Toyota has been named the most valuable brand in the automotive world for the 13th year running, finishing ahead of Mercedes-Benz and BMW.
The Japanese giant was ranked 5th overall in the annual Interbrand survey of global brand value, behind Apple (1), Google (2), Coca-Cola (3) and Microsoft (4). Rounding out the top 10 were IBM (6), Samsung (7), Amazon (8), Mercedes-Benz (9), General Electric (10). Toyota was ranked 6th last year.
Toyota (pictured is its CEO Akio Toyoda) and Mercedes-Benz were the only two carmakers in the top 10. Other automotive nameplates in the top 100 brands were BMW (11), Honda (21), Ford (33), Hyundai (35), Audi (38), Volkswagen (40), Nissan (43), Porsche (50), Kia (69), Land Rover (78), Mini (88), and – in its first-ever appearance – Tesla (100).
Apple’s brand worth was valued at US$178 million, Toyota came in at US$53 million. Tesla’s brand, at the other end of the scale, was valued at a mere US$4 million.
Daniel Binns, a managing director with marketing consultancy Interbrand, said Tesla’s arrival in the top 100 is a landmark moment for the list.
“The strength of the Tesla brand punches so far above its weight,” Binns told business paper Forbes this week. “It has such a presence among the man on the street that, when you ask them who’s innovating in this category, it’s Tesla, despite the small number of cars it has produced so far. It’s a reflection of future performance.”
Binns said that Tesla’s ascendancy can be attributed to the unveiling of the ‘affordable’ new Model 3, which became available for pre-order on the same day and quickly racked up hundreds of thousands of deposits.
“The market has responded to that car,” he said. “The value of the enterprise is a reflection of people’s belief in how Model 3 will transform the nature of Tesla’s business and return profits”.
Interbrand’s valuations are based on three key components: an analysis of the financial performance of the branded products or services, analysis of the role the brand plays in purchase decisions, and analysis of the brand’s competitive strength.
Interbrand’s top Automotive brands for 2016
5: Toyota – US$53.6m
9: Mercedes-Benz – US$43.5m
11: BMW – US$41.5m
21: Honda – US$22.1m
33: Ford – US$13m
35: Hyundai – US$12.5m
38: Audi – US$11.8m
40: Volkswagen – US$11.4m
43: Nissan – US$11.1m
50: Porsche – US$9.5m
69: Kia – US$6.3m
78: Land Rover – US$5.7m
88: Mini – US$5m
100: Tesla – US$4m.
Interbrand’s top 10 brands for 2016
- Apple – US$178m
- Google – US$133m
- Coca-Cola – US$73m
- Microsoft – US$72m
- Toyota – US$53.6m
- IBM – US$52m
- Samsung – US$51m
- Amazon – US$50m
- Mercedes-Benz – US$43.5m
- GE – US$43m
