- TIME and Statista have compiled a list of the World’s Top Brands, revealing consumers’ spending behaviors and preferences for value over the past year as inflation surged.
- The rankings span 66 product categories and are based on more than 22,000 consumer surveys. Categories ran the gamut, from the traditional, such as sportswear and sneakers, to emerging, such as “neobanking and neobrokerage.”
- Some of the leaders are to be expected: Nike topped sportswear and sneakers, and Walmart topped grocery and grocery delivery, for instance. Others were more surprising. Bath & Body Works led the male cosmetics category, and Chime, an online fintech company, topped the “banks” list.
“Brands are mysterious things. Created by companies looking to promote specific products or services, they’re ultimately defined—for better or worse—by consumer perceptions. They also play starring roles in our preferences and spending behavior as companies respond to, and shape, market trends,” read the article accompanying the list. “Understanding what makes a strong brand is more art than science. But the list shows that strong investment in media and marketing presence usually pay off.”
The brand rankings were determined through surveys conducted in three countries: the United States, Brazil and India. Data was collected between August 2023 and October 2024 via an online panel, in which respondents were asked to identify industries and categories in which they have expertise. They were then asked to select brands they knew, recognized in the media, preferred, used and would use again to gauge awareness, social buzz, likability, usage and loyalty.
The brands were then ranked along a 100-point weighted scale, attributing 15% to awareness, 10% to social buzz, 30% to likability, 15% to usage and 30% to loyalty. A listing of the top 5 winners in each category can be found here.
