THE COVID-19 pandemic has changed businesses and brands. Lockdown has also kept South Africans inside their homes, thus making companies embrace the digital world. However, what has not changed is the country’s love for certain brands.
MTN held on to its 10-year reign as South Africa’s most valuable brand. Its telecom rival, Vodacom, is still the second most valuable brand. FNB, Old Mutual and Standard Bank took third, fourth and fifth place respectively.
This is according to Brand Finance’s 2021 annual report which showed the most valuable and strongest brands in South Africa.
“The top 50 most valuable South African brands were initially forecast to lose over R65 billion in cumulative brand value (15%) during the pandemic. However, resolve and resilience – attributes that arguably define South African culture – have meant the top 50 have only recorded a 2% (R8.8 billion) decrease in cumulative brand value, from R471.3 billion in 2020 to R462.4 billion in 2021. This resilience is especially evident in the impressive recovery seen on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), which returned to January 2020 levels after just 15 months,” Brand Finance Africa said in a statement.
Pick n Pay topped the chart for the best known brand as another favourite Checkers came out on top as the most reputable brand.
It is worth noting that banking is South Africa’s most valuable sector, claiming 23% (R104.4 billion) of the ranking’s overall brand value. Seven banking brands are represented in the ranking: FNB (R22.1 billion), Standard Bank (R20.8 billion), Absa (R20.5 billion), Nedbank (R15.0 billion), Investec (R14.9 billion), Capitec (R7.3 billion), and Rand Merchant Bank (R3.8 billion).
FNB is South Africa’s most valuable banking brand for the fourth consecutive year but Capitec is one of the five most reputable banking brands globally – according to the Brand Finance Banking 500 ranking. It also ranks within the top 25 most valuable South African brands this year in 24th position.
Brand Finance measures the strength of companies' brands by looking at how familiar consumers are with the brand, how often they consider it when making purchases as well as how often it is recommended to friends and family.
It also determines the strength of brands through a balanced scorecard of metrics evaluating marketing investment, stakeholder equity, and business performance.
BUSINESS REPORT ONLINE