As the African economy continues to flourish, it becomes increasingly crucial to identify and celebrate the brands that resonate most with African consumers. The Brand Africa 100 serves as a definitive guide, showcasing the brands that have successfully captured the hearts and minds of the African populace.

Covering 32 African countries, which collectively represent over 85% of the continent’s GDP and population, the survey and rankings provide the most comprehensive reflection of brand perception and affinity among the diverse African consumer base. The extensive research conducted between February and April 2023 meticulously analyzed and evaluated brands from all economic regions within Africa.

Data collection, spearheaded by Geopoll, ensured the broadest and most representative sampling, guaranteeing the authenticity and reliability of the rankings. The subsequent analysis and rankings were expertly led by Kantar and Brand Leadership, leveraging their expertise in market research and brand evaluation.

Highlights from the Brand Africa 100 2023 Report

• Despite optimism with the progress of AfCFTA and other initiatives to drive African initiatives, African brands regressed 20% from a 10-year high of 17% to 14% share of the Top 100 most admired brands in Africa, as stalwart African brands, MTN dropped out of the Top 10, and all African brands lost ground, except Zambia’s Trade Kings, the highest African mover and new at #38.
• Europe, led by Adidas at #2, has grown its share of the most admired brands in Africa to 37%, ahead of North America at 32% led by Nike, the #1 brand for the 5^th consecutive year, and Asia which retains its 17% share led by Samsung, the #3 brand for the 3^rd consecutive year.
• In a new category of brands that are doing good for people, society and the environment, inspired by business shifting from profit to purpose, Unicef emerged as the #1 NGO, Coca Cola the #1 non-African brand and MTN the #1 African brands.
• In a category-specific ranking of the Top 25 financial services brands, Africa’s oldest banking group, Standard Bank, surged to the #1 most admired brand in Africa, displacing GTBank, which had led the rankings for the past three years, but is reeling from recent UK regulatory issues, service challenges, and a tough competitive environment. The category is dominated by South African (6) and Nigerian (6) brands, which account for 48% of the rankings, with the USA (4), led by VISA, at 16% percent, making up 64% of the Top 25 brands.
• In a category-specific ranking of the Top 25 media brands, DSTV, the consumer brand of the Multichoice Group, retains its dominant ranking ahead of BBC and CNN as the most admired media brand in Africa. Consistent with previous rankings, non-African media dominate the continent, accounting for 76% of the Top 25 brands.
• MTN is the most admired African brand in the Top 100 brands recalled spontaneously, while Dangote has retaken the lead as the most admired brand when respondents are prompted to recall an African brand specifically.
• Fifteen (15) percent of the Top 100 brands are new entrants, led by USA’s Oral B the highest mover at #34, Zambia’s Trade Kings at #38 and the USA’s Jordan at #42.

Select Rankings

Most Admired Brands – Top 100

1. Nike (USA)
2. Adidas (Germany)
3. Samsung (Korea)

Most Admired African Brands (Prompted)

1. Dangote (Nigeria)
2. MTN (South Africa)
3. DStv (South Africa)

Most Admired Africa Brands (Unprompted)

1. MTN (South Africa)
2. Dangote (Nigeria)
3. Tradekings (Zambia)

 Most Admired Media Brands

1. DStv (South Africa)
2. BBC (UK)
3. CNN (USA)

Most Admired Financial Services Brands

1. Standard Bank (South Africa)
2. Equity Bank (Kenya)
3. ABSA (South Africa)

Companies that best exemplify Africa Pride

1. Dangote (Nigeria)
2. Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopia)
3. MTN (South Africa)

Sustainability – Doing Good for People, Society and the Environment – NGO

1. Unicef (USA)
2. WHO (USA)
3. Red Cross (Switzerland)

Sustainability – Doing Good for People, Society and the Environment – African Brands

1. MTN (South Africa)
2. Dangote (Nigeria)
3. Azam Group (Tanzania)

Sustainability – Doing Good for People, Society and the Environment – Non-African Brands

1. Coca-Cola (USA)
2. Vodafone/Vodacom/Safaricom (UK)
3. Unilever (UK)

Read the full Report. 

The Bottomline

The Brand Africa 100 2023 report presents a wealth of insights and highlights notable trends shaping the African market. From the dominance of European and North American brands to the rise of purpose-driven initiatives, the report offers a comprehensive view of the African brand landscape. It encapsulates the spirit of African entrepreneurship, innovation, and consumer preferences and serves as a valuable resource for businesses, marketers, and consumers alike, providing valuable insights into the brands that are shaping Africa’s economic and social landscape. GeoPoll is proud to play a part in this important initiative.

Get the complete report on the Brand Africa website and join the conversation that continues to shape the future of branding in Africa. Keep an eye on the GeoPoll and Brand Africa social media for local launches of the Top Brands in select countries.

Do not hesitate to contact us for further clarification on the methodology we used, to dive deeper into the data, or to conduct brand surveys throughout Africa and the world.

The post Brand Africa 100: The Best Brands in Africa – 2023 appeared first on GeoPoll.

Brand Africa 100 is the most comprehensive survey on brands in Africa, and, like in the previous versions, GeoPoll conducted data collection in all the countries involved. Kantar and Brand Leadership provided strategic analysis, rankings, and insights.

Most Admired Brands in Africa

In the main ranking, there wasn’t any change in the top six most admired brands overall in Africa. Nike, Adidas, Samsung, Coca-Cola, Apple, and Tecno maintained the same positions they occupied last year. Gucci, Toyota, Puma, and MTN closed the top 10. Non-African brands dominated the ranking with 83%.

African Brands

African brands surged to a seven-year high in the annual survey, increasing their share of the Top 100 most admired brands by 4% with 17 African brands now in the top 100 counter in 2022. MTN and Dangote continued to set the pace as the most admired African brands in both the prompted and overall mention ranking.

Overall, South African brands continued to dominate the African ranking, representing 41% of African brands (seven out of the 17). Nigeria had four brands in the top 100, and the rest is split between Ghana (Kasapreko Drinks, 31), Tanzania (Azam, 86), Uganda (Mukwano, 72), Zimbabwe (Econet, 50), Kenya (Tusker, 63) and Ethiopia (Ethiopian Airlines, 24).

Most admired financial brands

When asked about their most admired financial services brands, most of the respondents mentioned African brands (68% of the share) – eight South African, five Nigerian and two Kenyan. Africa being a global leader in mobile money, it is no surprise that telcos are now important competitors to banks with their mobile money platforms such as M-Pesa, Ecocash, Airtel, MTN and Orange Money featuring significantly in the brand mentions.

African Pride

With international brands dominating the rankings over the years, Brand Africa sought to establish brands in Africa that embody African values and culture. It is due to this that we added the question – which brand best symbolizes pride in Africa – to capture opinions on the brands that are seen to embody the African spirit and are vectors of the image and identity of the continent.

Get the Report

This is only a summary of the report. You can get the full report on the Brand Africa website to dive deeper into the rankings, methodology, and insightful commentaries from experts, as well as past reports.

The post Brand Africa 100: The Best Brands in Africa – 2022 appeared first on GeoPoll.

Data Highlights: Top Brands in Africa

Despite talk of a growing consumer class and increase in the prominence of local African brands, this year’s ranking had the lowest percent of African brands since Brand Africa’s launch in 2010, with just 13% of brands in the top 100 being from Africa. Instead, brands such as Nike and Nestlé, that are headquartered in North America and Europe, along with Asian brands including technology giants Samsung and Techno, dominated the list. Sports apparel brands and technology brands, in particular mobile phone makers, were found to be the most popular brands in Africa in 2020. Nike was the top brand for the second year, with Adidas coming in at number two and Samsung in third place.

South Africa’s telecom brand, MTN, was the highest-ranking African entry, coming in at number seven. However, in a separate prompted question that specifically asked about African brands, Nigeria’s Dangote, a leading multinational corporation with sugar, flour, and oil & gas subsidiaries, came in on top. Other African brands included Glo telecom, media company DSTV, and retail company Shoprite.

The full list of top brands in Africa is available to view here: Top 100 Brands in Africa 2020

Top FMCG brands in Africa

The Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector continues to grow in Africa, with global brands such as Coca-Cola investing more in the region. This year’s rankings find Coca-Cola to be the top FMCG brand in Africa, ranked number four, and competitor Pepsi comes in at number 16. Other FMCG brands in the top 100 include Danone, Unilever, and Nivea. The top three alcoholic brands were Ireland’s Guinness, followed by two local beer brands, Nigeria’s Star Beer and Kenya’s Tusker. Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Fanta, all from the USA, are the top three non-alcoholic beverage brands, while Nestle, Dangote, and Unilever are the top three consumer, non-cyclical brands.

Top Media Brands in Africa

Given the importance of media in Africa, Brand Africa asks a specific question on top media brands in Africa. This year’s top media brands demonstrate the dominance of international news channels, with BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera, and ITV all within the top five, along with South Africa’s DSTV, which was the second most admired media brand. Social networks and websites including Facebook, YouTube, Google, and Instagram were also represented in the list of top media brands.

Top Finance Brands in Africa

The financial sector has grown enormously in Africa in the past several years, with both mobile money brands and traditional banks vying for customers. For this reason, Brand Africa also asks a specific question on top brands in the financial services sector. Unlike the top media list, which was dominated by non-African brands, the financial services list shows the prominence of local banking brands throughout Africa. Nigerian and South African services are well-represented in the top financial brands list, with Nigeria’s GTB and First Bank taking the number one and two spot, and South Africa’s ABSA and First National Bank coming in at number five and six. Togo’s Ecobank, which was ranked number one last year, was the third most popular financial brand in 2020.

Conduct Brand Research in Africa

GeoPoll conducts research for top brands throughout Africa by remote, mobile-based methods including SMS, voice call, mobile web, and mobile application. If you’re interested in conducting your own study on your brand’s health or key performance indicators, please contact us today.

The post Brand Africa 2020: Ranking Africa’s Most Influential Brands appeared first on GeoPoll.

Highlights – Most Admired Brands in Africa:

• Samsung rises to #1 Most Admired Brand in Africa.
• MTN drops from top spot to #9 overall, but retains top rank as Most Admired African Brand.
• Non-African brands are the Top 3 brands in all markets, except in Nigeria (with Glo at #3), Kenya (with Safaricom/Mpesa #2 and Tusker #3) and Tanzania (with Azam #2).
• African brands’ share among most admired brands drops from 23% to 16%.
• Europe leads the table with 42 of the Top 100 most admired brands. USA leads all countries with 25/100.  South Africa leads Africa with 6/100.
• Lacoste (+52) made the most gains. Levi’s (-68) lost the most ground.

Highlights – Most Valuable brands in Africa:

• Google valued at $109bn, is #1 Most Valuable Brand in Africa 100.
• MTN valued at $2,975m is the Most Valuable African brand.
• African brands represent 0.75% share of the value of the Top 100.

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – 3 March 2017:  Brand Africa today released the annual Brand Africa 100:  Africa’s Best Brands – an annual survey and valuation of the Top 100 brands in Africa. In a representative survey across 19 countries covering every political and economic region, overall, it doesn’t bode well for African brands which have lost ground to their non-African rivals.

Despite its recent crisis with its Galaxy Note 7 model, which notably was never launched in Africa, Samsung takes the #1 spot as the Most Admired Brand in Africa, displacing perennial leader MTN.However, MTN has retained its ranking as the Most Admired African Brand despite challenges particularly in Nigeria, which have knocked some shine off Africa’s leading brand.

As recently reported in the annual Brand Finance 500, Google, which is valued at $109bn globally, has displaced Apple as the Most Valuable Brand in Africa.  MTN, valued at $2,975m, retains its position as the Most Valuable African Brand, with a 13% rise y/y following a 36% decline in the 2014/5 rankings.

Non-African brands have entrenched their positions in Africa, growing their share of the Top 100 Admired brands from 77% in 2014/5 to 84% in 2016/7.  In a country by country review, non-African brands rank the Top 3 brands in every market, except for Nigeria (with Glo at #3), Kenya (with Safaricom/Mpesa #2 and Tusker #3) and Tanzania (with Azam #2).  Samsung is the #1 brand in 8 countries, Nike in 4 countries, Coke in 3 countries, Adidas in 3 countries and Airtel in one country.  Non-African brands represent 99.25% share of the value of the Top 100 Valuable brands in Africa.

Among the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa, Europe leads all regions with 42/100, followed by North America (25/100), Asia (17/100) and Africa (16/100).  The United States leads the top countries of origin with 25/100, followed by the UK (8/100), Japan (6/100), Germany (6/100), South Africa (6/100), France (5/100) and China (5/100), Italy (4/100), Nigeria (3/100), Ireland (3/100), Netherlands (3/100) and Spain (3/100).

The Top 100 Admired brands are distributed among 11 categories across apparel (19%), consumers (13%), electronics (13%), telecommunications (12%), auto manufacturers (11%), alcoholic beverages (10%), food (6%), non-alcoholic beverages (5%), media (4%), sports & fitness (4&),retail (2%) and cosmetics (1%).

Between the 2014/5 and 2016/7 survey periods, a majority of the leading brands have retained their presence in the Top 100, with 31 new brands, notably South Africa’s Shoprite and Pick n Pay, Moroccos’s Marwa, Ethiopia’s Anbessa Shoes and Nigeria’s Lady Care, entering the Top 100 in 2016/7 compared to 34 between 2014/5.  A resurgent Lacoste (+52) made the most gains on the table and Levi’s (-68) lost the most ground.

Because of the categories, transformational impact in Africa, Brand Africa also conducted a separate parallel survey to determine the Most Admired Brands in Media and the Most Admired Brands in Financial Services.  In the financial services category, Nigeria’s GTB Bank leads the overall rankings in Africa and Barclays retains its position as the number 1 non-African financial services brand.  In the media category, BBC and DSTV retain their positions as the top non-African and African media brands respectively.

“These rankings are an important metric of the progress Africa is making in creating competitive world-class brands that respond to African conditions, needs and ambitions,” says Thebe Ikalafeng, Founder and Chairman of Brand Africa and Chairman of Brand Finance Africa.  “It is a great concern that the share of African brands is so low and even declining. African entrepreneurs ought to know their consumers better than anyone.  It is a wake- up call for African governments to create enabling environments to support these entrepreneurs to build Made in Africa brands which in turn will enable the governments to fund and drive their own development agenda.”

Brand Africa 100 was developed by pan-African branding and reputation advisory firm, Brand Leadership Group supported by Kantar TNS the globally respected consumer knowledge and information company, GeoPoll, the leading mobile survey platform with a database of over 300m users in emerging markets and Brand Finance, the world’s leading independent valuation consultancy.

Brand Africa 100 is a two-phase process that starts with a comprehensive consumer research across 19 countries in Africa to establish a consumer generated list of admired brands.  These 100 most admired brands are then valued and re-ranked according to value by Brand Finance.

GeoPoll used their sophisticated mobile SMS technology to identify the most admired brands in Africa among a representative sample of African consumers in 19 African countries.  These countries collectively represent an estimated 74% of Africa’s population.

“Because of its high penetration across Africa, the mobile phone is a valuable tool in its ability to collect data from diverse geographical areas. GeoPoll’s method of collecting data through mobile surveys demonstrates the power and reach of mobile technology in its delivery of real-time, actionable data” says Steve Gutterman, CEO – GeoPoll.

Kantar TNS then collated this vast dataset and analysed the data to create a weighted consumer admiration score that reduced over 11,000 brand mentions to the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa.  With such diverse populations between countries and regions, the weighted index ensured the results are representative of the population within each country and Africa overall to reflect a unique ranking of the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa.

“’Success for brands is about establishing an emotional connection, creating intimacy and being more present in consumers everyday lives.  This survey is a timely assessment of the various brands that play a vital role in Africa,” says Karin Du Chenne Kantar TNS Chief Client Officer Africa Middle East

In conclusion Brand Finance used the royalty relief methodology which is compliant with International Valuation Standards Authority as a basis for determining the fair market value of brands to establish the Top 100 Most Valuable Brands.

“African brands have an important role in helping to build the African continent,” concluded Oliver Schmitz, Managing Director – Brand Finance Africa. “As Africa builds competitive and valuable brands it helps to tell a positive story of the continent.”

The Brand Africa 100 results will be published in African Business on sale globally from 3 March 2017 and online to subscribers on http://www.africanbusinessmagazine.com/ and www.brandafrica.org.

….ENDS….

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BRAND AFRICA

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Brand Africa is a non-profit intergenerational movement to inspire a great Africa through creating a positive image of Africa, celebrating its diversity and driving its competitiveness.

Brand Africa mobilises African and diaspora decision makers, thought leaders, influencers and future leaders to engage with, shape and drive an African agenda catalytic for creating an enabling environment for driving Africa’s growth, reputation, competitiveness and unity.

Brand Africa is an independent Non-Profit Organisation registered in the Republic of South Africa (NPC 2013/146300/08) and a signatory to the Independent Code of Governance for Non-Profit Organisations in Africa (www.governance.org.za).

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BA 100 PARTNERS

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Brand Leadership

Brand Leadership is a pan-African brand development, activation and measurement firm and a strategic partner for global and African decision-makers and brand builders interested in and/or invested in Africa.  Established in 2002, Brand Leadership has over the years delivered brand-led solutions that respond to African conditions, needs and ambitions for over 100 African and non-African brands in Africa across diverse industries and markets in the private and public sectors.  www.brandleadership.com

Kantar TNS

Kantar TNS advises clients on specific growth strategies around new market entry, innovation, brand switching and stakeholder management, based on long –established expertise and market –leading solutions. With a presence in over 80 countries, Kantar TNS has more conversations with the world’s consumers than anyone else and understands individual human behaviour and attitudes across cultural, economic and political regions of the world. Kantar TNS is part of the Kantar group, one of the world’s largest insight, information and consultancy groups, with 28,500 employees across 100 countries encompassing the whole spectrum of research and consultancy disciplines, enabling the group to offer clients business insights at each and every point of the consumer cycle. www.kantar.com

GeoPoll

GeoPoll is the world’s largest mobile survey platform, with a network of over 300 million users in Africa, Asia and Middle East. By asking people questions on their mobile phones without the need for data plans or internet access, GeoPoll is able to help customers understand trends, preferences, and conditions in countries where data has traditionally been difficult and expensive to obtain.

Through their relationships with Mobile Network Operators, GeoPoll connects researchers directly to their audiences, making it faster and more cost effective than any other method of data collection. GeoPoll’s multi-modal platform administers remote surveys through SMS, voice, or mobile web, and delivers results in near real-time, giving anyone the ability to make data-driven decisions.

GeoPoll works with Fortune 500 companies, non-profit organisations, and governments to provide insights on everything from food security to brand preference. Their services include both custom research and subscription data products which deliver daily data on media measurement, fast-moving-consumer-goods tracking, and more.

GeoPoll is a division of Mobile Accord Inc., a mobile platform company powering communication for social good. Mobile Accord’s products and services empower major non-profit, organizations, universities and government entities to benefit from the power of mobile technology.

www.geopoll.com

Brand Finance

Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Brand Finance advises strongly branded organisations on how to maximise their value through the effective management of their brands and intangible assets.  Brand Finance has conducted thousands of brand valuations for clients of all sizes and across most sectors. Brand Finance’s clients include international brand owners, tax authorities, lawyers, government bodies and investment banks. Brand Finance publishes Global 500 – the world’s most valuable brands and Global Nation Brands 100 – the most valuable nation brands leagues as well as regional tables in all regions annually. www.brandfinance.com

African Business

African Business is the best-selling pan-African business magazine with an award-winning team widely respected for its editorial excellence. It provides the all-important tools enabling decision makers to maintain a critical edge in a continent that is changing the world. African Business special reports profile a wide range of sectors and industries including transport, energy, mining, construction, aviation and agriculture. www.africanbusinessmagazine.com

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