Apple most valuable brand for the first time

Apple, which has been included in the Interbrand Best Global Brands ranking from the outset, had a brand value of 6.6 billion US dollars at the beginning in 2000. Today, Apple is worth almost 15 times as much with a brand value of 98.3 billion US dollars. The meteoric rise of the technology brand is thanks to its seamless omnichannel experiences for consumers. Apple's strong focus on the customer, the ability to always anticipate what exactly they want next and the constant breaking of new ground, both in terms of design and technical performance, is what makes Apple so successful. With 72 million Macs sold and record iPhone and iPad sales, Apple has made history and is deservedly Interbrand's most valuable brand of 2013.

"Every now and then, a company manages to change our lives - not only with its products, but also with its attitude and demeanor. That's exactly why Apple has managed to follow Coca-Cola to the top of the Best Global Brands after 13 unchallenged years," says Jez Frampton, Interbrand's Global Chief Executive Officer. "Tim Cook has built a stable leadership team and is keeping Steve Jobs' vision alive - it is this vision that enables Apple to deliver on its promise of innovation time and time again."

The total brand value of all Best Global Brands 2013 amounts to 1.5 trillion US dollars. This is a record increase in the total brand value of all 100 listed brands of 8.4 percent compared to 2012. The German brands are particularly strong - without exception, all of them recorded significant increases in value. BMW, Volkswagen, Siemens and Porsche even recorded double-digit gains. Volkswagen and Porsche are the winners among the German brands, with brand value increases of 20 and 26 percent respectively.

However, this year's Best Global Brands Report not only identifies the 100 most valuable brands in the world, but also examines the increasingly important role of leadership, i.e. the leading role played by and for brands.

"In today's globalized and media-obsessed markets, brand managers have to realize again and again how important it is to think collaboratively from a brand perspective," emphasizes Frampton. "The top 100 most valuable brands in the world unlock their full potential and value by engaging, listening, learning and sharing - not just within their organizations, but with consumers themselves. Brands that have understood how to look at the role they play in consumers' lives in a new and different way - and live that role accordingly - have a unique opportunity to change the world in ways that were previously unimaginable."

The newcomers of the year 2013

This year, three brands have made it into the top 100. Discovery, in 70th place, debuts in the Best Global Brands ranking after a record year. Programs under the Discovery brand are now available in 217 countries and 45 languages, to more than 1.3 billion subscribers outside the US alone. In the six years since David Zaslav became CEO, the company has experienced tremendous growth. With programs such as the annual Shark Week, Discovery has been able to tap into huge new audiences around the world. Such campaigns have made the brand the market leader in its segment.

Duracell re-entered the Interbrand ranking at 85th place. The Procter & Gamble brand was represented in the ranking until 2009 and left the list in 2010. Today, Duracell dominates around 25 percent of the global battery market and is one of P&G's leading brands. Thanks to important marketing partners such as the American National Football League (NFL), trust in the brand has never been higher.

Chevrolet enters this year in 89th place. Under the leadership of CMO Tim Mahoney, Chevrolet was able to unite its technical developments, design and retail operations under one communicative platform: "Find New Roads." This will primarily boost sales in new markets such as China, India and Thailand.

The winners of 2013: Facebook, Google, Prada, Apple, Amazon

Facebook, the leading and only social media brand in the ranking, is the big winner in 2013. With a 43 percent increase in brand value, Facebook is ranked 52nd in the Best Global Brands Ranking in its second year. Since its IPO in 2012, Facebook has managed to increase its user numbers by 26 percent - with the biggest growth coming from the Asia-Pacific region.

In addition to the growing number of users, Facebook's brand value has skyrocketed thanks to exceeded expectations on the stock market, a 50 percent increase in mobile usage and mobile ads, which alone are responsible for more than half of the social media giant's revenue. With former Google manager Gary Briggs as the first CMO in Facebook's history and acquisitions such as Instagram, further growth is more than likely.

Google recorded the second-highest growth. With an increase of 34%, the technology company is in second place thanks to evolutionary changes in its core business (Search, Android and Gmail) and innovations such as "Google Glass" and the "self-driving car". "With such projects and its overall strong focus on innovation, Google will certainly continue to influence the lives and behavior of consumers worldwide," says Cassidy Morgan, CEO of Interbrand Central and Eastern Europe. "In this way, Google maintains its innovative appeal, which is incredibly important for the brand, and this is likely to increase its value even further in the coming years."

The third-largest climber this year is the Italian luxury brand Prada. With a 30 percent increase in brand value, the luxury fashion brand moves up to 72nd place, demonstrating that it has managed to preserve its Italian heritage in a harmonious and profitable way while creating innovative and groundbreaking designs. The effective interweaving of digital and physical touchpoints and the Prada Art Foundation create a close connection between brand and consumer.

Apple, the new number one in the rankings, rose by 28% despite a slightly tarnished reputation due to patent disputes with Samsung and scandals about working conditions at suppliers, proving its resilience and absolute market leadership. However, in order to maintain its position in the coming years, Apple must succeed in slowing down its rival Samsung in the mobile phone market. And above all, Apple must not lose sight of what it does best: "Think different."

The e-commerce giant Amazon has grown by 27 percent this year, putting it in 19th place. With offerings such as the Amazon Appstore for Google Android devices and the expansion into new business areas such as digital TV receivers, original programming (production of moving image content in TV quality), 3D smartphones, the Kindle e-book reader and a grocery delivery service, Amazon could play an even more important role in retail and for consumers in the future.

Technology sector is the most valuable sector overall in 2013

With a total brand value of 443.15 billion US dollars, the technology industry is the most successful sector this year. Seven technology brands dominate the top 10 and four brands - Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon - are among the top five rising brands. Samsung has even managed to overtake Apple in smartphone sales thanks to its strong focus on product innovation and massive marketing expenditure. The South Korean technology brand has therefore moved up to 8th place with a 20% increase in value. Technology brands thus continue to dominate the Best Global Brands - reflecting the fundamental and extraordinary role they play in consumers' lives.

Cassidy Morgan is certain: "The growth of many brands in the technology sector is so enormous compared to other sectors because technical products have simply become more important to consumers in their daily lives than everyday products. Of course, these are not irrelevant, but the meaning and importance has shifted for people."

However, despite the great success of the industry, some brands from the technology and consumer electronics sector have not managed to increase their brand value or even be represented in the ranking. Formerly leading brands such as Yahoo! and Blackberry in particular have not managed to maintain their position in this year's ranking. Nokia also suffered the biggest brand value loss in the history of the Best Global Brands with a drop of 65 percent, falling 38 places to 57th place. Dell in 61st place and Nintendo in 67th place also suffered brand value losses of minus 10 and minus 14 percent respectively.

"In the rapidly changing world of mobile, digital and social media, these brands have failed to position themselves in a way that is meaningful to consumers across all platforms and touchpoints," says Cassidy Morgan.

Nine automotive brands achieve double-digit gains

Automotive brands are once again particularly strong in this year's ranking. 14 of the 100 most valuable brands in the world come from the automotive sector. Germany once again accounts for five brands this year: Mercedes-Benz and BMW retain their 11th and 12th places, with Mercedes-Benz remaining Germany's most valuable brand at 31.90 billion US dollars. However, with a 10 percent increase in brand value to 31.84 billion US dollars, BMW continues to close the gap on Mercedes-Benz. With a 20 percent increase, Volkswagen moves up five places to 34th place, Audi climbs eight percent to 51st place and Porsche rises eight places to 64th place, making it this year's winner among all automotive brands with a 26 percent increase in brand value.

The automotive industry is on a stable course worldwide. Sales figures in the USA even rose by more than 13 percent in 2012, the fastest growth rate in the last 20 years. Toyota is also the most successful automotive brand in the ranking for the second year running. With a 17 percent increase in brand value, the Japanese car manufacturer, which also leads Interbrand's Best Global Green Brands Ranking, remains in 10th place. Even the largest recall campaign in the company's history did not harm Toyota in the long term. The leading producer of fuel-efficient vehicles has recovered quickly from all setbacks and is reclaiming its market leadership as the car manufacturer with the highest sales figures worldwide.

However, the other automotive brands also recorded strong growth. After Porsche, Nissan can look forward to the second-highest increase in value. With an increase of 25 percent, the Japanese car manufacturer climbed eight places to 65th place. Honda improved by seven percent to 20th place. Ford and Hyundai took 42nd and 43rd place, with increases of 15 and 20 percent respectively. A 15 percent increase in brand value puts Kia in 83rd place and Harley-Davidson and Ferrari are in 96th and 98th place, with an increase in brand value of ten and six percent respectively. The US car manufacturer Chevrolet enters the ranking this year in 89th place.

Luxury brands remain strong

Despite the fact that China's rapid growth is slowing down, luxury brands are also proving to be very consistent in this year's Best Global Brands Ranking. A total of seven luxury brands are represented in the top 100 of 2013 and each of them was able to improve their brand value by five percent or more. Louis Vuitton and Gucci improved by six and seven percent respectively, landing in 17th and 38th place, while Hermès increased by as much as 23 percent, taking 54th place. Value increases of 26 and 30 percent put Cartier in 60th place and Prada in 72nd place. Tiffany & Co. ranks 75th with a value increase of five percent and Burberry moves up to 77th place with a value increase of 20 percent. Decisive factors for this success of luxury brands are probably renewed consumer confidence, an increased number of store openings - particularly in the USA and China - and a strong focus on closely linking physical and digital brand experiences.

Growing confidence in the financial sector

Eight of the eleven financial brands in this year's ranking have increased in value. American Express leads the group of financial brands in 23rd place with an increase of 12 percent. The other rising stars are HSBC with an increase of seven percent, Goldman Sachs with an increase of 12 percent, Citi and AXA with an increase in brand value of five percent each. With an increase in value of eight percent, Allianz remains the most valuable German financial brand. The credit card providers Visa and Mastercard gained eleven and eight percent respectively. It is clear that the financial service providers' primary goal of regaining trust is beginning to bear fruit.

However, brands such as Morgan Stanley, which has suffered a 21% loss in brand value, continue to struggle. To continue to strengthen customer relationships, financial firm managers must focus on clearly identifying their competitive advantages while ensuring transparency and consistency across the board with consumers.

Nescafé remains Switzerland's most valuable brand

Nescafé remains the most valuable Swiss brand in 2013 in 37th place with a value of 10.65 billion US dollars. Nestlé was the second Swiss brand to maintain its position in the ranking with an increase in value of nine percent. The food manufacturer ranks 56th with a brand value of 7.53 billion US dollars. Credit Suisse, which was still in 95th place last year, was unfortunately unable to maintain its position in the ranking in 2013.

Country ranking

An analysis of the Best Global Brands Rankings over the past few years shows that the USA is still the undisputed world brand champion. More than half of the brands come from the United States again this year. This means that the USA once again dominates the rankings. Nine of the 100 brands in the ranking come from Germany. This makes Germany the second strongest group in the ranking and places it directly behind the USA in the country ranking. The total brand value of all nine German brands amounts to 128.53 billion US dollars, an increase of 12.7 percent.

France and Japan are represented in the ranking with seven brands each. The UK has four brands and Italy, the Netherlands and South Korea are represented by three brands each. Canada, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland each have two brands in the list. Finland and Mexico each contribute one brand to the top 100.

Best global Brands Website

Interbrand's full Best Global Brands Report 2013, with detailed analysis, videos and interviews is available at Bestglobalbrands.com and under Interbrand.com.

Rank / Logo / Brand / Country / Value (in billions of dollars) / Change in value in percent

1		Apple	United States	98,316	28%
2		Google	United States	93,291	34%
3		Coca-Cola	United States	79,213	2%
4		IBM	United States	78,808	4%
5		Microsoft	United States	59,546	3%
6		GE	United States	46,947	7%
7		McDonald's	United States	41,992	5%
8		Samsung	South Korea	39,610	20%
9		Intel	United States	37,257	-5%
10		Toyota	Japan	35,346	17%
11		Mercedes-Benz	Germany	31,904	6%
12		BMW	Germany	31,839	10%
13		Cisco	United States	29,053	7%
14		Disney	United States	28,147	3%
15		HP	United States	25,843	-1%
16		Gillette	United States	25,105	1%
17		Louis Vuitton	France	24,893	6%
18		Oracle	United States	24,088	9%
19		Amazon	United States	23,620	27%
20		Honda	Japan	18,490	7%
21		H&M	Sweden	18,168	10%
22		Pepsi	United States	17,892	8%
23		American Express	United States	17,646	12%
24		Nike	United States	17,085	13%
25		SAP	Germany	16,676	7%
26		IKEA	Sweden	13,818	8%
27		UPS	United States	13,763	5%
28		eBay	United States	13,162	20%
29		Pampers	United States	13,035	15%
30		Kellogg's	United States	12,987	8%
31		Budweiser	United States	12,614	6%
32		HSBC	United Kingdom	12,183	7%
33		J.P. Morgan	United States	11,456	0%
34		Volkswagen	Germany	11,120	20%
35		Canon	Japan	10,989	-9%
36		Zara	Spain	10,821	14%
37		Nescafé	Switzerland	10,651	-4%
38		Gucci	Italy	10,151	7%
39		L'Oréal	France	9,874	12%
40		Philips	Netherlands	9,813	8%
41		Accenture	United States	9,471	8%
42		Ford	United States	9,181	15%
43		Hyundai	South Korea	9,004	20%
44		Goldman Sachs	United States	8,536	12%
45		Siemens	Germany	8,503	13%
46		Sony	Japan	8,408	-8%
47		Thomson Reuters	Canada	8,103	-4%
48		Citi	United States	7,973	5%
49		Danone	France	7,968	6%
50		Colgate	United States	7,833	2%
51		Audi	Germany	7,767	8%
52		Facebook	United States	7,732	43%
53		Heinz	United States	7,648	-1%
54		Hermès	France	7,616	23%
55		adidas	Germany	7,535	12%
56		Nestlé	Switzerland	7,527	9%
57		Nokia	Finland	7,444	-65%
58		Caterpillar	United States	7,125	13%
59		AXA	France	7,096	5%
60		Cartier	France	6,897	26%
61		Dell	United States	6,845	-10%
62		Xerox	United States	6,779	1%
63		Alliance	Germany	6,710	8%
64		Porsche	Germany	6,471	26%
65		Nissan	Japan	6,203	25%
66		KFC	United States	6,192	3%
67		Nintendo	Japan	6,086	-14%
68		Panasonic	Japan	5,821	1%
69		Sprite	United States	5,811	2%
70		Discovery	United States	5,756	0%
71		Morgan Stanley	United States	5,724	-21%
72		Prada	Italy	5,570	30%
73		Shell	Netherlands	5,535	16%
74		Visa	United States	5,465	11%
75		Tiffany & Co.	United States	5,440	5%
76		3M	United States	5,413	16%
77		Burberry	United Kingdom	5,189	20%
78		MTV	United States	4,980	-12%
79		Adobe	United States	4,899	8%
80		John Deere	United States	4,865	15%
81		Johnson & Johnson	United States	4,777	9%
82		Johnnie Walker	United Kingdom	4,745	10%
83		Kia	South Korea	4,708	15%
84		Santander	Spain	4,660	-2%
85		Duracell	United States	4,645	0%
86		Jack Daniel's	United States	4,642	7%
87		Avon	United States	4,610	-11%
88		Ralph Lauren	United States	4,584	14%
89		Chevrolet	United States	4,578	0%
90		Kleenex	United States	4,428	2%
91		Starbucks	United States	4,399	8%
92		Heineken	Netherlands	4,331	10%
93		Corona	Mexico	4,276	5%
94		Pizza Hut	United States	4,269	2%
95		Smirnoff	United Kingdom	4,262	5%
96		Harley-Davidson	United States	4,230	10%
97		MasterCard	United States	4,206	8%
98		Ferrari	Italy	4,013	6%
99		Moët & Chandon	France	3,943	3%
100		Gap	United States	3,920	5%

Source table: Interbrand.com