Mexican beer brand Corona has overtaken Brazil’s Skol as Latin America’s ‘most valuable’ brand, according to WPP and Kantar’s latest BrandZ report.
Corona grew 8% in the past year to amass a brand value of $8.29 billion, in part owing to its availability in more than 180 countries and strong marketing that has seen it draw on the ‘fun-loving’ perceptions of Mexican and Latin American culture.
It compares to Skol’s 1% growth and $8.26 billion valuation, which leaves it second in the list.
Skol, which has held the top position for the last two years, is replaced at the top of a ranking dominated by beer brands; Brahma features in seventh place, recording a valuation of nearly $4.48 billion, while growth of 13% puts Colombian brand Aguila in 9th place. Both have dropped one position since last year’s BrandZ report.
More specifically, the list is dominated by Anheuser-Busch InBev; all four beer brands in the top ten most valuable brands are owned by the Belgian-American beer giant.
Modelo was pushed out of the list by Brazilian bank Itaú, which climbed 18 places thanks to a merger with Colombian and Panamanian businesses, while broadcast Globo was a new entry in eighth place. Mexico accounts for more top 50 brands than any other country, though the value of Brazil’s 15 entries is greater.
Food and drink brands in the top 50
© FoodBev.com | data courtesy WPP/Kantar
WPP says that strong economic growth, as well as the ability of local brands to tap into consumers’ needs, is partly responsible for positive performance from brands in the list.
GDP grew 1.3% across the whole continent, while average growth among the food and drink brands was 2.4%.
“The power of strong brands to drive improved business performance can be clearly seen in this year’s Latin America ranking,” said WPP’s David Roth. “While the economy may fluctuate, those brands that are strong will remain more stable in the tough times and grow faster in the good times.”
“Latin American brands have an in-depth understanding of their local consumers; the speed at which they can tap into local consumers’ needs with good products and strong marketing campaigns has made many of them more successful and relevant in the region than their global counterparts. As a result, Latin Americans have great respect and pride in these brands,” said Kantar’s Eduardo Tomiya.
The greatest increase in valuation among food and drink brands – in real terms – was seen by Corona, helping it to leapfrog Skol into first place. The second largest increase was Colombia’s Aguila, which added $438 million over the last year.
The greatest improvement in percentage terms was 26th placed Tecate and 36th placed Sol, which both returned growth in their valuations of 17%.
Out of the 15 food and drink brands featured in BrandZ’s top 50, only three – Bimbo, Sadia and Marinela – were not beer brands.
The same three were the only food and drink brands to witness a fall in their valuation since last year’s BrandZ report, highlighting the difference in trading conditions between the region’s food and beverage industries.
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