Most Valuable Dutch Brands worth $72.7bn as Heineken takes top spot

The most valuable Dutch brands have a total combined value of $72.7 billion, according to the Kantar BrandZ Top 30 Most Valuable Dutch Brands 2023 ranking. A combination of successful pricing strategies, overseas expansion, and creating value through meaningful difference has seen the top 30 Dutch brands grow their overall brand value by 10% since the last ranking was published in 2021.

Heineken is the most valuable Dutch brand with a brand value of $13.7bn and has seen its value in the Dutch ranking increase by 18% over the last two years. By focusing on its pricing strategy, the iconic beer brand has successfully positioned itself as a premium product as well as appealing to quality-conscious consumers.

With its focus on discount prices, Action (No.10; $2.3bn) is the fastest rising Dutch brand in the top 30 ranking, rising three places and increasing its brand value by 75%. The non-food discount retailer has embraced international expansion in recent years, opening an additional 182 stores across Europe, including Belgium and France in 2022.

The top 30 brands in the Netherlands have successfully navigated the challenges of the last two years, increasing their value by 10% – outpacing the economy – and returning to pre-pandemic levels. We know that strong brands are more resilient. Long-term investment, particularly during difficult times, will drive brand equity and enable brands to recover more quickly.

Trust was also a major factor in the growth of this year’s ranking, with the strongest Dutch brands leading their European counterparts on the Kantar BrandZ Trust Index, and outpacing their peers on integrity, inclusion, and inspiring trust. Brands that demonstrate being sustainable, transparent, purposeful, and meaningfully different will continue to grow their value.

Despite huge challenges for the sector during the pandemic, online travel services platform, Booking.com takes second place with a brand value of $11.4bn. Growing its value by 21%, Booking.com is a particularly meaningful and different brand for consumers and it is this strong meaningful difference that is helping the brand recover from two years of travel chaos. Third-placed ING ($8.5bn) is the most meaningful and different brand in the ranking, with the highest brand value within the financial services category. It also the first time it has appeared in the top 3.

New Dutch kids on the block

Four newcomers enter the Top 30 Most Valuable Dutch Brands for the first time in 2023, Basic-Fit (No.17; $986m), Rituals (No.18; $759m), Wehkamp (No.29; $248m), and Plus (No.30; $223m).

While each brand is growing its value, their strategies are very different. Like Action, high-end brand Rituals has focused on international expansion to become the fastest-growing personal care brand in Europe, offering consumers quality and affordable luxury. Online retailer, Wehkamp offers a wide range of quality and popular brands in addition to their own branded products, and provides a convenient shopping experience for customers, scoring high on trust.

Basic-Fit is a value-driven brand appealing to customers looking for a good deal in challenging economic times. Building on its mission to make fitness accessible to everyone, the leisure brand, offers flexible membership that can be used at any of its gyms. While food retailer, Plus offers a good range of products with added convenience, staying local to customers through its independent chain of stores.

Top 30 Most Valuable Dutch Brands 2023 performing well on being meaningful (meeting needs in relevant ways and/or building affinity), different (being unique vs. competitors and/or setting trends) and salient (coming easily to mind) include online retailer bol.com (No.14; $1.2bn) as the most meaningful. The oldest brand in the top 30, but one of the most progressive, Albert Heijn (No.13; $1.3bn) is perceived to be the most differentiated. Of the four newcomers, Basic-Fit is above average (of the top 30) in being meaningfully different.