Alice asked the Cheshire Cat,
who was sitting in a tree,
“What road do I take?”
The cat asked,
“Where do you want to go?”
“I don’t know,” Alice answered.
“Then,” said the cat,
“it really doesn’t matter, does it?”

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Zara and Banco Santander in the Best Global Brands 2021

Whiplash Team, 12th November 2021

Zara and Banco Santander in the Best Global Brands 2021

In the Best Global Brands annual report, recently presented by Interbrand under the title “The Decade of Possibility”, we find only two Spanish brands: Zara and Banco Santander. The report lists the 100 most valuable brands worldwide and reveals the keys to their growth.

For more than two decades Interbrand presents each year its Best Global Brands report, which includes the 100 most valuable brands in the world. This year, the total value of the ranking reaches 2.6 trillion dollars, which represents an increase of 15% compared to 2020.

According to Interbrand, this increase (which qualifies as historical since the total value of the table had never grown so much in the 22 years of the report’s existence) is due to the average growth of the brands, which this year was 10% against a 1.3% in 2020 due to the impact of the pandemic. In 2021, the brands that have grown most are those in the technology sector, which altogether reached 23%.

In this edition of Best Global Brands, which Interbrand has called “The Decade of Possibility”, we find only two Spanish brands: Zara and Banco Santander. However, Zara loses 10 positions compared to the previous year, to rank 45 in the table, while Banco Santander remains in position 74.

The big winner of this edition is Elon Musk and his brand Tesla, which rises 26 places  and now stands at 14 in the ranking thanks to a growth of 184% in its brand value, calculated at 36.270 million dollars. The other winner was the LVMH group, which, with the incorporation of its Sephora brand in the 100th position became the first consortium to have five of its brands among the most valuable in the world: Sephora, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Tiffany & Co. and Hennessy.

The top 10 remain stable compared to 2020: Apple in first place followed in this order by Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Samsung, Coca-Cola, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, McDonald’s and Disney.

The 2021 study covers the period from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021. Interbrand uses its own methodology to analyse how the world’s most powerful brands perform in an environment of uncertainty, constant change, ambiguity and complexity.

This methodology is based on three key elements that affect the accumulated value of a brand: the financial performance of the brand’s products and services; the role of the brand in the end customer’s choice; the positioning and strength of the brand to impose a premium price in its market segment.

In its report, the consulting firm points out the urgent need for brands to address issues such as climate change, excessive consumption and the depletion of resources, among others that deeply concern society. Interbrand insists on the need for brands to reconsider the role of companies in the overall framework and become part of the solution to the problems that affect the world.

In conclusion, the report indicates that there are three factors that have driven the brands that have grown the most in 2021 (Tesla, Salesforce.com, Adobe, PayPal and Microsoft). The first factor is the sense of direction as they are brands that establish a clear purpose shared by the entire organization. Second, is the agility of these brands to launch new products and services that adapt to the new demands of consumers. Finally, in third place, is the sense of belonging and participation that they awaken in their users who they motivate and get them involved in the challenges of the brand and assume them as their own.