Toyota retains most valuable brand position in latest report

Toyota retained its title as the world’s most valuable car brand in a new ranking of Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands study released on Wednesday by market researcher Millward Brown.holding.

This is coming after Toyota Nigeria wasrecognised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry as the best in vehicle service in Nigeria.

The honour, which was conferred on the firm at the 2016 yearly LCCI award in Lagos, was witnessed by notable individuals from across the country.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz followed in the second and third position, meanwhile, Tesla, entered the top 10 for the first time, indicating the rising challenge traditional automakers face from so-called industry disruptors.

Toyota, which has been number one in nine of the 11 years the study has been carried out, saw its brand value rose 2 per cent to $29.5 billion.

According to the report, Toyota’s emergence followed emphasis on improving its customer’s experience and consistency in raising its value benchmark.

The company’s director, Peter Walshe said: “From the customer’s experience, Toyota is a highly valued brand that continues to innovate. That is its strength and why it continues to generate such high volumes.”

Tesla, which has a brand value of $4.4 billion, overtook Lexus for the number 10 spot among automotive brands, thanks to its widening portfolio with the introduction of affordable models, like the Tesla 3.

Walshe said: “Tesla is something completely different as a luxury brand, and as we know from our BrandZ results, that difference makes the difference. After reinventing the electric car and fighting against suspicion in the luxury market, its announcement of a mass-market model has only boosted consumers’ desire to try the brand. It has grown like an Apple and a Facebook, which is enormous.”

Speaking Porsche, which also entered top 10 and stood number, Walshe said: “Porsche has gone back to what it stands for, by bringing out products to key niche groups. It is a bit like an Apple, since it has products that are desirable, but it equates that with its brand, representing additional desirability. This is something Porsche has always done in spades.”

Second-ranked BMW’s value increased 2 percent to $26.8 billion. The German automaker continued to receive a boost from its new 7-series flagship, i8 plug-in hybrid supercar and i3 EV, Walshe said.
According to the report, BMW has tremendous brand experience about it and the actual drivability of its models remains incredible and attractive.

Mercedes’ value increased at the highest rate of any brand in the automotive top 10. The Stuttgart-based automaker boosted its brand value by 4 per cent to $22.7 billion, which helped it keep hold on the the number spot.

“Mercedes has greatly benefited from the revamped E class and has done particularly well this year, especially in China,” Walshe said.

The total value of the Top 10 car brands fell 3 percent to $139.9 billion, reflecting value drops for the Audi, Honda and Land Rover brands. Audi experienced the steepest decline of any auto brand in the top 10. Its value fell 6 percent, mainly because of the financial challenges faced by its parent, Volkswagen Group, Walshe said.

Managing Director of the automobile company, Kunle Ade-Ojo, who received the award, expressed appreciation for the recognition awarded to the Toyota brand.

A statement by the TNL said it was a night of glitz and glamour and senior officers from the health, manufacturing, agriculture, education, real estate, banking, the diplomatic sector and other spheres of endeavour were in attendance.

It said in the automobile category, Toyota Nigeria lived up to its superior quality slogan as it won the highly coveted and the only award in the automobile sector of the Nigerian economy, the high standard in automobile service award.

The statement quoted Ade-Ojo as saying the award would further propel the company to improve on its product offerings and the quality of its services to the people.

He promised its customers the firm’s unrelenting commitment to international best practice and excellent customer service delivery at every customer touch point.

He dedicated the award to all his loyal customers and promised not to let them down.

Apart from the automobile category, 18 other awards were presented to different organisations, it stated.

It reported the LCCI as saying the metrics for selecting awardees cut across different considerations.