With consumer habits changing and new brands entering the retail space every day, Retail Week takes a look at the global brands deemed the most valuable in 2024, according to Kantar BrandZ.
The sheer diversity of brands in the global marketplace is at an all-time high as consumers seek more choice than ever from categories as broad as fashion, tech, beauty, and food.
While the current macroeconomic environment remains unstable worldwide, consumer confidence is growing and retail brands are having to adapt to geopolitical crises, inflation and the lingering aftershocks of the global pandemic.
Current trends, social media and the mass appeal of a brand can persuade shoppers to empty their wallets, but which brands have successfully climbed the ranks to be among the most valuable retail companies in the world?
In its 2024 Kantar BrandZ report, brand financial valuations, four million consumer interviews and research data were combined to determine the results.
This year, the top 100 most valuable global brands grew by 20% year on year, adding $1.4tr (£1.1tr) to their cumulative brand value.
The top 100
Apple took the top spot for the third consecutive year, and saw its value grow 15% to just over $1tr (£780bn) – the only brand to exceed this milestone number.
Other tech-led brands followed, with Google, Microsoft and Amazon taking second, third and fourth place, respectively, with corresponding brand values of $753bn (£594bn) , $721bn (£567bn) and $576bn (£454bn).
Fast-food giant McDonalds rounded off the top five with a value of $221bn (£174bn).
Regarding these top brands, Kantar said in the report that “none of them have rested on their laurels”. Apple’s push into services; Google’s new innovative, AI-powered software; Microsoft becoming a leader for AI in enterprise and Amazon’s major digital advertising business have aided their companies’ growth.
Quite a few retail brands cracked the top 100, with tech, car, banking and food brands featuring heavily.
Louis Vuitton, Nike, Alibaba, Walmart, Costco, Zara, and Gucci made appearances on the list, but it was Lululemon that stormed into the top 100 for the first time.
The premium athleisure brand takes the 92nd spot with a brand valuation of $20.6bn (£16.2bn). The new entry demonstrates its global appeal as a result of its investment in international markets as well as ecommerce.
On the other side of the spectrum, both Aldi and Temu sister company Pinduoduo, an ecommerce platform based in China, have re-entered the top 100 after a brief hiatus, which Kantar said could demonstrate that “budget-friendly brands are finding success”.
Kantar concluded: “Over the past year, branded businesses have embarked on efforts to rightsize their workforces, streamline their offerings, and focus new spending on key strategic initiatives, such as improving customer experience outcomes, or pursuing breakthrough innovation in areas like AI and sustainability.”
The report adds that the global top 100 now stands at $1.1tr (£860bn) higher than pre-pandemic growth trends would have predicted.
Brands with momentum
For those that didn’t quite make the cut in their categories, Kantar BrandZ highlighted the brands it believes have momentum, whether that be due to an acceleration in growth, a focus on tech and innovation, or wider international ambitions.
| Brand | Value in $ | Value in £ |
| Burberry | $4.6bn | £3.6bn |
| Sephora | £2.7bn | £2.1bn |
| Givenchy | $2.7bn | £2.1bn |
| Hugo Boss | $1.9bn | £1.5bn |
| Bershka | $1.8bn | £1.4bn |
| Gu | $1.5bn | £1.2bn |
| Home Sense | $1.2bn | £946m |
| Rituals | $922m | £727m |
Standout brands
Kantar BrandZ assesses 21,000 brands in its research process and looks at the top brands by category.
Nike, Zara and Lululemon all made the top 100, but other notable brands in the apparel section include Adidas, Shein and Uniqlo.
In Kantar BrandZ’s previous reports, it was found that the clothing category had suffered with excess inventory coming out of the pandemic and its brand value had been declining until this year, when the category collectively rose its value by 5%.
Part of the growth can be put down to the fact that these brands are gaining popularity in the Middle East after catering their products to local cultures, according to Kantar director of brand and shopper insights, Ankit Dhingra. But, he warned, this could change.
“What we’re seeing on the horizon is a push among local retailers to develop more private label brands to compete with the big global names. These private labels are not only betting that they can compete on price, they think they have a superior view into what local consumers want,” he said.
Meanwhile, the luxury segment’s total value grew 8% year on year, following a 4% decline the year before, with brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Dior and Cartier benefitting from Chinese tourists spending in Europe.
In Kantar’s retail sector category, brands such as Amazon, Lidl, Walmart, TJ Maxx, eBay, and Tmall, have increased their brand value by 4%, with many of these retailers focusing on low prices.
While low prices are key for consumer spending, Kantar media solutions leader Jed Meyer pointed out that retail media has become important to revenue.
“For this new wave of in-store retail advertising, the story really begins with advances in LED display technology,” he said. “These screens are now small enough, thin enough, and affordable enough that we can have monitors all over the store.”
With more retailers choosing to engage in retail media, invest in AI and embark on international expansion, Kantar BrandZ’s next annual report could well see more retailers entering the top 100.
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