Brand Finance Canada, a subsidiary of Brand Finance plc – the world’s leading independent brand valuation consultancy (whose Canadian partner is Level5) – released the third edition of its Most Valuable Canadian Brands Index yesterday – pegging the total value of Canada’s 50 most valuable brands at $74 billion. Six of the top 10 brands are in the financial services sector. Among the highlights of the report:
• RBC is the most valuable brand (at $5B).
• Manulife is the fastest riser from 2006, jumping from #15 to #3, which the report states is ‘testament to management’s focus on brand management through a series of acquisitions.’
• Loblaw dropped from #2 to #7 ‘reflecting the company’s unclear strategic brand and business objectives amidst increased competition from players including Wal-Mart.’
• BlackBerry, ranked at #18, ‘is a dynamic new entry with a strong customer loyalty proposition and an excellent record of technological innovation (and) a truly global brand.’
• Tim Hortons ranked at #29 after completing a successful IPO during the last year and ‘maintaining its track record of excellent brand management; the brand represents over 17% of its total Enterprise Value.’
• Sears Canada, ranked at #25, ‘records the highest brand value/ business value within the index of 48% of its total Enterprise Value.’
• RBC, Manulife Financial, Molson and Yellow Pages all received A+ brand ratings.
‘In an increasingly open world economy,’ commented Level5 president/CEO David Kincaid, ‘the route to sustainable advantage is the creation of strong intangible assets including patents, designs and, above all, brands. Understanding the drivers of brand value and brand equity is vital, (and) this year’s report indicates that Canadian brands are rising to the challenge.’
