Reports

    Meet The Top 100 Chinese Brands In 2022

    Tencent retained its first spot on Kantar BrandZ’s Top 100 Chinese Brands 2022, while Li-Ning and Xiaohongshu saw prominent growth in brand value.
    Chinese tech giant Tencent retained its first spot on Kantar BrandZ’s Top 100 Chinese Brands 2022 list. Photo: Shutterstock
      Published   in Profile

    What happened

    On August 25, Kantar BrandZ’s Top 100 Chinese Brands 2022 outlined the country’s leading players. According to the report released by global research firm Kantar, the top 100 homegrown brands amount to 1.24 trillion (8.51 trillion RMB) in overall brand value, surpassing the monumental 1 trillion (6.86 trillion RMB) mark for the second year in a row. While total brand value fell by 20 percent, local leaders in the technology, media, and retail sectors showed strong resilience through consolidating their core business while exploring growth opportunities of emerging trends.

    Kantar BrandZ’s report, released by Kantar, is a recognized currency when it comes to accessing brand value and quantifying brand assets and performance.

    The Jing Take

    China has long been known as the factory of the world with strong manufacturing capacity but low brand-building capability. However, this stereotype has been diluted by local conglomerates — dynamic newcomers which are fast risers. As per Kantar, the top Chinese brands present a well-developed cultural intelligence, which have been proven in their “responsibility towards mental health,” “holistic approach towards sustainability,” and the development of “a closer community.” The report also pointed out many local brands’ investment in the metaverse which illustrates their forward thinking.

    This report not only gives credit for the featured brands’ performance, but also offers guidance for global brands to find qualified and trusted local partners in China (especially in the face of global uncertainties, such as supply chain disruptions, inflation, rising energy prices, and the fallout from the pandemic). Take Tencent; though the tech titan logged its first-ever revenue decline in the second quarter of 2022, its belief in technology innovation secured the group’s leading position in China.

    In addition to the world-famous corporates, athletic apparel brand Li-Ning, with a 66 percent growth rate, was the fastest-growing name in the top 100 brands. Meanwhile, lifestyle-focused social platform Xiaohongshu, ranked 37, was one of the highest-ranking newcomers. Their rapid growth deserves overseas brands’ attention when it comes to localization strategies.

    The Jing Take reports on a piece of the leading news and presents our editorial team’s analysis of the key implications for the luxury industry. In the recurring column, we analyze everything from product drops and mergers to heated debate sprouting on Chinese social media.

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