London-based valuation and strategy consultancy firm Brand Finance this week announced its list of the 500 “most valuable brands” in the United States, and several with major Wisconsin connections made the list.
The Wisconsin brands (and their value, according to Brand Finance) that made the list include:
144. Kohl’s, $4.9 billion ($4.3 billion in 2016)
206. Fiserv, $3.5 billion ($2.9 billion in 2016)
226. Harley-Davidson, $3.1 billion ($5 billion in 2016)
236. Johnson Controls, $3 billion ($3 billion in 2016)
305. Miller Lite, $2.2 billion ($1.8 billion in 2016)
317. Coors, $2.1 billion (not rated in 2016)
387. Manpower, $1.7 billion ($2.2 billion in 2016)
Kohl’s (Menomonee Falls), Fiserv (Brookfield), Harley-Davidson (Milwaukee) and ManpowerGroup (Milwaukee) are all based in Wisconsin. Johnson Controls is based in Ireland, but has its North American operational headquarters in the Milwaukee area.
MillerCoors is based in Chicago, but Brand Finance considers Miller Lite and Coors to be Wisconsin brands. The beers are brewed at the MillerCoors brewery in Milwaukee, but the beers are also brewed at MillerCoors breweries in Georgia, Virginia, Texas, Colorado, California and Ohio.
“Wisconsin-based brands had mixed fortunes this year,” Brand Finance said in a news release. “Fiserv, Miller Lite and Kohl’s all showed strong growth in brand value of 22 percent, 20 percent and 14 percent respectively.
“However, globally iconic Harley-Davidson, lost 38 percent of its value bringing it down to $3.1 billion. Harley is struggling amid a decline in motorbike ridership and an aging core buyer demographic. It remains the fourth-most valuable automobile brand in the country behind Ford, Chevrolet and GMC, but has lost its position as Wisconsin’s most valuable brand.
“Management consulting firm ManpowerGroup also lost nearly a quarter of its brand value in the last year.
“At the other end of the scale, Fiserv has increased its brand value by 22 percent, and is Wisconsin’s only technology company to feature in the U.S. 500 (America’s most valuable brands) list.”
Other brands on the list with major Wisconsin operations include:
12. GE, $35.3 billion
83. U.S. Bank, $7.1 billion
163. Caterpillar, $4.4 billion
240. Oscar Mayer, $2.9 billion
The top 10 U.S. brands, according to Brand Finance are:
1. Google, $109.5 billion
2. Apple, $107.1 billion
3. Amazon.com, $106.4 billion
4. AT&T, $87 billion
5. Microsoft, $76.3 billion
6. Verizon, $65.9 billion
7. Walmart, $62.2 billion
8. Facebook, $62 billion
9. Wells Fargo, $41.6 billion
10. McDonald’s, $39 billion
California has the most valuable brands by state with 71 of the country’s top 500 brands. New York has 70.
Brand Finance helped to craft the internationally recognized standard on Brand Valuation, ISO 10668, according to the firm’s news release.
