We’ve already seen that 27 of the Top 50 brands grew last year. But which brands gained the most? And what sets the biggest brands apart?
We have already seen in the previous chapter that the total number of brand choices grew by 16.2%, in line with population growth. But, over the same time frame, how have the biggest global brands performed?
The global Top 50 have seen their CRPs grow 9.4%, chosen 72 billion times in 2021 – compared to 66 billion times in 2012. So, whilst there is definite growth, it is clearly slower than the rest of the branded market.
But these top-line stats do not show the full picture: the one of resilience. Looking at performance over time, we see that in the last few years, the global Top 50 have started to outperform the market.
Clearly the graph shows a number of years where the Top 250 outperformed the Top 50, who saw a decline. But what’s promising is the upward trajectory and fight back from 2019 onwards.
The fact that these brands aren’t going anywhere should come as no surprise. As we stated in last year’s Brand Footprint, the average age of brands in the Top 50 is over 100.
Instrumental to the performance of the Top 50 are the ten biggest brands. Returning to the theme of consistency, the Top 10 have accounted for over 40% of the Top 50 in each of the last ten years, with very little movement in the metric over time.
What is less consistent, though, is the performance of the Top 10 in terms of growth. This varies considerably, hitting highs of eight brands growing in 2019 and 2021, and dropping as low as three brands in both 2016 and 2017.
But, looking at the number growing over time and knowing how important they are, it’s clear their performance dictates the overall performance of the Top 50. We see that the years of Top 50 decline happened when the fewest Top 10 brands grew, whilst the recent rebound has coincided with the strongest performance.
Despite the up-and-down nature of Top 10 growth, as a whole they have outperformed the Top 50, growing their reach by 10.7% (vs 9.4% for the Top 50).
In actual terms that’s a 3 billion CRP increase, almost half of the Top 50 growth in the last decade.
We’ve already talked about the resilience of the Top 50. The Top 10 follow this trait more intensely: they are even tougher and hard to move. This is proved by the fact seven have been in the Top 10 in every edition of Brand Footprint.
So, how do you become the biggest of the big? There are two rules of thumb: 1. Global penetration over 30% 2. Being chosen six times or more per year There were, however, two exceptions to this rule.
Having exceptionally high penetration can help brands win out – such as the case of Dove, which has the third highest global penetration, after gaining additional shoppers for ten years straight.
The other exception is brands having exceedingly high frequency. In this instance Indomie is unique, with frequency 5x higher than the Top 50 average. Uniquely, Indomie has a particularly high footprint in specific markets, which accounts for their dominance.
When we think beyond the very biggest brands and look at the Top 50, we see that penetration is the best way to enter the rankings. High penetration accounts for many of the brands’ successes: 45 have reached a penetration of 10% or over, rather than having a particularly high frequency.
And with that, we’ve reached the point in the publication to unveil this year's most chosen FMCG brands in the world (which you’ll find on the next page). A big congratulations to all brands for being part of this elite group, and especially new entrant Philadelphia, and bounceback brand Gatorade, which has re-entered the rankings.
The number of brands chosen over one billion times is now 28 – up from 16 brands back in 2012 – with Close-Up and Cheetos becoming the latest brands to hit this milestone.
We’ve shown that consistent brand growth can only be achieved by brands that increase their penetration. Therefore, each year we have a secondary ranking of the largest penetration gains globally.
This year, we have three brands all gaining 1% penetration point: Maggi, Pepsi and Vim. But in terms of actual shoppers gained, Maggi has won out due to the fact it had a higher starting penetration than both Pepsi and Vim. This meant Maggi needed to find 6.75 million shoppers (due to population growth) just to maintain the same level of penetration. The brand then found additional shoppers on top of this figure to grow penetration, which should be commended.
Maggi is no one-hit wonder, with growth in seven of the last ten years globally. Since 2012, it has increased its number of shoppers by 33%, and in 2021 it gained penetration in nine of its ten biggest markets. In its two biggest markets, India and Philippines, the brand gained +3.3% and +3.2% penetration points respectively.
In India, Maggi grew on the back of high growth in snacking that started during the pandemic. For perspective, other snacking categories like Biscuits and Savoury snacks have gone up by 10% and 14% respectively (in volume). Noodles, where Maggi plays a large part, grew by 15%.
Last year Maggi manufacturer Nestlé also launched the ONE Nestlé project. It is an entrepreneurship program, where youth will be given the chance to open franchises of Nestlé's products. One of the popular franchises as a part of that program was Maggi Hotspot. These initiatives have helped drive further interest for the brand, encouraging shoppers to go and try these recipes at home.
Whilst in the Philippines, despite the FMCG industry being hard-hit by the pandemic, some categories (particularly cooking staples in which Maggi operates) thrived. Maggi Magic Sarap is their biggest variant, and the market leader in meal flavourings being both affordable and versatile (as it can be used across many different dishes). The 8g single sachet was a key driver of their success. It is present in key retail channels and sits at an accessible price point to help cash-strapped shoppers manage their spend.
The brand has also adopted their offer by increasing their bundle packs from 12 to 14 and bigger individual sachets of 50g and 120g. This has helped them capture shoppers in Modern Trade retailers.
Red Bull saw the biggest CRP gain outside of the Top 50 take-home FMCG brands, with a +16% CRP increase, which equates to 77M more in 2021. This is the joint 10th biggest increase seen globally, moving it up 13 places in the rankings to 65th.
This strong performance is a continuation of the growth it has seen for the last four years, increasing CRPs by 170M since 2017. If the brand continues a similar trajectory it could break into the Top 50 within the next 5 years.
Behind its 2021 performance was a global +0.7% penetration-point increase. As a result, it sits on a level pegging with some of the biggest penetration gains we saw last year; in terms of shoppers it gained an extra 9.6M globally. The brand gained CRPs and shoppers in most of its key markets including the US, Germany, Mainland China, the UK and its home market, Austria.
In the US, the brand has captured the attention of consumers in need of extra energy and looking for Ready-to-Drink alternatives to the more traditional coffee, with Red Bull becoming the favoured caffeine staple for young adults. Carving space between meals in the afternoon, the brand delivers on its main functional benefit: providing energy without compromising on taste.
As the long-standing category leader, Red Bull has benefited from – and outpaced – the continued growth seen in the Energy category. Red Bull has evolved in terms of ingredients and flavours, consistently adding to the core offering. Zero-sugar versions in 2020 promise to taste like the original, and the brand is keeping things fresh with its seasonal flavour launches (e.g. pomegranate and dragon fruit).
All of this points to a broader macro trend within beverages towards ‘Better For You Functionality’. Fuelled by so much information, consumers are seeking out the next way to maximise function (in this case, energy) but with a story.
Similarly in the UK, where the brand gained +2% penetration points, the brand relaunched their “Zero” range, with a new formulation, winning 1 million new shoppers in its first year of launch.
Red Bull stands out from competitors by portraying a sociable and fun beverage: in fact, 1 in 4* Red Bull drinking occasions are because it is “fun to drink”.
Continuing its efforts to keep the category younger and stay relevant, collaborations in industries aligned with GenZ – such as gaming – continue to grow in popularity, with Red Bull’s longstanding involvement with the e-sports /streaming scene. Fundamentally, Energy Drinks and gaming go hand and hand: 1 in 10* occasions occur when consumers are gaming, and recent innovations aim to provide gamers with the energy and nutrition needed for those long gaming sessions.
*Source: Worldpanel US Beverage Consumption panel
