Brand Value Rankings: Led by its innovative concepts and fast-paced expansion into quick commerce, Zomato has emerged the fastest riser with a 100 percent year-on-year growth in brand value at $3,549 in 2024, as per 'Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Indian Brands' report.

Zomato doubled its value owing to reducing friction for customers. Besides, aiming to build a strong desire among consumers for the brand has also helped Zomato register 100 per cent growth.

Interestingly, travel platform MakeMyTrip has paved its way in the list of top Indian brands after witnessing significant improvement in customer experience.

"The entry of MakeMyTrip's in the list is driven by the aspect that people are traveling more. Customers are using travel websites more. The company though has also reduced the friction in making bookings and finding destinations in the entire process of travel," said Soumya Mohanty, Managing Director & Chief Client Officer, Insights, South Asia at Kantar, a marketing data and analytics company.

With a combined value of $450.5 billion, country’s top 75 most valuable brands at present have marked a 19 percent increase from last year. Brands across a cross section of sectors propelled this growth.  As many as 54 brands have boosted their brand value over the past year. This unprecedented growth has surpassed most other rankings world-over and closely reflects the 20 percent increase seen in the global top 100 brands.

TCS remains leader

Tata Consultancy Services ( TCS ) has managed to retain its top rank in the brand rankings for the third consecutive year with a brand value of $49.7 billion. This is a  16 per cent growth compared to last year, led by investments in innovation, particularly in AI and digital transformation.

" TCS retains the top slot owing to its sheer financial size. For brands like TCS , Infosys , HCL Tech , SBI , a big part of their total value is just their sheer size. But all these brands are also doing a lot of activities in brand building. If you look at TCS, it sponsors multiple marathons, which is a way to get salience and brand name visibility," said Deepender Rana, executive managing director, Insights, South Asia at Kantar.

In terms of categories, the automobile sector  has seen significant growth along with financial services.

Aspirational categories

The automobile sector has also seen robust results, with Maruti Suzuki witnessing a 24 per cent growth in brand value. Bajaj Auto has seen  94 per cent increase while   Mahindra registered 78 per cent rise in brand value.

Mahindra 's SUVs (sport utility vehicle) constitute 53 per cent of India's passenger car market as of June 2024. The high demand of models such as XUV700, Scorpio N, and Thar, which continue to see high demand and long waiting periods, has firmed up Mahindra 's leadership in mid and premium SUVs.

A growing middle class coupled with rising disposable income are leading the demand for vehicles. This has marked owning a car from being a status symbol to now become a necessity. Better infrastructure, support from government for electric vehicles and strong export growth expectations are also boosting the industry's momentum, the report has added.