Huawei’s growing brand influence globally has received another big boost. It has climbed to #88 on Forbes’ Most Valuable Brands of 2017 list, the only Chinese brand making the list. Huawei’s brand value stands at USD7.3 billion, an improvement of 9% year-on-year.
Forbes selects 100 most valuable brands each year from a pool of 200 global brands. This year’s crop of 100 spread across 15 countries with the United States taking the lead with 56 spots. Germany, France and Japan take 11, seven and six spots respectively.
It’s no surprise that technology is the hottest industry on the list–taking 18 spots on the list. Nine out of the top 15 brands are technology companies.
Apple takes the podium for the 7th consecutive year. In other industries, 13 are from the financial industry with American Express the top dog in the category: valued at USD24.5 billion, ranked #22.
Huawei’s brand growth is attributed to its smartphone business which has grown steadily in the past year. Data from top research institutes namely IDC, SA and Trendforce confirms Huawei’s #3 global rank and #1 in China.
Its smartphone sales momentum is spearheaded by the photography-centric P series and chic powerhouse Mate series, both focused on the premium segment.
The flagship Huawei P9/P9 Plus sold over 12 million units globally, making it the first Huawei flagship device to sell over 10 million units.
The latest P10 series, now available in the new Pantone Greenery colour, has been well-received by consumers worldwide.
Strategic partnerships
As part of its brand-building process and efforts to create a stronger emotional link with consumers, Huawei continues to forge partnership with other globally-recognised brands. Its groundbreaking collaboration with Leica has opened new possibilities in mobile photography and creative arts.
Following the Leica partnership, Huawei has also partnered global colour specialists Pantone; the world’s most renowned fashion magazine Vogue and recently cooperated with the Saatchi Gallery.
Besides making the Forbes’ list, Huawei has also made the list of Interbrands’s Top 100 most valuable brands of the world, in 2016. It was the fastest climber in the technology industry, at #72 spot.
Additionally, it was also in the “Global 500” in 2017, moving up seven spots to #40, year-on-year.
Image credit: Forbes
