Online Retail and Take-away Brands are the UK’s Fastest Growing Brands During the Pandemic

Online retail and take-away brands Ocado, Deliveroo and Just Eat are the UK’s fastest growing brands according to the 2020 BrandZ™ Top 75 Most Valuable UK Brands report, launched by WPP and Kantar.

Already gathering pace pre-COVID-19, Ocado’s online capabilities and perceptions of strong differentiation from other grocery retailers made it take the coveted title of this year’s fastest growing UK brand, increasing +63 percent in brand value to $3.3bn (£2.7bn) and reaching no.18 in the Top 75 ranking.

Home delivery services threw the UK’s restaurant and takeaway industry a lifeline as it was locked out by COVID-19.

Intense competition between Just Eat (no.20) and Deliveroo (no.29) increased due to takeover deals and accelerated consumer demand for home-delivered restaurant and take-away food over the last year. This allowed Deliveroo to grow by +40 percent in brand value to $1.9bn (£1.6bn), and Just Eat +19 percent to $2.8bn (£2.2bn), making them the second and third fastest growing brands respectively. 

Urgent call to action for UK brands

While some individual UK brands have performed well, growth in the BrandZ Top 75 UK brands as a collective has fallen by more than 15 percent, or $32 billion (£26bn) since 2017.

There is further cause for concern due to a 13 percent decrease in value in the last 12 months which has fallen behind both the Global Top 100 Most Valuable Brands ranking published in June, and projections for the global economy by a large margin. Yet, despite very challenging macro-economic circumstances, the BrandZ UK Top 75 brands have still eclipsed the performance of the FTSE 100. Despite the impact of COVID-19, the BrandZ Top 75 UK portfolio showed strong recovery, outperforming the FTSE 100 by almost +5 percent.

The top five most valuable UK brands remained unchanged and these are Vodafone (-13 percent, $23.1bn; £18.9bn), which recently announced its intention to float its mobile towers business in a deal that could be worth £18bn, maintained its no.1 spot for the third year running; HSBC (-19 percent; $18.7bn; £15.3bn) and Shell (-22 percent $16.1bn; £13.1bn) make up the top three respectively.

Dyson (no.15; $3.5bn; £2.9bn) is by far the fastest rising brand since the UK ranking’s inception in 2017, fuelled by differentiation, innovation and product excellence. Increasing +51 percent in brand value over the last three years, it scores high on ‘difference’ (200) and ‘innovation’ (125), where 100 is the average index score.

Jane Bloomfield, Chief Growth Officer, Kantar UK said: “Despite massive headwinds in COVID-19 and Brexit, a small number of UK brands have performed well over the last 12 months, but they are the exception. Many of our UK Top 75 continue to trade on size and stature, which is a precarious position in a highly competitive global landscape. A lack of innovation and differentiation leaves them exposed as household budgets fall and consumers re-evaluate brand choices, often permanently switching to new brands they have found during the pandemic. This is a ‘do’ moment for brands and positive action is needed to ensure survival. No brand is too big or too well known to fail in the current climate. Understanding the drivers of brand growth and acting on them quickly is business critical.”

The BrandZ Top 15 Most Valuable UK Brands 2020

 Mark Chamberlain, Managing Director of Brand, Kantar UK said: “What BrandZ has demonstrated time and again is that there are no shortcuts to sustainable growth. BrandZ helps business leaders balance the pressure for short-term results with long-term sustainable and profitable growth. Brands that are bold enough to invest in making consumers’ lives better in creative and innovative ways, even during times of recession, have the potential to reap the rewards.”