· Finland’s strongest and most valuable brand grows 56% to €4.4billion
· Kone defends second place with brand value of €1.5 billion
· Valio’s brand in decline following Russian embargo
· Elisa up in the ranking thanks to sound financial results
Every year, leading valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance values the brands of thousands of the world’s biggest companies. A brand’s strength is assessed (based on factors such as marketing investment, familiarity, preference, sustainability and margins) to determine what proportion of a business’s revenue is contributed by the brand. This is projected into perpetuity and discounted to determine the brand’s value. Finland’s 10 most valuable brands are featured in the Brand Finance Finland 10.
Nokia is Finland’s strongest, most valuable and fastest growing brand. It reached a peak brand value of €22.5 billion in 2008, making it the world’s 9th most valuable brand. Its slow response to the emergence of smart phone technology led to a well-documented decline at the hands of Apple and Samsung. Brand Value sunk to a low of just of €1.5 billion in 2014. However, after a period of consolidation, Nokia is firmly on the road to recovery. After the mobile device division was sold in 2014, the company continued in the networks business (rebranded from NSN) and acquired Alcatel-Lucent in 2016 to create one of the largest players in the sector, further reinforcing the position of the brand. Nokia acquired a controlling stake in Alcatel-Lucent in 2016 to create one of the largest players in the sector. Alcatel-Lucent has since been rebranded as Nokia, further reinforcing the position of the brand.
2017 marks another turning point in Nokia’s saga, as the brand is once again visible on mobile devices following the launch of a range of new smartphones by HMD Global Oy, exclusive licensee of the Nokia brand for mobile phones and tablets (founded by Nokia veterans in 2016). This newfound momentum sees Nokia’s brand value climb 56% to €4.4billion while the fundamental brand equity measures are improving too, which sees Nokia’s brand strength rating upgraded from AA to AA+.
Second-placed Kone grew 23% in brand value to €1.5 billion. Despite a decrease in new orders in China, Kone’s second-quarter operating income increased by approximately 7.2% year on year. Kone has secured various orders in the US and the Middle East, somewhat offsetting the decline in China.
Dairy brand Valio enjoys strong demand from abroad thanks both to the quality of its products and the strength of the Finnish national brand. Finland’s governance, heritage and pristine environment creates positive associations for its agricultural, food and beverage brands. However, Valio is the fastest falling Finnish brand this year, its brand value is down 24% to €564 million. Valio cut approximately 200 jobs from its 3,500-strong workforce and shut down a facility in the city of Tampere. The cause is Russia’s embargo of certain EU food products, imposed in retaliation for western sanctions. This comes amidst global overproduction and weak global demand for milk products. Furthermore, the company was fined €70 million for abusing its dominant market position by selling basic milk at too low a price. Valio is therefore having to explore other ways to leverage its brand. Baby-food is not one of Russia’s proscribed products, so Valio has begun exporting dairy-based baby food to the country for the first time in 15 years. The vast Chinese market, where European food brands are also prized, is another source of growth. Despite this year’s sudden drop in value, there are clearly positive signs for Valio’s brand.
Telecoms brand Elisa posted a 6% jump in revenue in the third quarter of 2016 as a result of an uplift in mobile data revenues, improved efficiencies and the July purchase of regional operator, Anvia. Elisa also added 58,000 broadband subscribers in the quarter. Elisa’s brand value grew 17% to €857 million. In contrast, DNA, the only other telecoms brand in the table, fell 17% to €338 million.
ENDS
Note to Editors
For more definitions of key terms, methodology and more stories, please consult the Brand Finance Finland 10 report document.
Brand values in the table are reported in USD. For values in EUR, hover over the ‘i’ button and select the currency.
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Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Bridging the gap between marketing and finance for more than 25 years, Brand Finance evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organizations of all kinds make strategic decisions.
Headquartered in London, Brand Finance has offices in over 20 countries, offering services on all continents. Every year, Brand Finance conducts more than 5,000 brand valuations, supported by original market research, and publishes over 100 reports which rank brands across all sectors and countries.
Brand Finance also operates the Global Brand Equity Monitor, conducting original market research annually on over 5,000 brands, surveying more than 150,000 respondents across 38 countries and 31 industry sectors. Combining perceptual data from the Global Brand Equity Monitor with data from its valuation database enables Brand Finance to arm brand leaders with the data and analytics they need to enhance brand and business value.
Brand Finance is a regulated accountancy firm, leading the standardization of the brand valuation industry. Brand Finance was the first to be certified by independent auditors as compliant with both ISO 10668 and ISO 20671 and has received the official endorsement of the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB) in the United States.
Brand is defined as a marketing-related intangible asset including, but not limited to, names, terms, signs, symbols, logos, and designs, intended to identify goods, services, or entities, creating distinctive images and associations in the minds of stakeholders, thereby generating economic benefits.
Brand strength is the efficacy of a brand’s performance on intangible measures relative to its competitors. Brand Finance evaluates brand strength in a process compliant with ISO 20671, looking at Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and the impact of those on Business Performance. The data used is derived from Brand Finance’s proprietary market research programme and from publicly available sources.
Each brand is assigned a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score out of 100, which feeds into the brand value calculation. Based on the score, each brand is assigned a corresponding Brand Rating up to AAA+ in a format similar to a credit rating.
Brand Finance calculates the values of brands in its rankings using the Royalty Relief approach – a brand valuation method compliant with the industry standards set in ISO 10668. It involves estimating the likely future revenues that are attributable to a brand by calculating a royalty rate that would be charged for its use, to arrive at a ‘brand value’ understood as a net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market.
The steps in this process are as follows:
1 Calculate brand strength using a balanced scorecard of metrics assessing Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and Business Performance. Brand strength is expressed as a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score on a scale of 0 to 100.
2 Determine royalty range for each industry, reflecting the importance of brand to purchasing decisions. In luxury, the maximum percentage is high, while in extractive industry, where goods are often commoditised, it is lower. This is done by reviewing comparable licensing agreements sourced from Brand Finance’s extensive database.
3 Calculate royalty rate. The BSI score is applied to the royalty range to arrive at a royalty rate. For example, if the royalty range in a sector is 0-5% and a brand has a BSI score of 80 out of 100, then an appropriate royalty rate for the use of this brand in the given sector will be 4%.
4 Determine brand-specific revenues by estimating a proportion of parent company revenues attributable to a brand.
5 Determine forecast revenues using a function of historic revenues, equity analyst forecasts, and economic growth rates.
6 Apply the royalty rate to the forecast revenues to derive brand revenues.
7 Discount post-tax brand revenues to a net present value which equals the brand value.
Brand Finance has produced this study with an independent and unbiased analysis. The values derived and opinions presented in this study are based on publicly available information and certain assumptions that Brand Finance used where such data was deficient or unclear. Brand Finance accepts no responsibility and will not be liable in the event that the publicly available information relied upon is subsequently found to be inaccurate. The opinions and financial analysis expressed in the study are not to be construed as providing investment or business advice. Brand Finance does not intend the study to be relied upon for any reason and excludes all liability to any body, government, or organisation.
The data presented in this study form part of Brand Finance's proprietary database, are provided for the benefit of the media, and are not to be used in part or in full for any commercial or technical purpose without written permission from Brand Finance.
