FEW AFRICAN GLOBAL BRANDS
FEW AFRICAN GLOBAL BRANDS
Wednesday, 14 October 2009 05:24
Every year a financial valuation of brands is carried out globally to determine the most valuable global brands. The information is published by Business Week as The Best Global Brands, and the top ten of these has come to be considered as the “Ivy league” of brands. One of the glaring facts that continuously comes through each year is that not one African brand makes it to the top 100. The main reason for this is that one of the criteria required to be considered for valuation is proof that the brand derives at least thirty percent of its revenue outside its country of origin. This criterion leaves only a handful of African brands, like SABMiller, up for consideration and even these don’t make the 100 cut.
Some may be nonchalant at this revelation and brush it aside as a feel good process. However, it is an economic indicator of how Africa is lagging behind in the globalization game. The fact that Africa does not have brands that can make it to The Best Global Brands means that we are a net importer of brands.
This not to say that Africa does not export significant volumes of goods and services to the rest of the World, what it indicates is that our exports are largely unbranded. Considering that branded products attract a higher price that unbranded ones this translates to a loss of economic value to the exporting country. An example of this situation is the fact that Kenya is probably the World’s largest exporter of cut flowers and one of the Worlds largest exporters of tea and coffee. Isn’t it ironic that Starbucks has once again made it to the top one hundred list while the USA does not produce coffee or tea? Why aren’t Kenyan coffee and tea brands playing a significant role in the global scenario?
Asia, in contrast to Africa’s performance, has this year managed to secure amongst the top one hundred brands, with brands like Honda, Samsung, Sony, Hundai, LG and Nissan. This is a clear indication that third World countries can produce global brands and develop them to a level where they are ranked amongst the most valuable in the World.
Asia has leveraged its competitive advantage of cheap highly skilled labour and embraced technology to produce high quality products. Global brand strategy has then been utilized to position these products as quality brands that are acceptable and sought after the World over. They have done this so effectively that these brands are no longer seen as Asian brands but as global brands.
The writer is the Chief Executive Officer of Interbrand Sampson East Africa, a strategic brand consultancy firm.
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