Louis Vuitton stands out among top luxury brands

«Even in a particularly complex historical moment, the luxury sector remains resilient. And it is confirmed to be the best». This was emphasized by Lidi Grimaldi, managing director of Interbrand’s Italian office, who explained to MFF how, with the highest year-on-year increase of 24%, the high-end sector is the one with the highest level of growth in Best global brands 2022. And although it is once again technology brands (+21%) that dominate the ranking by occupying the top five positions, the 23rd edition of the study that analyzes the global brands with the highest economic value saw the double-digit increases in the value of each of the luxury brands featured, led by Louis Vuitton in 14th place out of the total 100.

On the fashion and luxury industry podium, trailing the 44.5 billion dollars (+21%) value of Lvmh’s fashion house are compatriots Chanel in 22nd place and Hermès right behind at 23rd place. «Together with Microsoft and Tesla, the double C maison recorded the highest percentage of brand value growth over the previous year (+32%), bringing it to over 29.2 billion dollars. This is because, in addition to the extraordinary financial results that demonstrate its strength, Chanel is a pioneering brand that is having a very good evolution», the Interbrand expert explained. «In addition to coping very well with changes at the governance level, the company has also demonstrated its commitment by making important progress in the Esg area, which is incorporated for the first time in our assessment methodology».

In fact, Interbrand’s brand valuation methodology takes into consideration three factors, namely the financial performance of a player’s products or services, its role in the buying process, and the competitive strength of the brand combined with its ability to create loyalty and sustain demand and margins over the long term. The luxury ranking continues with Gucci at 30th place, Cartier at 74th, Dior at 77th, Tiffany & Co. at 88th, Prada at 89th, and Burberry closing at 96th. «Gucci, Ferrari and Prada continue to represent Italy. Their clarity of vision and the ability to build an ecosystem of products, services and experiences that engage target audiences has led them to be among the 15 fastest-growing brands of 2022», Lidi Grimaldi continued.

With a 23% increase over last year, the Kering group's flagship brand climbed three rungs up the rankings with a brand value of 20.4 billion dollars. Ferrari, in 75th place, achieved an extraordinary +31% to reach a brand value of 9.36 billion dollars, while Prada confirmed the positive trend by recording double-digit growth for the second year in a row. With brand value increasing by 21%, the fashion house of Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli thus climbed five positions with a value of 6.54 billion dollars. «Both Gucci and Prada are two flagships of international luxury and two bastions of Made in Italy in the world, although they are very different in terms of governance and only the latter is still 100% Italian», the manager specified. «Both are unquestionably leading brands. Prada in particular has developed in an important way thanks to a series of innovations and that synthesis between ethics and aesthetics that the company encompasses in planet, people and culture».

Fast fashion also carves out a prominent position among the top 100 global brands, with Zara in 47th place with a value of 14.9 billion dollars (+11%) and H&M in 56th place with 12.9 billion dollars (-8%), followed by beauty, which ranks giants L'Oréal in 58th place with 12.9 billion dollars (+3%) and Sephora closing the ranking in 100th place with nearly 5.49 billion dollars (+19%). «A remarkable improvement was put in by Nike, which with its 18% increase reached a value of 50.2 billion dollars and entered the top 10 for the first time, ranking 10th and undermining McDonald's», Grimaldi added. «The strength of this brand lies precisely in the difficulty of putting it in a category, of giving it a definition. It is a brand that tends to infinity, it is pure avant-garde in both apparel and sporting goods».,

As for the top 10 of the 100 best global brands, Apple remains firmly in 1st place for the tenth year in a row, while Microsoft climbed to the 2nd step of the podium, bypassing Amazon. Google reconfirmed itself in 4th position, followed by Samsung, Toyota, Coca-Cola, Mercedes-Benz, Disney and, indeed, Nike. These ten brands alone account for 53% of the total value of the entire ranking, which has continued to grow to reach 3,088.930 billion dollars in this edition, an increase of 16% over 2021, setting a new record. A trend that demonstrates the growing contribution that branding has in driving a company's economic success. While financial markets have shown significant swings in recent years, the value of the world's strongest brands has steadily increased by driving consumer choice, loyalty and growth margins.

There is also room in the ranking for social networks, which fall into the media category (+9%). Instagram, in 16th position, has overtaken Facebook, now 17th, to become Meta's highest economic value brand. «Today Instagram is a very relevant and present platform in people's habits as a place for inspiration, but also for information, business and sometimes even shopping», Lidi Grimaldi concluded. (All rights reserved)