The value of the top 30 most valuable Spanish brands, based on both investor as well as consumer perceptions, has grown by 12% over the past year, according to the latest Kantar BrandZ report. The total value of the top 30 Spanish brands now exceeds $100 billion, which is the highest annual growth rate recorded in the Spanish ranking since the launch of the ranking in 2018. In line with this, many of the brands in the ranking have experienced an increase in brand value.
Bankinter re-enters the ranking at No.27, with a brand value of $371 million. It has moved away in recent years from the traditional clichés of the Financial Services category to focus on emotion-based messages, which has helped the brand to significantly improve its Meaningful Difference (meeting customer needs in relevant ways and being seen as unique versus competitors).
Newcomer Estrella Galicia is at No.28, with a brand value of $367 million. The beer brand has quickly grown from a regional favourite in Northern Spain to a successful national and international brand that is currently sold in 12 countries, demonstrating the value of Spanish brands entering new markets. The brand is perceived as highly differentiated from other brands in its category and performs strongly on the key building blocks of brand equity: Meaningful, Difference and Salience.
Zara remains in first position, followed by Movistar and Iberdrola.
The top three brands remain unchanged from the previous year: Zara (No.1; $25.0bn) remains Spain’s most valuable brand, followed by Movistar (No.2; $13.0bn) and Iberdrola (No. 3; $9.7bn).
Apparel brands from the Inditex group performed particularly well, with Zara, Pull&Bear and Bershka experiencing the most notable increases in value. Pull&Bear (No.11; $1.9bn) is crowned as the top riser, increasing its brand value by 40%, followed by Zara (+32%) and Bershka (No.13; +31%).
The top 10 brands also remain largely unchanged. BBVA (No.4) and Endesa (No.5) each climb one place, while Santander falls to sixth place despite registering an 11% growth in its brand value, and Caixabank (No.9) and Mercadona (No.10) swapping positions.
Kantar BrandZ Top 10 Most Valuable Spanish Brands 2024
| Rank 2024 | Brand | Category | Brand Value (USD Mil) | Brand Value Change vs 2023 |
| 1 | Zara | Apparel | 24,966 | 32% |
| 2 | Movistar | Telecom Providers | 13,024 | -19% |
| 3 | Iberdrola | Utilities | 9,709 | 19% |
| 4 | BBVA | Financial Services | 8,169 | 23% |
| 5 | Endesa | Utilities | 7,698 | 26% |
| 6 | Santander | Financial Services | 7,594 | 11% |
| 7 | Naturgy | Utilities | 4,762 | 2% |
| 8 | Repsol | Energy | 2,418 | -6% |
| 9 | CaixaBank | Financial Services | 2,355 | 13% |
| 10 | Mercadona | Retail | 2,258 | 4% |
Difference is vital: perceptions of value and sustainability.
This new edition of the report highlights two key opportunities for brand-building: price and sustainability. As consumers are increasingly careful with their spending, many marketers have had the instinctive response of lowering prices, but there are dangers of getting carried away with promotional strategies.
What consumers really want is excellent value for money; they want to feel that they are paying for something worthwhile. With discounting, brands get lower margins, and if people get used to buying at those lower prices it's hard to go back. Brands need to focus on improving their Pricing Power, what consumers think a brand is worth, and what makes them different so that consumers feel it is worth, perhaps, paying more for the brand.
Brands with strong pricing power in the ranking are Mapfre (No.19; $645m) and LaLiga (No.14; $1.7bn), which are both priced higher than most of their category, but their consumers feel they offer something special that is worth paying more for.
Another aspect that stands out, and which helps to build this difference and Pricing Power are strong sustainability credentials. According to Carmen Dato, Head of Sustainability, Insights, Kantar, Spain, "Of the world's leading brands, few are considered sustainable, so at a time when it is so important to establish a brand difference that delivers value, being the sustainable choice is a great way to stand out. According to our analysis of this year's Kantar BrandZ Spanish ranking, many of the brands that we consider to have a justified premium price are also the ones with the highest reputation for sustainability. There are even brands that are perceived as sustainable within the margin opportunity category, which means that consumers would be willing to pay a little more for them."
Brands such as Mercadona and Iberdrola stand out in the ranking. Mercadona's social focus, providing a first step in a professional career and as an environment with attractive working conditions, makes it different and relevant, in addition to its work in waste and packaging reduction. Iberdrola, despite being in a challenging category, is a leader in the development of renewable energy sources and has become an advocate for promoting equality in sport, particularly women and girls.
The Kantar BrandZ Top 30 Most Valuable Spanish Brands 2024 ranking, report and extensive analysis are available now at www.kantar.com/campaigns/brandz/spain
For an overarching view of brand performance, Kantar has launched a free interactive tool powered by BrandZ’s wealth of data and Meaningful Different Salient framework. Kantar BrandSnapshot delivers intelligence on 10,000 brands in 40+ markets, offering a quick read on a brand’s performance in a category. Explore for free on Kantar Marketplace today.
