RBC has once again been named Canada’s most valuable brand by Brand Finance Canada. This is the third consecutive time RBC has received top honours from the group.
Brand Finance ranks companies with a dollar-figure value calculated with information from analyst reports and the Dow Jones Sustainability Index as well as other economic factors including revenue and short and long term growth. Brand Finance also considers factors like industry awards and sponsorship activity.
Edgar Baum, managing director of Brand Finance Canada, said RBC achieved its high ranking by courting diverse groups of Canadians through branch level sponsorships and successfully delivering a variety of banking services, from wealth management to credit cards.
However, Baum said he suspects “it’s not going to be this way for very long. TD is right on its tail.”
Four of the list’s top five spots are occupied by banking brands, with TD, Scotiabank and BMO trailing RBC’s lead.
Baum said the measurement period, 2010 to 2011, was especially strong for Canadian brands. “Canada was one of the most successful countries in terms of brand growth,” he said.
Much of that growth, especially within the well-performing banking sector, is due to the strength of Canada’s economy compared to other first world countries. “There’s a lot of benefit to how well Canada has done on the global stage,” Baum said. “[The banks] have accepted the opportunities presented to them in the local space.”
In contrast to the success of Canada’s banking brands, BlackBerry took a sharp turn for the worse. While the smartphone brand was the country’s second most valuable brand when the list was last published in 2009, it fell eight spots to number 10 in just three years.
BlackBerry’s brand valuation took a drastic dive from $4.3 billion to $3.3 billion in that time and Baum said there’s no sign the downward spiral will stop. Since Jan. 1 of this year, Baum estimates BlackBerry has lost at least another 20% of its brand value.
“I don’t think they have a very long shelf life,” Baum said. “The market has lost trust in their ability to deliver. That impacts forecasts.”
Delays in releasing the long-awaited BlackBerry 10 operating system and a poor showing for RIM’s Playbook tablet led to lost confidence. Unless BlackBerry proves it can deliver quality products on time, Baum said confidence will be difficult to regain.
Brand Finance’s Top Canadian Brands (with valuation in $ millions)
1. Royal Bank Of Canada – 8,647
2. TD Bank Financial Group – 8,499
3. Scotiabank – 5,717
4. Bank of Montreal – 5,360
5. Bell – 5,258
6. Enbridge – 4,726
7. CIBC – 4,557
8. Bombardier – 4,199
9. Rogers – 4,087
10. BlackBerry – 3,293
11. Manulife – 3,261
12. Shaw – 3,191
13. George Weston – 3,085
14. Telus – 3,019
15. Canadian National Railway – 2,664
16. Potashcorp – 2,453
17. Loblaws – 2,151
18. Brookfield Properties – 2,091
19. McCain – 2,088
20. Barrick Gold – 1,995
21. Shoppers Drug Mart – 1,926
22. Imperial Oil – 1,849
23. Petro-Canada – 1,831
24. Canadian Tire – 1,791
25. Quebecor Inc – 1,753
26. Canadian Pacific – 1,739
27. National Bank of Canada – 1,660
28. Great-West Lifeco – 1,648
29. Saputo Inc – 1,638
30. Husky Energy – 1,607
31. Tim Hortons – 1,480
32. Sun Life Financial – 1,474
33. TransCanada – 1,470
34. Intact Financial – 1,461
35. Desjardins – 1,430
36. Lululemon Athletica – 1,350
37. CGI – 1,301
38. Onex – 1,301
39. Home Hardware – 1,242
40. Viterra Inc – 1,242
41. Cenovus – 1,109
42. Canadian Utilities – 1,094
43. Sobey’s – 1,093
44. Bell Aliant – 1,015
45. Teck Resources – 967
46. Suncor – 936
47. Syncrude – 933
48. Jim Pattison – 924
49. Real Canadian Superstore – 922
50. Gildan – 908
