All Gold takes gold

In all, 14 truly South African (not international) brands, tabbed "TGIcon Brands" have been identified, all of them enjoying at least 45% usage (in the last 12 months) among the population as a whole, with substantial usage in all race groups. Among them are such well-known names as Clover dairy products, Koo canned foods, Simba potato chips, Ricoffy, Black Cat peanut butter and Mrs Ball's chutney.

"We surveyed adults in towns of at least 8 000 people, concerning their usage of brands that are sold in competitive environments where people have alternative choices available," says Barbara Cooke, a partner in The Brand Survey Company, which holds the TGI franchise in SA.

Globally, writes Finance Week columnist Tony Koenderman, icon brands often become ubiquitous symbols of the nations that spawned them: Coca-Cola and the United States, Guinness and Ireland, Fosters and Australia. But SA doesn't have any brands that have achieved that status on the world stage.

"Brands do more than merely satisfy consumers' wants and needs," says Cooke. "They become symbols and even contribute to the way users define their status and their personalities. Some brands achieve an iconic status which helps to define nationhood.
"Are there brands that unite us as a nation? Brands that are ubiquitous, used by South Africans across the age, income, race and language spectrums? We have identified these brands, that are used by more people than any others. We found 14 brands that fulfilled the criteria, used by at least 45% of all South Africans and that define a common experience, often on a daily basis.

"South Africans love them, are loyal to them and will even look for them in other countries when they are not at home. Icon brands are valuable assets in any advertiser's portfolio, which is why they have to be cherished, understood, properly nurtured and carefully managed."

Tiger Brands owns six of the icon brands - All Gold, Koo, Blue Ribbon, tastic, Black Cat and Jungle Oats. Just outside the top 14 come Pick n Pay, Checkers, Five Roses, Yogisip and Chappies.

The results of this survey are somewhat different from other brand surveys, usually based on perception and awareness rather than actual usage of the brand.