New data from Brand Finance reveals Hilton, Taj, and Spanish brands are exceptions as the leisure and tourism sector’s resurgence continues
LONDON, 12 June 2024 – Hilton, with a brand value of USD11.6 billion, has retained its title as the world’s most valuable hotel brand for the ninth consecutive year, according to new data from Brand Finance, the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Hyatt, with a brand value of USD6.0 billion, secured the second spot again. Hilton and Hyatt are the only two hotel brands to feature in the Brand Finance Global 500 2024 ranking. Eight out of the top ten brands included in the ranking decreased in brand value, and over 60% of US brands featured in the ranking also decreased, indicators that the industry is struggling to fully capitalise on brand growth potential despite rising demand.
Henry Farr, Associate Director, Brand Finance, commented:
“Many top hotel brands have struggled to grow their brand value as robustly as in the years leading up to 2020, and the Brand Finance Hotels 2024 ranking shows that these challenges are ongoing as the industry recovers. Despite an uptick in travel and hotel demand, the actual growth hasn’t matched expectations, resulting in slight declines or minimal brand value growth for the world’s leading hotel brands.”
That said, there are brands exhibiting strong growth. India’s Taj is the world’s second-fastest-growing brand, up 45% to USD545 million, driven by supercharged revenue growth and improved brand strength. Taj has climbed three positions in the Brand Strength Index (BSI) ranking to become the world’s strongest hotel brand. With an improved BSI score of 92.3 out of 100, Taj has earned an AAA+ rating, the highest rating awarded by Brand Finance. Taj performed exceptionally well across several brand strength metrics, including familiarity, consideration, recommendation, and reputation, underscoring Taj’s dominant position within India’s hotel sector.
Brand Finance data also reveals a significant boost in brand values of Spain’s top hotel brands, propelling them higher in this year’s ranking. New entrant Occidental debuts at 42nd with a brand value of USD 318 million, while Meliá joins in 43rd rank at USD312 million, doubling Spain’s presence. NH Hotels, Spain’s most valuable hotel brand, noted an 18% increase to USD770 million. Barceló, ranked 21st, experienced a 12% rise to USD683 million, excelling in metrics like consideration, recommendation, reputation, and loyalty despite a slight decline in its BSI score. These gains underscore the growing competitiveness of Spanish hotel brands.
For the first time, Brand Finance unveiled the world’s top 25 strongest and most valuable leisure and tourism (L&T) brands, with an aggregate brand value of USD59.1 billion. booking.com, Airbnb, and Trip.com Group secure the top three positions, each noting double-digit brand value growth. Royal Caribbean, with a 58% increase to USD4.1 billion, has climbed to fourth place, becoming the sector’s second fastest-growing and second strongest brand globally. Tokyo Disney Resort debuts in sixth place with a brand value of USD2.7 billion and has emerged as the world’s strongest L&T brand with an AAA+ rating, the highest awarded by Brand Finance.
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.
