Amazon back as world's most valued brand, Apple down to No 2

Amazon has reclaimed the top spot as the world’s most valuable brand despite its brand value falling 15 per cent this year from $350.3 billion to $299.3 billion, said a new report.

According to brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance’s report, “Global 500 2023”, while Amazon is back at No 1, its brand value has fallen by over $50 billion this year, with its rating slipping from AAA+ to AAA. This is as consumers evaluate it more harshly in the post-pandemic world.

Brand Finance’s research has found that perception of customer service at Amazon has fallen – at the same time as delivery times have lengthened.

And so, consumers have become less likely to recommend Amazon to others.

Also, with pandemic restrictions ending, people are returning to shopping in-store, which has, to some extent, impacted the need for online retail.

Apple (brand value down 16 per cent to $297.5 billion from $355.1 billion) has, meanwhile, slipped to second slot to be ranked the world’s second most valuable brand.

This year’s fall in brand value relates to a fall in forecast revenue with supply chain disruptions and a constrained labour market expected to limit the supply of its marquee hardware products.

In all 48 tech brands featured in the ranking, two down from the 50 rated in 2022.

This is after Snapchat and Twitter dropped out.

The other tech-focused brands to lose value include Samsung Group (brand value down 7 per cent to $99.7 billion), Alibaba.com (down 56 per cent to $10.0 billion), Facebook (down 42 per cent to $59.0 billion) and WeChat (down 19 per cent to $50.2 billion).

There were those that gained, too. Instagram (brand value up 42 per cent to $47.4 billion) and LinkedIn (up 49 per cent to $15.5 billion) have grown in the tech sector, largely due to a well-executed strategy to commercialise their services.

Some of the other big gainers include electric car manufacturers Tesla (brand value up 44 per cent to $66.2 billion) and BYD (up 57 per cent to $10.1 billion) as demand grows for electric cars as part of a broader transition to a low-carbon economy.

In addition to the Global 500 2023 ranking of the world’s most valuable and strongest brands, Brand Finance is also launching the Brand Finance Sustainability Perceptions Index with the International Advertising Association at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

This report reveals that major global brands such as Amazon, Tesla, Apple and Google each have billions of dollars contingent on carefully managing a reputation for commitment to sustainability.

The India story

From India, Tata Group's brand value ranking went up to 69 from 78 last year.However, reasons for the ranking going up were not available.

Among Indian IT services players, Infosys jumped to the 150th slot from 158 last year. Infosys has seen an 84 per cent increase in its brand value since 2020, said the report.

David Haigh, CEO and chairman of Brand Finance, said: "Infosys has recently celebrated four decades of success and through these years, they have built a brand of excellence with a brand value that keeps growing as Infosys storms up the rankings.”