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Press Release – For Immediate Release
Lego Overtakes Ferrari as the World’s Most Powerful Brand
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Analysis of the world’s top brands shows Lego has replaced Ferrari as the most powerful
Success of The Lego Movie has propelled the already well-loved brand to the #1 spot
Ferrari was last year’s most powerful brand, but has dropped to 9th
Apple caps a record-breaking month with the highest brand value in history, $128.3bn
Twitter is the fastest growing brand; its brand value has nearly tripled in a year
Results, graphs & analysis can be found here and in the Brand Finance Global 500 report
Every year, leading brand valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance puts thousands of the
world’s top brands to the test. They are evaluated to determine which are the most powerful, and
the most valuable.
‘Everything is Awesome’ for Lego
Lego is the World’s most powerful brand. It scores highly on a wide variety of measures on Brand
Finance’s Brand Strength Index such as familiarity, loyalty, promotion, staff satisfaction and
corporate reputation. Lego is a uniquely creative and immersive toy; children love the ability to
construct their own worlds that it provides. In a tech-saturated world, parents approve of the backto-basics creativity it encourages and have a lingering nostalgia for the brand long after their own
childhoods. The Lego Movie perfectly captured this cross-generational appeal. It was a critical and
commercial success, taking nearly US$500m since its release a year ago. It has helped propel Lego
from a well-loved, strong brand to the World’s most powerful.
Ferrari Stalls
Lego has overtaken Ferrari, last year’s most powerful brand. Ferrari remains a very strong brand but
its power is slowly diminishing. It has now gone several years without an F1 title and last season
struggled even to mount a challenge. The sheen of glory from its 1990s golden era is beginning to
wear thin. Meanwhile the departure of Luca di Montezemolo heralds a slight change in strategy at
Ferrari’s road car division. Montezemolo kept a strict cap on production to maintain the exclusivity
of the brand. Since his departure, Chairman Sergio Marchionne has suggested that this policy will be
relaxed to boost revenues.
Many Ferrari owners and aspiring owners are extremely brand-conscious, making the loss of the
‘world’s most powerful brand’ accolade, which Ferrari has held for several years, a particularly heavy
blow. Brand Finance CEO David Haigh comments, “Ferrari is still in a strong position and its brand
value has actually increased 18% this year to $4.7 billion. The new strategy to capitalise on the brand
will certainly drive short term value but over-exploitation risks lasting damage.”
The World’s Most Powerful Brands
Brand
Industry Group
Domicile
Brand Strength Index
Score (/100)
Brand Rating
2015
Brand Value 2015
(USDm)
Lego
Toys
Denmark
93.4
AAA+
3,890
PWC
Pro. Services
US
91.8
AAA+
17,330
Red Bull
Beverages
Austria
91.1
AAA+
7,389
McKinsey
Pro. Services
US
90.1
AAA+
4,127
Unilever
Food
UK
90.1
AAA+
4,844
L'Oréal
Cosmetics
France
89.7
AAA+
12,480
Burberry
Apparel
UK
89.7
AAA+
4,612
Rolex
Apparel
Switzerland
89.7
AAA+
5,493
Ferrari
Automobiles
Italy
89.6
AAA+
4,747
Nike
Apparel
US
89.6
AAA+
24,118
Apple Sets Another Record
The power of a brand is just one component of Brand Finance’s analysis. The company combines the
information on a brand’s strength with financial data, to calculate its commercial value. When brand
values are calculated, Apple comes out on top. Though not quite on a par with Ferrari or Lego in
terms of brand strength, Apple still has a very powerful brand. What sets it apart is ability to
monetize that brand. Apple has a remarkable knack for using its brand to popularise and hence
monetize existing technology, as it did so successfully first with the mp3 player, smart phone and
later the tablet. Critics have been silenced by the success of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Consumers
have snapped latest models in their droves, helping Apple set records for quarterly profits ($18bn)
and company value ($710bn).
David Haigh continues, “The Apple brand is worth US$128 billion. That value is huge not just in its
own terms but also as a proportion of Apple’s record-breaking corporate valuation. It goes to show
how valuable brands are as business assets and how important it is to manage them well.”
#FastestGrowingBrand
Twitter is the fastest growing brand; it has almost tripled its brand value in a year, increasing from
$1.5 billion in early 2014 to $4.4 billion now. Fellow tech giants Baidu and Facebook have also grown
strongly, by 161% and 146% respectively. The three appear to be more effectively managing the
transition to mobile advertising than other tech players such as Google, boosting expectations of the
financial potential of their brands.
Chipotle stands out among the many successes from the tech and telecoms sectors this year. Its
brand value is up 124%. It is eating into McDonalds’ market share by positioning itself as a healthier,
tastier and more ethical alternative. McDonalds’ iconic brand has lost $4bn in value this year.
Brand values for hundreds of the world’s top brands from all industries can be found on Brand
Finance’s website. The full Global 500 table can be found here and infographics, further insight and
analysis in the Brand Finance Global 500 report.
The World’s Most Valuable Brands
Brand
Industry Group
Domicile
Brand
Value
2015
(USDm)
Brand
Value
Change
(%)
Brand
Value
2014
(USDm)
Brand
Rating
2015
Brand
Rating
2014
23%
104,680
AAA
AAA
Apple
Tech
US
128,303
Samsung
Conglomerate
South Korea
81,716
4%
78,752
AAA-
AAA
Google
Tech
US
76,683
12%
68,620
AAA
AAA+
Microsoft
Tech
US
67,060
7%
62,783
AAA
AAA
Verizon
Telecoms
US
59,843
12%
53,466
AAA-
AAA-
AT&T
Telecoms
US
58,820
30%
45,410
AA+
AA
Amazon.com
Tech
US
56,124
24%
45,147
AAA-
AAA-
General Electric
Tech
US
48,019
-9%
52,533
AA+
AA+
China Mobile
Telecoms
China
47,916
50%
31,845
AAA-
AA+
Walmart
Retail
US
46,737
4%
44,779
AA+
AA+
Click here for the full table
The World’s Fastest Growing Brands
Brand
Industry Group
Domicile
Brand Value
Change (%)
Brand
Value
2015
(USDm)
Brand
Value
2014
(USDm)
Brand
Rating
2015
Brand
Rating
2018
Twitter
Tech
US
185%
4,366
1,533
AAA-
AAA-
Baidu
Tech
China
161%
13,284
5,092
AA+
AA-
Facebook
Tech
US
146%
24,180
9,819
AAA-
AA+
Chipotle Mexican
Fast Food
US
124%
3,147
1,403
AA+
AA
Humana
Healthcare
US
99%
4,810
2,413
AA-
AA
priceline.com
Tech
US
97%
3,956
2,006
AA+
AA
Alibaba
Tech
China
90%
11,377
6,000
AA+
AA+
Lego
Toys
Denmark
69%
3,890
2,308
AAA+
AAA-
China Merchants Bank
Banks
China
65%
8,880
5,390
AAA-
AA
HCL
Tech
India
63%
3,148
1,925
AA
AA
ENDS
Media Contacts
Robert Haigh, Communications Director
T: +44 (0)2073899400 M: +44 (0)7762211167 [email protected]
Note to Editors
2015 brand values are calculated in USD with a valuation date of 1/1/15. More information on our
methodology can be found on our website here and in the Brand Finance Global 500 report.
About Brand Finance
Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand valuation and strategy consultancy, with offices in over
15 countries. We provide clarity to marketers, brand owners and investors by quantifying the
financial value of brands. Drawing on expertise in strategy, branding, market research, visual
identity, finance, tax and intellectual property, Brand Finance helps clients make the right decisions
to maximise brand and business value and bridges the gap between marketing and finance.