Lego is Denmark’s most valuable brand for an eighth consecutive year. This came as Lego achieved a 38% year-on-year brand value increase to DKK53.4 billion. This also makes Lego the world’s most valuable toys brand.
Anna Brolin, Managing Director of Brand Finance Nordics commented:
“The biggest Danish brands are unusual for being firmly rooted in the physical world: Lego is an iconic brand across the world for the unlimited play opportunities it creates, and Maersk is an integral part of the global goods economy. Across the world, children know that a Lego toy represents hours of fun, while parents know the pain of standing on a forgotten Lego piece in the middle of the night. That is the value of Danish brands, which are enduring into the 21st century.”
In addition to calculating brand value, Brand Finance also determines the relative strength of brands through a balanced scorecard of metrics evaluating marketing investment, stakeholder equity, and business performance. In addition to being the most valuable brand, Lego is also the strongest brand in the ranking with a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 85.9 out of 100 and a corresponding AAA brand rating.
Globally-integrated logistics brand, Maersk, has achieved 71% year-on-year brand value growth, taking it to DKK53.2 billion, and reducing the gap behind Lego at the top of the ranking. Maersk has now more-than-doubled in brand value from its pre-pandemic level, with Maersk’s brand strength increasing to 75 with a corresponding AA+ rating.
Utilities brand Ørsted has jumped four places, following a brand value increase of 52% to DKK16.6 billion. This also makes it the third fastest growing Danish brand. In doing this it has leap-frogged Danske Bank (brand value up 5% to DKK14.9 billion), Pandora (brand value up 3% to DKK13.4 billion), and Carlsberg (brand value up 4% to DKK12 billion), all of which drop one position in the ranking.
Novo Nordisk (brand value up 46% to DKK22.2 billion) is a multinational pharmaceutical company specialising in diabetes and weight loss drugs. The brand’s forecasts have increased in 2023, tied to the active promotion and the ramping up of its production of weight loss drugs, Wegovy and Ozempic. These had previously faced widespread shortages last year due to its increasing popularity. Wegovy, also used to treat diabetes, is a once daily injection that suppresses appetite. Testing has found strong connections with weight loss, and as consumer awareness increases, the Novo Nordisk brand is likely to benefit in coming years.
Scandinavia’s largest producer of dairy products, Arla (brand value up 5% to DKK23.7 billion), has the highest Sustainability Perceptions Score of any brand included in the Denmark 50 2023 ranking – 4.82 out of 10. Its Sustainability Perceptions Value is DKK1.7 billion. This indicates the value that Arla has tied up in the sustainability perceptions of stakeholders.
As well as being Denmark’s second most valuable brand, Maersk also has the highest Sustainability Perception Value at DKK3.8 billion. The brand’s position at the top of the SPV table is not an assessment of its overall sustainability performance, but rather indicates how much brand value it has tied up in sustainability perceptions. Maersk’s Sustainability Perception Score was also 4.27 out of 10, the fourth highest in the ranking.
Denmark ranks 18 in the world in the Global Soft Power Index 2023. This means Denmark defends its rank position from last year, at the same time as the nation increases its total score. The nation continues to stand out in relation to several metrics and received a worldwide top 10 rank in three of the eight pillars that contribute to a nation’s Soft Power: “Governance” (ranked 10th), People & Values (ranked 8th) and “Sustainable Future” (ranked 9th), which proves that Denmark continues to punch above its weight in the Soft Power league.