South Africa's top 50 corporate brands

MTN remains the most valuable brand despite losing 32% of its brand value due to some of its reputational challenges. Woolworths holds the strongest brand position with an increase of 21% in brand value. Woolworths now stands at number five.

Meanwhile, Telkom has seen the greatest increase in brand value following the integration of Business Connexion and improved performance on the retail side with good ratings on Value for Money and Customer Satisfaction according to the South African Customer Satisfaction Index (SAcsi). The increase in brand value sees Telkom move from 23rd position last year to 17th in 2016.

The Top 10 brands

Many of the top 10 brands from 2015 have retained their positions in 2016 except for Woolworths which has moved to fifth place, and Absa which has moved to seventh. The top 10 brands are: MTN, Vodacom, Sasol, Standard Bank, Woolworths, FNB, Absa, Nedbank, Investec and Mediclinic. Brands seeing a significant increase in value include Investec (27%) and WesBank (27%). Two new brands have entered the Top 50. Country Road, now owned by Woolworths, enters at 31st place with a value of R4.64bn and Growthpoint enters at 50 with a value of R1.47bn.

SABMiller holds the most valuable portfolio amounting to R29.67bn with four of its brands standing amongst the country’s top 50: Castle, Carling Black Label, Hansa Pilsner and SABMiller. SABMiller is followed by Firstrand with three brands (FNB, WesBank and RMB) valued at R23.12bn.

The total value of the Top 50 brands increased 3% from R373bn to R384bn. Excluding MTN’s drop in brand value of R17bn, the remaining Top 49 brands have a total of R347bn in 2016, growing 9% from the total value in 2015 (R319bn).

Newly appointed director of Brand Finance Africa, Jeremy Sampson, commented, “The more competitive the market, the more important it is to have a strong brand, leverage it to its full potential and measure and monitor at all times. Brands are increasingly the major assets of companies, yet does anyone have an idea of their true value? Marketing is no longer a 'nice to have', it can be the difference between success and failure.”

Brand South Africa’s CEO Kingsley Makhubela warmly congratulated the Top 50 corporate brands saying, “South African commercial brands are a key component of a strong nation brand and how this is experienced by both domestic and international audiences. As such commercial brands are key messengers in positioning the country competitively.”

“At the same time, we express our appreciation to all other corporate brands in the country for your contribution to the growth and development of South Africa. We thank you for playing your part and look forward to honouring you amongst the Top 50 in years to come,” concluded Dr Makhubela.

Chairman of Brand Finance Africa, Thebe Ikalafeng, commented, “The story of the Top 50 corporate brands is a good story for the South Africa Nation Brand as well as the continental story. Many of these brands have footprints on the continent and this bodes well for perceptions about business on the continent, their ethics, governance and commitment to social upliftment. Brand Finance salutes the Top 50 corporate brands for their excellence in flying the South Africa and African flags.”

View the full table below.

South Africa’s 50 Most Valuable Brands (ZARm)