Interbrand, an American brand consultancy, has been releasing an annual ranking of 100 global brands since 2000, evaluating each brand’s financial performance, role and strengths.

A closer look at Interbrand’s reports issued between 2004 and 2014 reveals the ups and downs that the brands have experienced through the years, and also reflects the changes in different industries. For instance, some top brands suffered sudden and unexpected declines in their value, while others that were thought to never even have a chance soared to the top.

Overall, brands that kept up with the latest trends survived in the rankings while brands that failed to were left behind.

Meanwhile, changes in brand rankings also meant that the assets of the owners of those brands also changed.

The Korea Herald Investigative Team looked into the rankings of some of the world’s best-known brands over the past decade or so. 


Giants’ advance: Apple and Google

The global brands Apple and Google shot up to the top in a relatively short time span.

As one of the world’s most influential companies, Apple Inc., which ranked 43rd on Interbrand’s 2004 list, leapfrogged to become No. 1 in 2013 after beating out its rivals. It succeeded in defending its position this year.

The surge in Apple’s brand value ramped up the assets owned by the late founder Steve Jobs. His fortune was worth some $2.1 billion a decade ago but reached $8.3 billion in 2011 shortly before his death, according to Forbes magazine.

Google’s chief executive Larry Page’s assets jumped by an even bigger margin.

In 2005, when the company first joined the top 100 at 38th place, Page’s assets were worth $1 billion. Since then the company’s brand value has begun a steady ascent that has lasted almost a decade. Google was second place in Interbrand’s annual rankings for both 2013 and 2014.

In the process, Page’s assets have climbed 30-fold, making him the world’s 19th richest person, up from 552nd place.

These two brands were the ones responsible for putting the brakes on the monopolies of Coca-Cola, IBM and Microsoft, the three brands that for seven years fought among themselves for first, second and third places. When Apple and Google became two of the top three brands in 2012, IBM and Microsoft were effectively pushed down to fourth and fifth places, respectively.


Steady Samsung

In terms of retaining its brand value, Samsung Electronics has been keeping up a steady pace. The company’s brand value, which stood at 21st place a decade ago, joined the ranks of the top 10 for the first time in 2012.

The year 2012 was also when the smartphone frenzy broke out both at home and abroad. As a result, Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee’s assets soared to $11.2 billion, up from $3.4 billion in 2004.


Popular SPA brands: H&M and Zara

While luxury brands have been plodding along for the last 10 years, SPA brands such as H&M and Zara have shown significant growth.

It has been less than a decade since H&M and Zara joined the ranks of the world’s top 100 brands, but the pair has managed to change fashion trends by catering to the masses with high-fashion designs that come with affordable prices.

Riding on its surging popularity, H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB, a Swedish multinational retail-clothing company, took 22nd place in Interbrand’s 2008 rankings. This year it managed to climb one step higher to 21st.

Zara, a Spanish clothing and accessories retailer, ranked 36th this year, rising 40 steps since it first entered the list in 2005 at 77th place.

These two brands grew at a faster pace than ranking luxury brands, including Gucci (41st), Hermes (46th), Cartier (58th) and Prada (70th). Louis Vuitton (19th) is the only luxury brand that is valued higher than the two.

The changes in the rankings of the SPA brands have boosted the worth of their owners. H&M chairman Stefan Persson’s assets were priced at $30.2 billion this year, up from $8.6 billion in 2004. Zara’s founder Amancio Ortega’s assets increased sixfold to $56.3 billion from $9.2 billion a decade ago.


Facebook on the rise

Facebook joined the top 100 brands just two years ago.

It started out at 69th place, then jumped 40 steps to 29th this year.

In addition, the company is growing in size and is now planning to shed its image as a social network service provider. For this goal, it has acquired Oculus VR, an American virtual reality technology company, for $2 billion and WhatsApp Messenger, a mobile messaging app, for $19 billion.

Its founder Mark Zuckerberg’s assets have also climbed, increasing more than 20-fold to $32.2 billion this year from $1.5 billion in 2008. He is now the world’s 13th-richest person, up from 785th six years earlier.

Under the helm of Zuckerberg, who is known for aggressive business moves including partnerships with conglomerates including Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest smartphone-maker, Facebook is expected to climb higher in ranking soon, according to industry watchers.


Newcomer from China: Huawei

Huawei Technologies Co. is a Chinese multinational networking and telecommunications equipment and services company that became the first Chinese brand to join Interbrand’s top 100 brands this year.

Its founder Ren Zhengfei is currently known to have assets worth $920 million.

More Chinese brands are expected make it onto the Interbrand list, according to industry watchers.

“Lenovo Group, a computer technology company, along with Alibaba Group, China’s biggest online commerce company that recently made waves with its blockbuster IPO at the New York Stock Exchange, is likely to join the ranking in 2015,” Interbrand CEO Jez Frampton said.

By Korea Herald Special Investigative Team

(hjlee0301@heraldcorp.com)

Kwon Nam-keun
Hong Seung-wan
Sung Yeon-jin
Bae Ji-sook
Yoon Hyun-jong
Min Sang-seek
Kim Hyun-il
Lee Hee-ju