Shell is most valuable British brand, valued at £40.1 billion and Land Rover takes a back seat

Shell (brand value up 10% to £40.1 billion) holds on to its position as the most valuable British brand. Shell has taken a global leadership role in helping customers divest from Russia in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and helped provide some degree of energy security to Europe.

Every year, leading brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance puts 5,000 of the biggest brands to the test, and publishes over 100 reports, ranking brands across all sectors and countries. The world’s top 250 most valuable and strongest British brands are included in the annual Brand Finance UK 250 2023 ranking.

Annie Brown, UK General Manager of Brand Finance, commented:

“To demonstrate the performance of a wider pool of British brands, Brand Finance has chosen to expand our 2023 ranking to the Top 250 UK brands. Notable challenger brands from all sectors entering the ranks such as Revolut and Fever-Tree showcase the importance of targeted marketing and consumer perceptions for up-and-coming brands.”

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Utility Warehouse is fastest-growing British brand, more than doubling in value to £364.4 million

Utility Warehouse (trading name of Telecom Plus) saw significant brand value growth this past year, increasing 118% to £364.4 million. The brand’s value growth has been largely driven by its structural cost advantage. Despite rising wholesale energy costs, Utility Warehouse’s unique multi-utility solution has provided an advantage point over competitors.

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Britain’s brands transition to abbreviated branding

Brand Finance’s ranking reflects the steadily increased prominence of acronym branding. Of the top 100 most valuable British brands, 20 are acronyms. Of the top 10, half – EY, PWC, HSBC, BP, and KPMG. Further into the ranking we see iconic brands such as BT, BBC, GSK, which are all examples of brands which have moved to their abbreviated acronym version in their relatively recent history. New examples over the past year include LSEG (previously the London Stock Exchange Group), WTW (previously Willis Towers Watson), and more recently the corporate brand JLR (previously Jaguar Land Rover).

Dettol cleans up as strongest British brand, earning AAA+ rating and Greggs is on a roll with AAA rating

In addition to calculating brand value, Brand Finance also determines the relative strength of brands through a balanced scorecard of metrics evaluating marketing investment, stakeholder equity, and business performance. Compliant with ISO 20671, Brand Finance’s assessment of stakeholder equity incorporates original market research data from over 100,000 respondents in 38 countries and across 31 sectors.

Dettol (brand value up 54% to £1.3 billion) is a popular choice for household and commercial use, earning it a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 90.5 out of 100. Dettol’s resulting AAA+ rating is the highest rating awarded by Brand Finance. Consumers recognise Dettol for its effectiveness in killing germs and preventing infection spread. Post-pandemic, awareness around hygiene and health has risen and consumers appear to trust Dettol. Dettol benefits from consumer willingness to pay more for its products compared to off-brand alternatives.