI).Changing consumer habits weaken the Nestlé brandFrom January to September 2016, Nestlé recorded its weakest sales growth in 10 years. The main reason for this is the change in consumer habits away from convenience and confectionery towards fresh and healthy food. The decline in sales and the expected future development also have a direct impact on the value of the Nestlé brand. Things are not looking rosy for the Nescafé and Purina product brands in the ranking either. The Nescafé brand is losing 13 percent of its value due to weakening sales in the beverages division, while Purina is only able to increase its brand value slightly by three percent. But Nestlé is taking countermeasures: The first boss from outside in over 100 years - the former CEO of Fresenius Ulf Mark Schneider - is to expand the health division at Nestlé.Chubb takes offThe brand of Zurich-based insurer Chubb is a Swiss success story. Following the takeover of the US company by ACE and the associated rebranding, the Chubb brand is represented in the ranking for the first time. It is ranked 284th among the 500 most valuable brands in the world and 10th among the most valuable Swiss brands.Further results for SwitzerlandHowever, Nestlé does not have to expect any serious competition from Swiss brands for the time being. In second place by a wide margin is the UBS brand with a brand value of 9.4 billion US dollars. In third and fourth place are Zurich Insurance with a brand value of 7.2 billion US dollars and Rolex with a brand value of just under 7 billion US dollars.Global ranking: Google dethrones AppleIn the global ranking, Google displaces Apple from first place and is once again the most valuable brand in the world for the first time since 2011. The search engine giant increased its brand value by24% to 109.5 billion US dollars. Apple, on the other hand, lost 27 percent in value and is now valued at 107.1 billion US dollars. Amazon and AT&T follow in third and fourth place. The highest climber in the top 10 is Facebook. The social network brand jumped from 17th to 9th place thanks to booming advertising revenue. Google is largely the undisputed number one in its core business - internet search. This is also where Google generates the highest advertising revenue, which rose by 20 percent in 2016 as more and more advertising budgets are being shifted from analog to digital channels. Apple, on the other hand, is struggling to maintain its technical lead. Although the new iPhone versions are still popular, they have not led to the usual long queues outside Apple stores.US tech brands continue to dominateThe top ten of the global ranking is dominated by US brands. Only Samsung in 6th place and the Chinese bank ICBC in 10th place are not from the USA. But China is catching up. In the banking sector, ICBC replaces Wells Fargo as the most valuable banking brand in the world with a brand value of 47.8 billion US dollars. Looking at the top 10 from an industry perspective, the dominance of technology and telecommunications brands is striking: Eight of the ten most valuable brands in the world come from these sectors. Only Walmart and ICBC are an exception here.China is catching up in the banking sectorThe Wells Fargo brand, with a brand value of 41.6 billion US dollars, has lost its status as the world's most valuable banking brand, ceding the title to China's ICBC. The Chinese financial world is benefiting from the growing middle class. From Switzerland, UBS (149th place) and Credit Suisse (260th place) are represented in the ranking.Lego again the strongest brand in the worldThe Lego brand leads in terms of brand strength. The brand's enormous strength is primarily due to the licensing business and collaborations such as Lego Harry Potter and Lego Star Wars, and Lego's films reach children and adults alike. Google, Nike, Ferrari and Visa complete the top 5 strongest brands in the world. The strongest brand in Switzerland is Rolex, followed by Swisscom and Nestlé.

Source: Brand Finance

Source: Brand Finance