Best Australian

Brands 2009
Ranked by brand value
Contents

01 Best Australian Brands Appendix

A letter from Damian Borchok
27 Commonly asked questions
02 Overview
Best Australian Brands 2009 32 About Interbrand

03 Why the Best Australian Brands 32 Contact us

ranking is important

04 The Red Thread by Jez Frampton

Putting the brand at the core of the
business becomes a uniting force behind
everything you do and say to drive value

08 The future of future-proofing brand

investments by Greg Silverman
How will we measure the unobservable
and make informed brand investment?

10 Planning your touchpoints to

accelerate profit by Rune Gustafson
Understanding brand as a central
organising principle requires the
management of every touchpoint to
build the experience for consumers

12 Interbrand’s approach to
valuing brands
Criteria for consideration
and methodology

13 Top line industry stories

by Lynton Pipkorn
Trends and insights into Australian brands

16 Ranking
Profiles of Australia’s Most
Valuable Brands and other prominent
Australian brands
Best
Australian
Brands
Interbrand presents the fourth ranking of the most
valuable Australian brands, arranged by brand value.

The economic turmoil of recent months has demand for their goods and services around the
made it more important than ever to world. Strong brands also create allegiance, use
understand your brand. The past studies of differentiation so they are not easily replicable,
the Best Australian Brands were conducted in work harder to impact markets, and command
times of economic growth. In good economic premium pricing. The best brands also attract
times, most brands will create some sort the best talent, continually reward investors,
of value. But in today’s uncertain times, use leadership to grow market share, and fare
where short- to medium-term profits are better in economic downturns. They are
under significant pressure, the challenge business assets that create value and give
for all brands will be to evaluate their brand companies tighter control of their future.
proposition and better understand their
customers’ perceptions of value. At the same As this study shows, many Australian brands Biography:
time, the dramatic shifts in demand and are poised for further growth. Australian brands As Managing Director for Australia,
business sentiment have altered the horizon are aggressively seeking to expand away from Damian Borchok believes
for most marketing departments. There is our shores into larger and more lucrative brands need bold strategies and
continued pressure placed on ROI, and the overseas markets. This promises these brands remarkable creative execution to
temptation is to cut marketing budgets, greater growth opportunities, and reduces risk deliver breakthrough performances.
discount prices and reposition brands as value to their earnings profile and further revenue His past clients include Telstra, News
propositions to maintain cash flows. Yet, such generation capabilities. Some companies such Limited, Goldman Sachs JBWere,
tactical approaches may erode long-term as Billabong, Macquarie Group, Harvey Norman, ASX, Perpetual, Fuji Xerox, Diageo,
brand value – we all know it is much harder Ansell, Computershare, Flight Centre and even Qantas, David Jones and Nestlé.
to trade a customer back up the value chain Australia Post have now established offshore
once margins have been eroded. cash flows. This strategy has proven to be
a great success for these brands, and it is clear
Protecting the brand’s long-term compound that many Australian brands are well prepared
investment must remain the highest priority. for the challenges that lie ahead. I would like
The careful crafting of a brand’s positioning to take this opportunity to congratulate each
must not be put at risk by expedient use of brand in making the Best Australian Brands
tactical communications that drive short- table. I wish you every success in your brand-
term volume benefits. Such a strategy can building efforts and the future that lies
lead to the destruction of the promises that ahead. I would also like to take this moment
created value for the brand in the first place. to thank Monash University and the Faculty
The real test for Australian brands weathering of Business and Economics for their research
the economic downturn and creating support in producing the Best Australian Brands
sustainable long-term brand value lies in 2009 study.
understanding these promises and staying
true to the pillars that form the foundation Yours sincerely,
of a business’s brand value.

Strong brands develop even stronger products

and services, undeniably creating sustainable
value for their owners. If brands are innovative
and managed correctly, they can move Damian Borchok
seamlessly across geographies, transcend Managing Director
different languages and cultures, and create Interbrand Australia

Best Australian Brands 2009 01

Overview
Best Australian
Brands 2009
We are delighted to unveil the Best Australian
Brands 2009.
In order to qualify for the Best Australian Brands reporting periods or the inability to separate
study, the company that owns the brand must individual brand earnings from consolidated
be listed on the Australian Stock Exchange or
have its financial information publicly available. their individual brand value.
The brand must be registered for at least three
years, and it must originate in Australia or be
owned by Australian companies.
The following insights highlight the specifics
of the Best Australian Brands ranking,
and the present situation of Australia’s best
performing brands.
• Telstra, in first position, continues to be
Australia’s most valuable brand at A$ 9.7
billion. In second position and valued at
A$ 7.1 billion, the Commonwealth Bank of
Australia (CBA) is Australia’s most valuable
banking brand (with National Australia
Bank at A$ 5.1 billion taking out third place).
• The top 10 brands proved to be very stable
and have demonstrated an ability to manage • Recommendations for how brand value
their brands to create greater value over
a sustained period of time.
• The big financial services brands in Australia
have not yet been as seriously affected as
their contemporaries in others countries.
This is a result of the legacy of a strong
regulatory system, strong balance sheets
and a healthy domestic deposit base. CBA is
by far Australia’s biggest bank and has gained • The extent to which brand and
considerable value by representing ”a safe
financial haven“ for a lot of Australians.
• O
 f considerable interest going forward will
be how Westpac will manage the value of its
A$ 6.7 billion merger (the combined values
of both the Westpac and St. George brands).
The challenge will be to continue to grow
the value of the St. George brand, currently
valued at A$ 1.9 billion, without eroding
Westpac’s value.
02 Best Australian Brands 2009
It is important to mention that there are
other valuable Australian brands that would
make this list. However, because of differing
figures, we are unable to include or estimate
The importance of brand valuation
The articles in this study introduce the
importance of understanding the importance
of brands as a central organizing principle.
Brand valuation is an essential step in this
process. It provides the weaponry to identify
how brand influences performance by
uncovering the key drivers that effect
consumer choice. And as a management
tool, brand valuation also reveals a number
of key insights that serve to provide an ROI
perspective and, more importantly, inform
the future strategic direction of the brand.
These include:
drivers can be incorporated into brand
positioning, media planning, communication
touchpoints and experience
• The health of the brand – strengths,
weaknesses, brand development
opportunities, brand stretch and market/
competitive threats
communications strategies are contributing
to creating brand value
• D
 rivers of competitive advantage and how
these are sustainable
• A
 reas of brand weakness and the strategies
required to build brand strength and lift
brand performance
• M
 arketing spend guidance to ensure the
greatest value impact
The key to successful brand value
management for Australian brands is to put
in place strategies that take advantage of
opportunities in the downturn, then set
a budget to achieve that strategy. Brands
will need to work harder and smarter in this
period to maintain leadership and generate
brand value. Central to their success will be
the ability to get closer to stakeholders by
employing more robust, end user-orientated
analytics practices to yield greater evidence-
based insights and outcomes.
The article, “The Future of Future-Proofing
Brand Investments”, by Greg Silverman
highlights how analytics can assist brands
to make more informed brand investments.
These analytics-based approaches aid
precision in decision-making and lead to more
effective insights and profitable outcomes.
By integrating brand analytics approaches
throughout strategy, design and brand
valuation, more precise capabilities are
now available. These offer more effective
diagnostic tools to understand the economic
benefits that brand assets provide to their
owners. Brands with foresight and vision
can now more effectively leverage the
differentiation and strength of the brand
proposition relative to their competitors.
As a result, it is not only possible to quantify
a brand’s contribution in the decision-making
process and to measure its competitive
strength in acquiring and retaining
customers. Now, we can also predict the
value of an innovation and understand at
which communications touchpoint a brand
investment generates the most demand.
By better understanding the equity drivers
that create demand and impact brand value,
brands will be better positioned to maintain
cash flows, justify ROI and preserve the now
precious equity residing in the brand. In doing
this, brands will be best positioned to emerge
from the downturn and ready to capitalize
on their weaker rivals when markets begin
to recover.
Why the Best
Australian Brands
ranking is important
The branding practices employed by
Australian companies are becoming more
and more sophisticated. Interbrand’s fourth
ranking of the Best Australian Brands
continues to put an emphasis on brand
performance and its contribution to
business performance. The ranking provides
brand values that are measures of economic
performance, stating what the brand is
worth overall and among competitors.
Brand value brings to marketing what
“revenue goals” or “financial hurdle rates”
bring to other aspects of business.
The most important information comes
when one looks behind the number –
as a single number only tells so much. It is
more important to understand what drives
brand value:
• Intangible earnings: the cash flow of
a business not associated with such
tangible assets as equipment or materials
• The role of brand: a measure of how much
brand influences purchasing decisions
• Brand strength: a benchmark of a brand’s
relative risk compared to competitors
Understanding the drivers of brand value can
inform management action, from overall
business strategy to specific marketing
tactics. It is an easy-to-use metric to help
brand owners determine where they are,
where they are going, and how to get there.
Brand valuation can assist in positioning
brand building as a critical aspect of
enterprise by answering the following
questions.
Are we investing adequately in our brand?
Putting an economic value on a brand
(overall and by segment) can help make
a strong business case for marketing
investments, overall and across a brand
portfolio. While delivering a very important
ROI measure, brand valuation, more
importantly, can help organisations to
understand what levers drive brand value.
It is these insights that can assist in the
appropriate allocation of investment and
the development of the strategic catalysts
that can influence future value creation.
Is our marketing performance effective
and efficient?
Your customers make decisions every day
between you and your competitors.
Analysing the role of brand in those decisions
helps you to focus your strategy on the
attributes that differentiate your brand from
others and to strengthen your relationship
with your best customers, thereby ensuring
future earnings.
Are short-term tactics driving long-term
value creation?
By analysing the strength of your brand,
you can target marketing campaigns to
your most valuable customers in the most
competitive manner. This can enable you to
drive short-term sales without sacrificing
long-term brand strength and relevance.
Most importantly, this ranking is presented
to foster debate and put greater emphasis
on the practice of branding. Our goal is to
demonstrate that brands are important
assets yielding significant economic value.
To maximise the value inherent in your brand
requires proactive and consistent investment,
management and measurement.
Why do no Australian brands make the
Global Best Brands list?
While there are many significantly valuable
Australian brands, none have yet to appear
on the Best Global Brands list. To qualify
for the global table, at least one-third of
earnings needs to be earned from outside
the company’s home base. The brand must
also be well-established in a wide number
of markets around the world and be
managed consistently as a global brand.
To put it into perspective, the 100th most
valuable brand in the 2008 Best Global
Brands Study was VISA, with an estimated
value of US$ 3.338 billion, which is
equivalent to A$ 5.188 billion at current
exchange rates. While some Australian
brands have a greater brand value, they
simply do not have the geographic spread
that would make them eligible to reach the
Top 100 Best Global Brands list.
Best Australian Brands 2009 03
The Red Thread:
creating and managing
brand value
by Jez Frampton

“All of the ropes of the royal fleet,

from the strongest to the thinnest,
are braided so that a red thread
travels through all of them, and you
cannot remove it without untying all
of them. Even the smallest fragment
will still allow you to recognise that
Biography:
Jez Frampton, Interbrand’s Group

the rope belongs to the crown.”

Chief Executive, is responsible for
managing the firm’s worldwide
interests and enhancing the
strategic and creative offering.
Jez’s experience has provided him
the opportunity to work with
different clients across multiple
sectors, including premier brands
like Budweiser, IBM and Toyota.
From Goethe’s Elective Affinities (1809)
The Red Thread is a concept woven
through many cultures. According to Greek
mythology, Theseus found his way through
the Minotaur’s labyrinth by following
Ariadne’s red thread, and a famous Chinese
proverb describes an invisible red thread
that connects us to all of the people we’ll
ever meet. The Russians call it krasnaia nit,
and the French le fil rouge. In German, roter
faden – literally “red thread” – is used to
describe the central or recurrent theme
of a larger work.
The idea of a bright, illuminating thread
that runs through everything, from the
smallest fragment to the whole, is powerful
and captivating. In our world, this is
a wonderfully rich and simple metaphor
for brand value.
The top performing brands understand
the reality behind this metaphor. For them,
the notion of value runs like a red thread
through their brands, driving demand
throughout every aspect of their business.
They know that their brands must function
as assets, not as expenses, and that even
the greatest brand idea is only as powerful
as its ability to generate value.

04 Best Australian Brands 2009

The subject of brand value has been well
documented since Interbrand first developed
the concept in the early 1980s. Today, our
competitors, commentators in the press,
the financial community, and the industry
at large have much to say about the topic.
At heart, it’s a simple idea. If a brand plays
a role in choice and a consumer must choose
between different competitive products or
services in a marketplace, then the brand
must contribute to earnings and profit and
hence, must be quantifiable and valuable
to the owner. In order to really understand
the creation of brand value, we need to
understand what factors drive demand,
what role the brand plays across each of
those factors, and how strong the brand is
versus its competitors.
But the Red Thread is about more than
a value-generating brand. It’s about
understanding how that value is generated.
It’s about creating, managing, and
measuring brand value across every aspect
of the business.
To put this into context, let’s consider an
analogy. Capable of accelerating from zero
to 100 miles per hour and back to zero in
under four seconds, a Formula 1 racing car
represents the very edge of technology in
the motor industry. Every car is fine-tuned
for each individual race, and every surface
and element of the car can be altered to create
the best aerodynamics, braking pressure,
tire pressure, gear ratios, suspension and
more. It is not the car but each individual
component of that car that must contribute
to the vehicle’s ultimate success.
What’s more, those components can
be quantitatively measured, giving the
racing team the information necessary to
optimise the car’s performance in real time.
Data streams from car to trackside with
detail about fuel consumption, lubricant
temperatures, braking heat and even driver
heart rate. When the competition is fierce
and the difference between winning and
losing can be measured in fractions of
a second, every detail must be tuned to win.
Imagine how powerful it would be if you
understood how your brand creates value
to the same degree of detail. Are you as
intimate with the performance of your
brand as Formula 1 racing teams are with
the performance of their cars? Are you as
prepared to battle the competition? Do you
quantitatively understand exactly how your
brand generates value?
By using brand valuation as a diagnostic
tool, we can now understand the precise
economic benefits that brand has on every
aspect of our businesses. It is now possible
not only to quantify a brand’s contribution in
the decision-making process and to measure
its competitive strength in acquiring and
retaining customers, but to predict the value
of an innovation and understand at which
touchpoint our brand investment generates
the most demand. The Red Thread helps us
see where in the acquisition process we lose
potential customers to our competitors,
which brand attributes are relevant at each
step in the customer journey, and far more.
Most importantly, it helps us determine
exactly what it is that must be changed,
and how, in order to maximise value.
Best Australian Brands 2009 05
Brand building isn’t
a separate exercise
from the day-to-day
running of the business.
It is integral to it.
Consider our work for BMW. Everything in
that organisation is coerced and corralled
into a single unifying vision, all united by
one value-generating idea. For BMW, this
red thread is the commitment to please
customers with the very best in automotive
engineering. This manifests itself in a
few obvious ways, such as its tagline and
messaging, but also guides management
decisions on everything from showroom
plans to fabric choices, and ensures that the
company’s outer voice (what it says it’s going
to do) reflects its inner voice (what it actually
does). And, as 93 percent of employees
believe that BMW Group is a great place to
work, it’s no wonder this translates to a brand
worth US$ 23 billion and the highest brand
value per automobile sold.
This is true of many of the world’s most
valuable brands. Look at Apple, whose
promise of a different experience through
ease of use creates a red thread that touches
all aspects of their business, including
product innovation and interface design.
At Disney, the commitment to create
magical experiences produces undeniable
value, forming a red thread that affects
everything from the appearance and
behavior of its “cast members” to its
television programming. For Nike, the idea
of performance runs through the business
from “Just do it” to how the organisation
gets it done.
06 Best Australian Brands 2009
Or take Interbrand, an example that is near
and dear to me. For us, the notion of brand
value itself is our Red Thread. We are the
consultancy that sees brands as economic
assets, as drivers of demand, and creators
of wealth. We believe that behind every great
brand is a great idea that generates value.
Our daily mission is to understand how that
value is created across our clients’ businesses,
providing strategic advice and creative
solutions that have a common purpose and
foundation in generating demand. Whether
we are producing the corporate identities
that will fuel the iconic images of the 21st
century or crafting brand architectures to
optimise the way a major global enterprise
manages its assets, value is quite simply
the lifeblood at the very heart of our business,
the common theme that unites us and
makes us stand out from the crowd.
I believe that the concepts of brand and value
are inseparable. To be truly effective, brands
must be built around the thing that generates
the most value for your business. A brand
conceived in this fashion will create demand,
in turn improving the monetary value of
the business. Managed properly, this ever-
growing cycle of value creation will define
the very essence of the 21st century’s
eminent brands.
But to get there, we need to change the
fundamental way that we think about our
businesses. Most companies spend massive
amounts of time and money optimising their
supply chains, but few are willing to make
an adequate investment in the demand
side of their businesses. This is most likely
because the supply side is physical and
real. It’s easy to understand the return on
tangible investments. The demand side of
our businesses, though, is often less clear.
It requires courage to invest in intangible
assets. Thankfully, the ability to measure
these intangible assets through precise
analytics should help us refocus our attention
on creating demand.
We must also change the way we think about
brands themselves. Ten years ago, brands
were seen as an extension of marketing:
a kind of halo around a business that
made it emotionally appealing. Marketing
departments spent time creating “brand ads”
with their agencies, an exercise seen as more
strategic and separated from the day-to-
day process of selling products, announcing
promotions, or launching campaigns.
Today, the world has come to realise that
brands are an extension of business strategy.
Now understood to define the essence of
differentiation and to serve as primary and
integral drivers of demand, brands have as
much to do with product, service, retail,
packaging, culture, web, pricing, channels,
and environments, as they have to do with
marketing and communications.
That’s a powerful shift in thinking in a
relatively short period of time. Not everyone
is there yet, but the leaders are. The global
corporations at the top of the Fortune 500 or
our own Best Global Brands ranking see the
world this way, and it’s only a matter of time
before it becomes common practice.
Some audiences, despite accepting the
notion of a red thread, might believe that
the current economic climate makes this
the wrong time to invest in measuring and
managing brand value. But this could be
a costly mistake. This is the ideal time to
optimise budgets to ensure that every dollar
spent is driving demand and creating value.
Every boardroom is subject to greater degrees
of scrutiny over the use of shareholder funds
and now, more than ever, we need to know
where we’re likely to win, and where we’re
likely to lose.
All businesses that
aspire to build greater
value should consider
their red thread.
Without one, your
brand may not be
generating real value.
Best Australian Brands 2009 07
The future of
future-proofing brand
investments
by Greg Silverman
Biography:
Greg Silverman is the Global Practice
Leader of Analytics. With over 20 years
of experience in the business,
Greg and his team measure brand
investment to show in advance
whether an idea has the potential to
earn brand equity. He has done work
on an extensive list of clients that
boast some of the biggest brand
names in the world, including AT&T,
Bank of America, Lexus, and Gillette.
Understanding brand today
Before defining the way a brand works, it is necessary to
understand the role of the brand and brand strength. The role
of brand explains what percentage of any purchase decision
is attributable to the brand. It is a measure of the influence
brand has on customer demand. This understanding informs
decision-makers on how the brand is doing today. Brand
strength, on the other hand, is a series of benchmarks that
measure a brand’s ability to secure ongoing customer demand
(choice, repurchase, retention).
Together, the role of brand and brand strength provide
managers with the knowledge to understand the future
outcomes of marketing decisions made today. When
incorporated with current computing and analytics
capabilities, the combination is no longer just informed
speculation. Rather, it offers measurable scenarios that
can provide insights that lead to courageous decisions.
If you type ”brand management” in the Google search box
and follow the link to the first definition available, this is
what appears: “Branding seeks to distinguish your company,
product or service from the competition and create a lasting
impression in your prospect’s mind.“ (www.1000ventures.com)
Given the relevancy scores that Google is presumed to obtain
– 90 percent – it is safe to assume that this definition is the
common understanding of brand management.
08 Best Australian Brands 2009
The web search definition is important because it suggests
that brands are competing with each other for consumers.
When focusing on competition, the branding industry
traditionally looks to the role of the brand, as it is a measure
of influence and compares the brand against other decision
criteria. This measure of influence is capitalised on when
a brand’s equity unlocks value by connecting with end-users.
Unlocked value is brand strength – the ability to protect
future revenue.
The new order
This relatively static picture of competition and branding
has dominated the landscape for decades. However, over
the last decade, this framework has broken down with the
increasing dominance of social networks. Social networks
are moving the branding debate from the traditional and
hierarchical to the latent and networked. As such, the
long-held view of competition and branding no longer works
because the forces behind the collective value of all social
networks have changed. In short, our customers’ culture
is trumping our strategy.
Along with the declining relevance of old strategy models,
we are witnessing a decline in the impact of the measures
attached to them. The greatest advance in the past decade
has been in the realm of choice-based research and marketing
mix models that measure change in a limited number of issues
in a marketplace. Marketing mix models are rooted in the
conventional wisdom that, if you track spending and sales –
simultaneously controlling for all other variables – then you
can clearly identify what is optimal. A question still remains:
What company can actually control for all the variability of
the market? Media mix has clearly improved efficiency, but
the process is backward-looking. Additionally, the rigid data
requirements do not accommodate the most important
factor: emergent social network influences are
not simple to track.
Here’s a common example: Apple’s new iPhone specs were
posted among friends on Facebook and the specs received
poor feedback, which magnified critics’ reviews. How can
Apple account for word of mouth that could change the
product launch environment? The challenge now is to predict
the unpredictable in a new market environment.
A new paradigm
Many marketers today unnecessarily constrain themselves
by saying, “You can only optimise what you know.”
With today’s consumers riding on waves of unobserved
and hard to track patterns, new tools are needed to provide
a future-looking perspective on brand-related value creation.
The breakthrough in measurement will come in agent-based
modeling (ABM). An agent-based model is a computational
model for simulating the actions and interactions of
autonomous individuals in a network. It is capable of
assessing an individual’s effects on the system as a whole
by combining elements of game theory, complex systems,
emergence, computational sociology, multi-agent systems,
and evolutionary programming. Monte Carlo methods are
used to introduce randomness.
The models simulate the simultaneous operations of
multiple agents, in an attempt to recreate and predict the
actions of complex phenomena. The process arises out of
a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. The tool not
only captures the efficiency requirements of media models,
but also accounts for emerging forms of behavior that
fuel innovation. Currently, it is being applied to forward-
looking business decisions.
There is no better time than now for
strong brands to understand models
that uncover the hidden behavior
behind these new revenue streams.
Seemingly disparate groups of information become value creating segments
Agent-based modeling has already enabled:
• A US healthcare provider to accurately predict the
adoption of a new plan among seniors
• A global sports organisation to launch a rebranding
campaign that creates free buzz
• An automotive company to effectively reduce
incentives while growing market share
• A major consumer goods retailer to lower store
size 30 percent and increase sales
The future
Media mix optimisation drives cost management, which can
help “meet the street,” but often sacrifices investment in new
revenue streams. Discrete choice modelling can evaluate
changes in the know. Although both offer insights into brand,
neither delivers on the imagination required to generate
growth for brands. In the end, revenue sustainability is the
hallmark of a good brand. Its strength lies in its ability to
protect future earnings during down markets and unlock
value where brand can play a role.
Best Australian Brands 2009 09
Planning your touchpoints
to accelerate profit
by Rune Gustafson
Biography:
Rune Gustafson is Chief Executive
Officer of Interbrand in London.
Rune leverages his extensive
experience in brand and retail
propositions to regularly contribute
to publications and conferences
throughout the UK and Europe.
We continually observe that the most
successful brands strive to put the brand
at the heart of their business.
They understand that, by using the brand
as a central organising principle, they can
direct every single business function, from
HR and Distribution to Finance. In doing
so, they are able to deliver a truly holistic
brand experience that runs through the
organisation and then outwards, thus
engaging the customer.
10 Best Australian Brands 2009
The brand ultimately engages customers
(or any other stakeholder) in many different
ways, be it through advertising, product,
packaging, and its people. Each contact or
touchpoint builds up an experience that
endures well beyond the product or service.
It defines and reinforces the perceptions
that customers have about the brand.
Conversely, it is equally powerful at defining
negative perceptions of a brand.
For service businesses, touchpoints are often
time-based and are perishable experiences
that increase reputation risks. But touchpoints
also provide a golden opportunity to create
a powerful moment of intimacy through
staff-customer interactions. Shifting these
perceptions is the crucial foundation to
staying closer to current customers and
engaging new customers to try your brand
for the first time. These deliver increased
revenues and margins that accelerate brand
value and profitable growth for investors.
Nordstrom targets a single touchpoint
Nordstrom, the US retailer, has dominated
its market though the service it delivers to its
core customers. It has proven that customers
will pay a higher price for a superior service.
In so doing, this helps to differentiate it from
low-price discount brands (Nordstrom’s sales
per square foot are twice the industry average).
The service differentiation is delivered though
the belief that, at all times, the most important
person in the entire business is the customer.
It counter-intuitively achieves this – not
with a biblical service manual – but with
a single rule:
“Use your good judgment in all situations.”
This is followed by, “There are no additional
rules.” Nordstrom recognises that building
customer relationships is done one customer
at a time. Nordstrom shares fantastic
relationship-building stories throughout the
organisation to illustrate and train everyone
about what its service ethos of “going the
extra mile” means in practice. For example,
a customer who was at its Chicago store
searching for a black bow tie told this story:
“I was going to a black-tie party, and
needed a ready-made bow tie. Nordstrom’s
didn’t stock one, but the guy there said,
“If you have ten minutes, how about I teach
you how to tie one?” And, in the middle of
a busy Saturday afternoon, he did just that
and got the sale. “I was happy, I recommend
them to everyone, and I still tell the story
ten years later.”
Clearly, the power of a great service ethos
can generate sales, great relationships and
great word of mouth marketing. But the most
important lesson marketers can learn from
Nordstrom is that it invests primarily in a single
touchpoint. Of course, its stores are clean and
well designed, but its focus is on the staff-
customer touchpoint.
Every CEO and CMO knows that they must invest
in their brand’s experience. But the question
that haunts them is: Which touchpoint is the
driver of purchases and which ones are simply
nice to have? Early thinking on touchpoints
was based on satisfying each contact to a better
level than your competitor. This approach is
highly ineffective and reduces business
performance because it follows four classic
touchpoint management mistakes.
Classic touchpoint Fact-based touchpoint Making bolder, fact-
management mistakes strategy based investment
decisions
01 Targeting too many
customer segments
Businesses often try to appeal to the widest
possible audience. But without defining a
narrow, attitudinally based audience, the
touchpoint experience will be fragmented
and often results in conflicting perceptions.
02 Dilution of the brand investment across
too many touchpoints
There are literally hundreds of possible
touchpoints and no brand in the world has
the time or resources to deliver each contact
to the highest level.
03 Competing on basic factors only
In an increasingly competitive environment,
classic benchmarking activities ensure that
brands copy each others’ differentiators
resulting in a zero sum game. They are
mistakenly all trying to compete on best
practices rather than boldly challenging
convention. Those that do, like Virgin
or Disney, have been able to create an
unassailable differentiation with their
chosen target customers.
04 Relying on customer myths
to prioritise choices
The leading brands demonstrate that they
have the leadership mindset to make hard
choices and prioritise customer segments,
touchpoints and investments based on facts
rather than perceived wisdom.
Each contact
or touchpoint
builds up an
experience
which endures
well beyond
the product
or service.
The only way to develop a touchpoint
strategy that will increase business
performance (and avoid these four mistakes)
is with a fact-based, analytical approach.
InterContinental Hotels is an excellent
example of a traditional brand that has
re-invigorated itself by developing a new
brand positioning and executing it perfectly
by embedding it in the customer experience
and offer. It used a sophisticated statistical
Return on Investment (ROI) model designed
to identify where and how to invest in the
customer experience. First, it identified
a narrow target audience that had a clear
attitudinal preference for luxury travel
experiences that enriched their life and
provided them with the additional social
currency of local knowledge and stories.
Then, InterContinental cleverly used the
statistical model to identify which specific
parts of the customer experience truly
drove them to choose InterContinental
and, as a result, strongly increased their
satisfaction. This provided the Executive
Board with the clear evidence of what drives
revenues and margin. It also identified
areas of cost saving; parts of the experience
(and costs) that could be removed without
affecting their customers satisfaction.
Its new positioning is the hotel brand that is
“In the Know” and delivers exactly what its
guests value without the things they don’t
value. Guests benefit from the authentic,
insider knowledge about the places they
visit. They are prepared to pay a premium
(and stay more frequently) for gaining this
social currency and the priceless stories they
could share with their family and friends.
The challenge was to educate and motivate
large numbers of migrant or part-time
staff employees to deliver on this promise
consistently around the world. It was
a fundamental shift to move from hiding
the staff to making them the heroes and
encouraging them to interact with guests.
For employees, this new positioning was
translated into an insider knowledge program
for staff. It used the phrase, “To you it’s just
a walk to work; to our guest it’s a great view
of local culture” to educate and empower
all their staff to share their local knowledge
with guests.
The InterContinental Executive Board boldly
decided to invest heavily in its staff as its
primary touchpoint, with the statistical
knowledge that this would deliver the highest
ROI. In fact, it would provide almost double
the ROI compared to any other touchpoint.
Had it made many of the classic touchpoint
mistakes outlined above and invested too
little in too many touchpoints with too many
customer segments, it would certainly not
have achieved such strong business results.
InterContinental’s brand has revived in the
year following the 2006 rebrand. There was
an increase in positive brand perception of
10 percent and an increase in revenue per
room of 12 percent (source: IHG.com).
The success of this rebranding was the ability
of the business to put their brand positioning,
“In the Know,” at the heart of their operations
and translate this into a valuable touchpoint.
In a world where consumers are bombarded
by multiple messages every minute and
internal investment is increasingly scarce,
there is an unequivocal case to be made
for drastically reducing the number of
touchpoints and investing strongly in a single
touchpoint that accelerates brand value and
profitable growth. This naturally raises the
following critical questions for every CEO
and CMO:
• How do you currently measure the ROI
of your touchpoints?
• Which touchpoints can you live without?
• Which touchpoint can you truly own
that differentiates your brand?
• Which touchpoint actually drives
your profits?
Best Australian Brands 2009 11
The Interbrand approach
to valuing brands
Criteria for
consideration
Using the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX)
200 list of Australia’s largest publicly traded
corporations, and drawing upon more
than 30 years of consulting experience,
Interbrand formed an initial consideration
set of eligible brands. All were then subject
to the following criteria that narrowed
candidates significantly:
• The brand must have originated in
Australia. Hence, foreign-owned brands
operating in Australia are excluded,
e.g. Coke, McDonald’s, Nike and Ford
• The brand must be Australian owned.
Similarly, once Australian-owned but now
foreign-owned brands have been excluded,
e.g. Holden, Vegemite, Arnott’s and Speedo
• There must be substantial publicly available
financial data
• The brand must be a market-facing brand
• The Economic Value Added (EVA) must be
positive. If a brand is reporting negative
earnings, it can be difficult to derive a brand
value for the brand, unless strongly positive
forecast earnings are projected
• It is critically important that we are able
to identify the brands total financial
performance, including revenues, profit
and asset base
12 Best Australian Brands 2009
Methodology
The Interbrand method for valuing brands
is a proven and straightforward formula that
examines brands through the lens of financial
strength, importance in driving consumer
selection, and the likelihood of ongoing
branded revenue. Our method evaluates
brands much like analysts would value any
other asset: on the basis of how much they’re
likely to earn in the future.
There are three core components to our
proprietary method, as follows.
Financial analysis
Our approach to valuation starts by
forecasting the current and future revenue
specifically attributable to the branded
products. We subtract operating costs from
revenue to calculate branded operating profit.
We then apply a charge to the branded profit
for capital employed. This gives us economic
earnings. All financial analysis is based on
publicly available company information.
Interbrand culls from a range of analysts’
reports to build a consensus estimate for
financial reporting.
Financial Analysis Brand Value Calculation
Forecasted current and
future revenue specifically
attributable to the brand
Role of Brand
Analysis
A measure of how the
brand influences customer
demand at the point of
purchase
Brand Strength
A benchmark of the brand’s
ability to secure ongoing
customer demand (loyalty,
repurchase, retention). Year �
Brand Revenues
Economic Earnings
Brand Earnings
Role of brand analysis
A measure of how the brand influences
customer demand at the point of purchase
is applied to the economic earnings to arrive
at Branded Earnings. For this study, industry
benchmark analysis for the role the brand
plays in driving customer demand is derived
from Interbrand’s database of more than
5,000 prior valuations conducted over the
course of 20 years. In-house market research
is used to establish individual brand scores
against our industry benchmarks.
Brand strength score
This is a benchmark of the brand’s ability to
secure ongoing customer demand (loyalty,
repurchase and retention) and thus sustain
future earnings, translating branded earnings
into net present value. This assessment is
a structured way of determining the specific
risk to the strength of the brand. We compare
the brand against common factors of brand
strength, such as market position, customer
franchise, image and support.
Role of
Brand
Analysis
Year � Year � Year � Year �
Brand Strength Analysis BRAND
= Discount Rate VALUE
Top line industry stories
by Lynton Pipkorn
Biography:
Lynton is Interbrand Australia’s Brand
Valuation and Analytics practice head.
Lynton is responsible for valuing brand
assets and managing the strategic
outcomes resulting from valuation
and analytics projects for clients.
His previous clients include Qantas,
Nab, VISA, MLC, PwC, Bank of New
Zealand, Gazprom, National Foods,
Nestlé and Nokia.
Australian brands
continue to grow
despite difficult times
The past decade has been a boom for
Australian companies, with revenues
and profits showing extraordinary growth.
In line with this growth, Australian
brands have continued to strengthen and
prosper, and the aggregate value of the
top 10 Australian brands is now worth
approximately A$ 43 billion.
Over the past decade, the Australian
economy has experienced robust economic
growth, buoyed by the expectation that
revenues and corporate profits will grow
across all industrial sectors. With near full
employment, businesses and consumers
have exhibited confidence in spending and
investment, propelling the performance of
many brands to new heights.
More recently, however, the Australian
economy has faced a number of challenges.
The fall out of the sub-prime mortgage
turmoil and ongoing global financial crisis,
the rise and subsequent sharp fall of the
Australian dollar, and the volatility in fuel,
materials and raw commodity prices have all
hit home. As a result, a number of Australian
companies have battled significant write-
downs, rising input costs and adverse
foreign exchange conditions, all of which
have put significant pressure on profitability
and the performance of their brands.
For the first time since the early nineties,
Australia is feeling the effects of a recession.
However, while a number of challenge
remain, interest rates are now at their
lowest point in many years and inflation
appears to have stabilised.
As we battle the global recession, the
challenge for Australian brands will be to
re-evaluate what they understand about their
customers. They must apply these insights
into consumer motivations and brand
perceptions to position their brands to
respond to these changes in business and
consumer sentiment. This can only stimulate
demand and build corporate value in the
years ahead.
It is also prudent to recognise that total
company values in relation to market
capitalisation are declining in the short-term
due to high levels of volatility. However,
well-managed brands are stable assets
in terms of brand value, and those that have
positioned themselves for the long term
should be the first to prosper when the
economy begins to show the first signs
of recovery.
Best Australian Brands 2009 13
 The highly publicised bankruptcy of Lehman Nevertheless, despite the financial crisis,

The emergence of Brothers and the threatened insolvency of

private equity
In recent years, private equity has begun
taking ownership and controlling stakes
in key brands. Brands that exemplify this
trend include Myer, Nine Network, Seven
Network and Repco.
With the exception of Myer, private equity
purchases have resulted in significant
restructures of a number of businesses,
meaning their financials are no longer
available or company structures are no longer
comparable to analyse for the purposes
of this study.
Brands such as Channel Nine and Channel
Seven have been subsumed by complex
company ownership and reporting structures,
making it difficult to access and isolate key
valuation and financial inputs required to
create the Best Australian Brands study.
major banking and financial services brands
such as Northern Rock, AIG, Royal Bank
of Scotland, Citigroup and Merrill Lynch
triggered a significant crisis of confidence
with lenders and consumers, forcing the
Australian Federal Government to guarantee
the savings of all deposits under A$ 1 million.
Notwithstanding the fallout of the credit
crunch, the four major banks continue to
retain prominent top 10 positions in the
Best Australian Brands study.
CBA remains the number one banking brand,
while St. George has entered the top 10 for the
first and perhaps the last time. The combined
value of the four major banks is worth A$ 20.1
billion, almost half the value contained in the
top 10.
In 2008, the Bendigo and Adelaide Bank
merger marked the first major change in
the structure of the Australian banking
industry. Since then a number of other
regional and smaller brands have expressed
plans to merge as a result of domestic
and international pressures.
Australian banks are among the best
capitalised and highest rated in terms of
credit quality, and they continue to reinforce
their reputation as some of the strongest
banking brands in the world.
Macquarie Group, one of the ranking
standouts, has exhibited considerable
growth and resilience with its innovative
investment banking model. The model
provides significant opportunity for
expansion of the brand into new financial
products and overseas investment markets.
Local challengers Babcock & Brown,
Allco Finance Group and MFS (re-branded
Octaviar) have not proven as resilient.
Retailing
The Australian retail sector, including
a number of major department store
and grocery brands, has also undergone
significant changes. The performance of

Banking and finance Commonwealth Bank, with the acquisition

The Australian banking landscape
has undergone considerable changes
in the past decade, with the sector
exhibiting strong growth and robust
operating conditions.
However, as we head into a deepening global
economic downturn, we have seen a flurry
of activity connected to the extraordinary
events of the sub-prime meltdown and the
resulting global financial crisis. The retail
commercial banks have suffered their
first collective profit fall in 15 years with
pre‑tax profits down by 23 percent in 2008.
The tightening of credit and the continued
rationalisation in the banking industry
is anticipated to create further adverse
operating conditions.
In this context, the marketing messages from
the major banks were quick to reflect the
changing consumer and business sentiment
– from growth and wealth creation to security
and preservation – by shifting their positioning
to safety and a return to conservatism in the
long term.
the sector has generally been very robust.
However, more recently, profit forecasts
of BankWest and 33 percent of Aussie Group,
have been hit by a collapse in consumer
has consolidated its place as Australia’s
sentiment and the revised 2009 - 2010
largest financial institution. St. George, before
economic outlook.
the merger announcement with Westpac,
was looking to challenge the “big four”
Coles Myer has been disbanded, now that
dominance. Now, as a combined dual-branded
Myer has been purchased by private equity,
organisation, the merged entity should create
and the remainder of the Coles Group
one of Australia’s largest tier one banking
business and associated brands have been
and finance groups.
sold to Wesfarmers.
The financial crisis has also hampered the
Woolworths has gone from strength to
performance of a number of Australian banks.
strength, capitalising on the management
In particular, ANZ and NAB both face
and ownership changes of its major rival,
a number of bad debt write-downs, and the
while also taking the opportunity to re-craft
Federal Government’s bank deposit guarantee
its visual identity and solidify its superior
has caused a flight of capital from the
brand proposition.
non-bank sector. The higher cost of lending
has also impacted the non-bank lending
David Jones has made great strides amidst
sector, which saw Westpac swallow Rams
the turmoil of the Coles Myer divestiture.
Home Loans in 2007 and Commonwealth
It is now enjoying the spoils of consistent
Bank take a 33 percent stake in Aussie Group
investment in its store footprint and
in 2008.
environment, and it is securing key premium
and luxury brands to cement its leading
It is anticipated that further consolidation
position as the “House of Brands” for
in the sector will continue, with Wizard
Australian department store shoppers.
being the latest brand to be acquired by
The effective use of Australian supermodels
Aussie Group. As the banking and finance
Megan Gale and Miranda Kerr has also
market continues to suffer, brand portfolio
reinforced David Jones’s premium brand
management will become a greater
positioning in the ongoing Australian
challenge for a number of companies.
department “store wars”.

14 Best Australian Brands 2009

Like Coles, Myer is currently in a turnaround
phase and is expected to challenge its
major rival David Jones with profit in 2007
up 40 percent after a number of years of
underperformance. Myer has fought to
maintain its quality positioning, with a focus
on youth and a broadening of its product
offer to encourage mainstream appeal.
The consumer retail sector, however, remains
under considerable pressure.
As levels of consumer demand continue to
deteriorate, the shift to provide greater value
to consumers will be key to David Jones and
Myer maintaining growth. To do so without
compromising the premium positioning that
distinguishes them from the likes of Target
and smaller high street retailers will be just as
critical to their continued success.
The Best Australian Brands table has also seen
the emergence of JB Hi-Fi and the continued
dominance of home appliance and electrical
goods retailer Harvey Norman.
A high Australian dollar and continued
marketing support of the brand during the
past four years have seen Harvey Norman
expand aggressively both in Australia and
overseas. Its profits reflect consumer desire
for the latest in electrical goods, advancements
in computer technology and the affordability
of imported households items. Harvey Norman,
like all retailers, continues to face the stress of
the economic downturn and must continue
to build the value proposition of its offering
to customers.
JB Hi-Fi, a newcomer to the Best Australian
Brands table, has proven a surprise competitor
to Harvey Norman. Its brand positioning
as a discount but expert music and electrical
goods retailer has insulated the brand from
the harshest affects of the slowdown.
Stretching the brand, from music and MP3
players into home entertainment, and
continuous expansion into other household
goods has also widened its appeal and
mitigated some earnings risk.
JB Hi-Fi sales rose by an impressive 43 percent
to A$ 1.8billion in 2008. After an impressive
first half in 2009, there is further profit growth
forecast despite the deterioration of consumer
sentiment and the potential that Australia
may enter a period of recession.
Airlines and travel
The airline industry is tough and volatile.
Qantas, Flight Centre and Virgin Blue’s
fortunes have all been heavily reliant
on the previously buoyant domestic and
international economic conditions.
Due to the difficulties in accurately assessing
the brand value of airlines based upon
publically available information, Qantas,
Jetstar and Virgin Blue have been excluded
from financial analysis in our study.
Nonetheless, Australian airline brands play
an important role and we have included them
in our commentary. In recent times, we have
seen the industry recover from global security
and health threats. Combined with a strong
local economy, this has propelled the expansion
of the business and leisure travel markets.
Previously buoyed by a rise in the Australian
dollar, the industry has benefited enormously
from increased discretionary spending.
Qantas has been able to capitalise significantly
on its dual-brand strategy in this period.
Now Qantas plans to withdraw from the
NZ domestic market, but will instead launch
Jetstar with a fleet of new A320s, flying
more routes than Qantas was servicing in
competition with Air NZ and Pacific Blue.
Jetstar’s low cost base could well place
extreme pressure on the other carriers.
The introduction of new-to-market brands
– Jetstar, Tiger and V Australia – has also
created more options for Australian domestic
and overseas travelers, resulting in an
increase in routes and a reduction in fares.
The rise in competition has driven a visible
differentiation, creating a clear low, middle
and premium segmentation to service the
needs of consumers.
Qantas has since overhauled its first and
business class lounges, and modernised its
fleet with the acquisition of new Boeing 787s
and Airbus A380s designed to improve
patronage and reduce long-haul fuel costs.
Qantas has also revitalised its visual identity
through a rebrand to complement these
investments in premium travel facilities.
At the height of the oil spike in 2008, high
fuel prices worked to decimate Virgin Blue’s
profit, which was down 55 percent from
2007. Qantas was able to weather the storm
with profit up by 44 percent, and holiday
and travel services provider Flight Centre
improved by 38 percent year on year.
Television media
Australia’s three large commercial networks
have undergone significant changes in their
structure and operating environments.
In particular, the Nine Network is no longer
under the control of the Packer empire.
Its Publishing and Broadcasting Limited
business was broken up and the majority
of the media assets including the television
stations sold into private equity through
PBL Media.
Similarly, the Seven Network has experienced
major corporate structural change, with
Seven Media Group formed in a joint venture
with private equity to house its television,
magazine and internet interests.
Media fragmentation, technological advances
and the changing viewing habits of mass
audiences have drastically altered the way
people consume information and, specifically,
advertising and brand communications.
The advent of online media and digital content,
and the need to converge and integrate
“old” media with the “new” have also created
innovative partnerships linking Seven with
digital platform Yahoo! and similarly Nine
with Microsoft.
Ten has continued with its strategy to target
youth, while the ratings decline at the Nine
Network has resulted in the Seven Network
taking the coveted number one position.
As consumer spending continues to slow,
media industry cash flows are expected to
follow suit as the reduction in advertising
revenues begins to bite. The slowdown has
already affected the earnings of one major
network, with Network Ten’s profit falling
by approximately 25 percent.
Best Australian Brands 2009 15
Best Australian Brands 2009
2009 2009 Brand Value
Brand Sector
Rank A$ Million

1 Telecommunications 9,700

2 Banking / Financial Services 7,100

3 Banking / Financial Services 5,100

4 Banking / Financial Services 4,800

5 Retail 4,600

6 Banking/Financial Services 3,200

7 Banking/Financial Services 3,100

8 Apparel 2,200

9 Banking/Financial Services 1,900

10 Retail 1,300

11 Postal and Logistics 900

12 Retail 760

13 Retail 670

14 Travel 630

15 Gaming 560

16 Manufacturing 500

17 Share Registry Services 380

18 Utilities 220

19 Retail 190

20 Banking/Financial Services 150

16 Best Australian Brands 2009

Australia’s Best Brands 2009
1 9,700 A$m
TELSTRA. Since the full T3 privatisation in
2006, Telstra has identified a large opportunity
for future growth in the Australian
telecommunication industry. Telstra’s vision
is to build on and enhance its position as the
leading full service telecommunications and
information Service Company in Australia, as
well as to expand its presence internationally.
Telstra has forged a path for itself as the clear
brand leader in many sectors. It is the only
media and information services company
in Australia that provides its customers
with a truly integrated telecommunications
experience across fixed line, mobiles,
broadband, information, transaction,
search and pay TV. Under CEO Sol Trujillo’s
stewardship, Telstra has continued to exploit
its scale advantage by creating and integrating
partnerships with its sub-brands and various
third parties, including handset providers,
media partners and mobile retailers.
This integrated effort forms the cornerstone
of Telstra’s “transformation” strategy to move
customers onto upgraded internet and
wireless phone networks. Mobile advertising
has significant future growth potential
with the introduction of WAP and 3G phone
services and the increasing demand for
internet and data transfer services on mobile
phones. Telstra reported that mobile service
revenues grew 12.3 percent for the year,
while mobile data growth shot up 44.1
percent. Rich content and data services form
a key domestic and international revenue
plank for the future. With ambitions to be
seen as much more than just Australia’s
largest telecommunications services provider,
Telstra have the opportunity to impact the
lives of all Australians in the wider cultural
landscape, and deepening its influence by
becoming a global telecommunications force.
Telstra’s mobile
service revenues
grew 12.3 percent
for the year,
while mobile data
growth shot up
44.1 percent.
2 7,100 A$m
CBA. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia
(CBA) remains the number one bank brand in
Australia. CBA has managed to not only hold
off the competition, but continue to build
their brand despite potential threats such as
the slowing economy and ongoing pressure
on banks due to the credit crunch. CBA has
achieved outstanding results through its
continued focus on delivering products
customer’s want and a concerted effort by
the brand to improve customer service. This is
backed by a commitment of A$ 580 million over
the next four years to upgrade its technology
systems to improve efficiency and service.
3
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK (NAB) is one
of Australia’s largest banking and financial
services organisations. NAB provides a broad
range of comprehensive and integrated
financial products and services through its
various units. These include NAB with MLC
in Australia, Bank of New Zealand, Clydesdale
and Yorkshire banks in the UK, and NABCapital
in its global institutional markets and services
business. After the negative publicity generated
during the trading and board scandals of 2004,
NAB has aggressively sought to reposition the
brand to counteract any lingering reputation
and image challenges. In 2006, the new NAB
brand identity was unveiled with a renewed
focus to refurbish branches, retrain and
engage staff, improve services and introduce
new and more competitive financial services
and products. Accompanying communications
campaigns sought to breakdown even further
the bureaucracy and previous negative
associations in the bank, reflecting the brand
journey of an organisation fighting back from
adversity. These changes have allowed NAB to
become more approachable, open and friendly
While many of the banks struggle to find
differentiation, CBA has sought to reposition
itself and bring its service experience to
life through the proposition “Determined to
be Different”. With scale and a diversified
business mix core pillars of the group’s
offering, in 2008 CBA bought the BankWest
brand from HBOS as well as a 33 percent
interest in mortgage broker Aussie. CBA
continues to build its strong reputation with
active involvement in the community via high
profile sponsorships such as Cricket Australia,
The Australian of the Year Awards and the
Commonwealth Bank Foundation.
5,100 A$m
to staff, suppliers, government and consumers.
Further reinforcing this re-positioning, NAB’s
current A$ 32.6 million marketing expenditure
involves major advertising campaigns such
as “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” and “nab a small
word for a big life” have continued to build
affinity with consumers. NAB’s investment
in sponsorship with the AFL and 2006
Commonwealth Games also contributed
to introducing NAB’s positioning changes
successfully, engaging stakeholders and lifting
its brand health measures. More recently,
NAB has suffered a number of write-downs
associated with its exposure to the global
credit crunch, recording its first negative
result since 2004, with the 2008 group result
taking a substantial hit from a A$ 2.7 billion
provision for bad debt. As economic conditions
and financial markets continue to deteriorate
and hamper the performance of all the major
banks, NAB and its contemporaries will need
to position themselves strongly for the
expected tough times that lie ahead.
Best Australian Brands 2009 17

4 4,800 A$m
WESTPAC has maintained its profile and
reputation as one of Australia’s best
managed and largest financial services
companies. Remaining steady in the face
of the global financial crisis, Westpac
continues to increase its brand value
through maintaining best practice in
corporate social responsibility and its
commitment to customer service.
Offering extended hours and flexibility for
its customers and staff, its brand-aligned
culture, under newly anointed CEO Gail
Kelly, will ensure that Westpac maintains
its brand leadership and continues to
grow in strength. Recognised as one
of Australia’s best corporate citizens,
Westpac has won numerous reputation
awards due to its sustainability policies
and corporate social responsibility
practices. With the approved St. George
merger expected to take shape in 2009,
Westpac aims to continue to drive a strong
5 4,600 A$m
WOOLWORTHS. Despite the economic
downturn, Woolworths remains in pole
position as Australia’s largest grocery retailer.
CEO Michael Luscombe has built formidable
market share and year-on-year sales growth.
Woolworths continues to drive a wedge
between itself and its major rival Coles as
it tries to reinvent itself for the renewed
challenge ahead. Woolworths not only has
a strong management team and an excellent
refurbishment strategy in place, but it also
has the flexibility in its business model that
other competitors do not, to counter the dual
threat of an economic slowdown and the
entry of foreign supermarket competitors.
As the growth of IGA, Aldi and Costco
continues, and the divesting of Coles to
Wesfarmers progresses, retail supermarkets
are now competing more aggressively,
especially with the trend towards higher
margin own label brand offerings. Woolworths
Home Brand and Woolworths Select have
18 Best Australian Brands 2009
Offering extended
hours and flexibility
customer culture and implement
for its customers
compelling customer segment strategies.
These will serve to continue to generate
and staff, its brand-
revenue and profit growth amidst a very
different and challenging banking
aligned culture
landscape. The credit crunch and changing
conditions in the market have also impacted
will ensure that
the key communications messages from
the banks, prompting them to position
Westpac maintains
their brands less aggressively around
growth and more conservatively around
its brand leadership.
safety, stability and security of deposits
and preservation of investment in financial
products. The St. George merger will
service 10 million customers and create
Australia’s second largest banking entity.
Westpac’s prudent reputations and AA
rating will ensure it can maintain its
strong position as the banking and finance
industry faces further economic and
financial headwinds in 2009.
been a tremendous success in the private
label segment, and store brands will play
a greater role in generating revenues for
the supermarkets during the downturn.
Staple foods and basic commodities are also
not expected to affect revenues, unlike the
impact of the slowdown in more discretionary
categories. A marketing budget of over
A$ 100 million ensures Woolworths is
well-poised to roll out its refreshed brand
identity across all key customer touch points.
Just as the Safeway brand is phased out in
Victoria, Woolworths’s ownership of the
positioning of “the fresh food people” in this
increasingly competitive retail environment,
will only serve to reinforce its focus on its
customers. Woolworths’s new identity
communicates positive values to customers
with associations to fresh, simple, interesting
and modern. All of this suggests a more
positive shopping experience and a renewed
focus on freshness and quality.
 6 3,200 A$m
MACQUARIE GROUP is the preeminent
Australian investment banking brand.
Despite the financial crisis, the collapse
of the investment banking system on
Wall Street, and the plight of its local
rivals, Macquarie continues to thrive
through its brand mantra of innovation
and the diversity of its business model
and operating activities. This unique
mix of business strategy, attracting
and rewarding the best human capital,
and access to financial markets has
underpinned an extraordinary growth
trajectory. The Macquarie brand has
been built upon its expertise, strong
relationships, unique product offering,
and its rising status as a result of consistent
performances in the financial services
sector. The Macquarie brand communicates
what it will deliver – inspired and
innovative solutions to difficult financial
problems. In the last number of years,
Macquarie’s success and its willingness
to prove the doubters wrong has allowed
it to mature into a global investment
banking brand and diversified financial
services group, providing banking,
The Macquarie
brand communicates
what it will deliver –
inspired and innovative
solutions to difficult
financial problems.
8 2,200 A$m
BILLABONG. The board sports clothing
market has experienced phenomenal
growth over the last decade. Billabong has
successfully leveraged the brand’s heritage
and place in Australia’s unique surfing culture
to stretch into new customer segments,
categories and geographies, becoming the
world’s largest surfing and board sports
apparel brand. Recent diversification of the
product range into skate and snow categories
will deliver a more stable platform for growth
providing the strength to combat major
rivals Quicksilver and Rip Curl. Billabong’s
financial, advisory and investment
services to investors, corporations and
governments. Macquarie’s strength and
reputation has grown as a result of its
ability to match its ambitions with an
innate ability to deliver results and
outperform sometimes much bigger and
more established international investment
banking rivals. Macquarie Group now
has more than 60 office locations across
25 countries, and continues to establish
itself as a venerable name amongst the
investment banking elite in the world’s
major financial centres. Macquarie Group’s
model has, however, come under some
pressure as a result of deteriorating asset
values due the de-leveraging of the global
economy through the financial crisis.
The test for Macquarie will be to leverage
its hard earned reputation and leadership
credentials in continuing to innovate, while
consolidating the brand in the challenging
and diverse markets it operates. Only time
will tell if Macquarie Group can continue
to withstand the banking and finances
industry’s greatest challenge.
consistent strategy of building credibility
by sponsoring major sporting events and
forging relationships with respected sports
stars in the surf, skate and snow segments
has also helped propel the authenticity of the
brand across new generations. By moving
the brand’s focus from the male-dominated
surfing culture to board-sports inspired
activities, innovative unisex lifestyle
accessories and leisurewear, Billabong has
been able to engage more diverse consumer
segments and reinforce its position.
A commitment to continual investment in
7 3,100 A$m
ANZ. Despite the global financial turmoil
and the merger and acquisition activity of its
nearest rivals Westpac and Commonwealth
Bank, ANZ continues to pursue its long
term strategy of organically growing its
brand footprint into the Asia- Pacific region.
Through an aggressive expansion in retail
branches and via a number of joint ventures
with Asian banks, ANZ’s push into the Asian
market is perceived by some to be high risk.
However, growing the brand internationally
could provide ANZ with a major competitive
advantage over its domestic rivals whose
presence is not nearly as strong in the Asian
market. Despite offshore risks, ANZ is still
eyeing Asia as the source of 20 percent of
earnings over the next five years after the
division grew earnings by 52 percent in fiscal
2008. In order to support its strategy ANZ
has invested in the highest share of voice
of the “big four”, investing $46.6 million in
marketing and advertising expenditure in
2007. Domestically, ANZ has been prominent
in mortgage lending, securities, margin
lending and institutional banking, however
as the property boom recedes, and economic
conditions generally deteriorate as a result
of the credit crisis, ANZ has suffered its first
profit fall since 1998. Furthermore, ANZ’s
relationships with various securities lending
clients and subsequent bad debt provisions
have caused some harm to the brand’s
reputation. In responding to the global
financial crisis impacting on local operations,
ANZ is actively looking to protect its image
by applying a more rigorous and conservative
approach to lending and in its application to
risk management procedures in the future.
product design and innovation has also
ensured that the brand has remained both
relevant and contemporary. Billabong has
also aggressively expanded internationally
into North America and Europe, and it is now
becoming increasingly popular in Eastern
Europe in both urban and regional areas.
It may need to manage its exposure to the
US and emerging economies where growth is
expected to slow, however, a lower Australian
dollar will no doubt assist them in their quest.
Best Australian Brands 2009 19
9 1,900 A$m
ST. GEORGE’s commitment to service,
personal attention and the development of
close relationships with customers is one of
its main competitive advantages compared to
the “big four” banks. These strengths include
a track record of positive credit quality, high
staff engagement ratings relative to the
industry, and excellent product management
and innovation capabilities. St. George also
strives to play a positive role in the
community by supporting charities, the arts,
sporting clubs, business programs and
disaster relief initiatives. While St. George and
Westpac’s merger will create one of Australia’s
largest financial services companies for
customers, shareholders and employees, the
challenge post merger will be to ensure that
the St. George brand maintains its unique
positioning. It must continue to live up to
its reputation as the friendly bank next door
through its “Good With People, Good With
Money” position. The strategy to be big but
look small in the eyes of customers has been
St. George’s key strength, with the brand
claiming that superior customer service and
a personal approach to business will remain
as the St. George brand continues to operate
as a separate brand entity. St. George also
hopes to grow organically across Australia
while harnessing the potential in its existing
brand strengths and capabilities. The global
financial crisis and the roll-on impact of
a slowing Australian economy are also
negatively affecting the banking market,
with the ability to supply quality credit
steadily deteriorating and threatening the
long term viability of a number of smaller
competitors. Now that St. George is part of
Westpac, and with consolidation expected to
continue in the banking and finance industry,
to sustain its growth ambitions it will be
more important than ever for St. George to
keep its unique identity and not be seen by
consumers as just part of the ”big four”.
The strategy to
be big but to look
small in the eyes
of customers has
been St. George’s
key strength.
20 Best Australian Brands 2009
10 1,300 A$m
HARVEY NORMAN. The previously high
Australian dollar, the explosion in popularity
of personal media devices and the adoption
of digital TV have driven consumers to
electrical goods retailers in their droves.
A commitment to stock the highest selling
brands and a successful franchise strategy
has enabled Harvey Norman to grow revenues
and increase market share to become
Australia’s dominant consumer electronics
and homewares retail brand. Harvey
Norman’s comprehensive product mix,
strong customer value proposition and
aggressive marketing and communications
support have consistently delivered superior
brand performance across the wider market.
However, the falling Australian dollar
and the economic slowdown have affected
the forecast outlook for Harvey Norman.
As a well-known counter-cyclical advertiser,
typically increasing ad spend during times
of slowdown in order to gain market share,
Gerry Harvey has revealed he is to cut his
A$ 300 million marketing and advertising
budget by “at least 20 percent” and he is to
close a number of under-performing stores.
All this could spell harder times ahead for
the retailer.
12
DAVID JONES has reinforced its position
as Australia’s premium department store
brand. The brand has achieved this
position via an unwavering focus on
supplying high calibre branded products,
providing excellent customer service, and
consistently communicating its first class
status and leading reputation for quality.
Through this strategy, David Jones has
built higher margins by offering exclusive
supply deals with premium brands and by
investing in current and new stores to
create a more luxurious retail brand
experience. To consolidate its position,
the retailer has successfully established
exclusive supply agreements with over
50 new brands, some of which were
11 900 A$m
AUSTRALIA POST. A flexible and diverse
business model has allowed Australia Post
to address the threat of electronic
communication and declining traditional
post volumes by focusing on growth
from the globalisation of small business.
By staying at the forefront of innovation
in the post and logistics industry, Australia
Post has been able to maintain its brand
leadership in Australia and fend off the threat
of larger global business logistics competitors.
At the same time, Australia Post has also
broadened the scope of its offering. With the
acquisition of Star Track Express, Australia
Post has expanded its non-core services
and continued to enjoy strong results.
Post Logistics has emerged as another
source of high growth for its B2B services
division. However, the collapse of Australia
Post’s extension – Post Bill Pay – damaged
the brand’s credentials in the internet
services market. As a ubiquitous brand
in Australia attempting to modernise its
persona, the recent “Part of Everyday”
campaign has positioned the brand as more
contemporary and relevant, breathing new
life into the Australia Post brand.
760 A$m
previously stocked at major rival Myer.
The use of Australian supermodels
Megan Gale and Miranda Kerr as David
Jones brand ambassadors has also
reinforced David Jones’s credibility
and premium brand positioning in the
ongoing Australian department
“store wars”. David Jones has dominated
the competitive retail environment
in recent years and it has delivered
strong year on year store sales growth.
With the Australian economy
experiencing an economic downturn,
it will be challenging for David Jones
to sustain such high historical growth,
however, the brand is well positioned
to maintain its leadership status.
 13
MYER is Australia’s largest chain of
department stores, retailing a broad range
of merchandise. The implementation of
an integrated media strategy that includes
the distribution of catalogues and
a magazine has brought together brand
touchpoints and advertising campaigns
into closer harmony. The “Myer is my store”
byline is the current campaign driver
and this campaign stretches across all
aspects of Myer’s media spend, in line
with Myer’s strategy of providing a range
of products to suit everyone’s needs.
This has been extended through point of
sale, in-store signage, direct marketing,
and sponsorships. Myer’s brand position
in the market was deteriorating under
the previous management of Coles Myer,
however the divestment and takeover
by private equity has heralded a renewed
focus on the core business and a return
to profitability. Currently, Myer is in direct
competition with both high end and
15
CROWN. Since 2004, Crown has enjoyed
strong growth and a generally buoyant
economy in Australia. However, economic
slowdown may affect the profits of the
gambling and luxury accommodation
industry in the short to medium term,
with the James Packer-led Crown Empire
no exception. The worsening conditions
of the global economy are expected not
only to affect local customers but also the
highly lucrative Asian market. However,
Crown’s major events schedule, expanding
entertainment offerings, exclusive “high
670 A$m
discount retailers, operating 65 stores
across Australia. Former Miss Universe
Jennifer Hawkins has successfully led
Myer’s most publicised promotional
activity since 2006, and she recently
signed a multi-million- dollar deal to be
the face of Myer for another four years.
Although Myer has delivered a more
efficient business model and begun to
invest and reinvigorate key retail stores,
Myer has been unable to defend against
David Jones’s aggressive pursuit of growth
and positioning at the premium end of
the market. With a retail downturn
underway, Myer is set to counter the drop
in consumer spending by doubling its
marketing budget for the first three
months of 2009 in a multi-million-dollar
bid to drive traffic to stores. With the
competitive environment in the
department “store wars” set to get tougher,
it shall remain an intriguing battle.
560 A$m
roller” positioning and continual upgrades
aim to attract both local and international
customers. Some of these upgrades include
Crown’s refurbishment of the main gaming
room, three first-class restaurants, and
a third hotel and conference centre. Crown’s
continuous improvements also include
an investment into A$ 2billion worth of U.S.
casino and gaming assets. Crown has
successfully positioned its brand around
entertainment and leisure, avoiding the
pitfalls associated with gambling and other
related social problems.
14 630 A$m
FLIGHT CENTRE. Unpredictable events
such as threats to global security, rising oil
prices, economic volatility and fluctuations
in exchange rates have always hampered
the global and domestic travel industry.
However, Flight Centre has continually
emerged from these threats to be the leading
provider of travel solutions through its
commitment to demonstrating its “lowest
airfares guaranteed” value proposition
alongside its flexible and responsive business
model. Flight Centre was quick to recognise
the movement of customers researching and
paying for travel services on the internet.
As consumers migrated online, Flight Centre
has capitalised on the growth of its customer
base in Australia and overseas through an
innovative combination of retail and online
brand strategies. Extensive employee
training programs have resulted in Flight
Centre becoming an employer of choice,
voted as one of the best 100 places to work.
Its A$ 2.4 million investment in adventure
travel brand Intrepid has allowed it to enter
the niche travel sector, and its partnership
with the Nine Network and Getaway has
contributed to its position as the number
one travel agency brand in Australia. With the
global slowdown expected to impact on
revenues in the highly sensitive and volatile
travel industry, Flight Centre’s dedication
to quality, value and innovation will put it
in a good position to continue to outperform
its sector.
Flight Centre has
capitalised on
the growth of its
customer base
in Australia and
overseas through
its innovative
combination of
retail and online
brand strategies.
Best Australian Brands 2009 21
16 500 A$m 17 380 A$m

ANSELL is a recognised worldwide leader in

COMPUTERSHARE. A dominant position in itself as the market leader. In conjunction
branded latex and rubber products, supplying
Australian share registry services has given with share registry management services
a diverse range of business and consumer
Computershare clear leadership on products, including corporate actions, shareholder
markets. After strong margin pressure from
technological innovation and performance. relations management, employee share plans
high latex prices, Ansell has leveraged its
With the Australian market for investor and electronic investor communication,
strong brand position and diversified the
services now only accounting for a fraction Computershare is now able to provide total
brand into new categories such as non-latex
of its revenue, Computershare has leveraged share transaction settlement services.
protective wear while shifting towards
its brand leadership in registry services and This shift towards a total client solutions model
a more premium offering in its professional
aggressively pursued acquisitions has great potential and is a core proposition
division and consumer rubber glove ranges.
internationally to become a global player for the brand. Given the recent downturn in
Recent acquisitions in the US condom market
and position itself as a specialist technology global share markets, this provides the platform
have been unable to make a substantial
solutions provider. Emerging markets are from which Computershare can build even
imprint on revenues as yet, however, Ansell
a source of strong growth, with Russia a key further on its attributes of efficiency, trust
has entrenched its status as market leader
standout where Computershare has solidified and security.
in Australia after fending off an increase in
competition locally. Operating in increasingly
mature markets, Ansell has pursued new
growth in emerging markets in Asia, Eastern
Computershare has leveraged
Europe, and South America to leverage its
brand strength in key latex supply markets.
As a result, the brand has generally enjoyed
its brand leadership in registry
robust performance since 2005.
services and aggressively
pursued acquisitions
internationally to become
a global player.

With the second 18 220 A$m

largest market
share in a fiercely ORIGIN ENERGY’s authentic “green”
brand credentials place it in an enviable
In terms of pricing, the traditional coal
and gas fired energy market has

competitive position to accommodate an increasingly

environmentally conscious retail energy
experienced volatile wholesale prices
in the past few years, however, Origin’s

landscape, Origin market. Origin is highly active in

distributing and developing renewable
integrated supply chain has enabled it
to ride out the storm. The most recent

has been able and environmentally friendly energy

solutions, with interests in solar energy,
”Things we love” campaign brings to life
the company’s desire to operate its

to differentiate wind power and geothermal energy

production. With the second largest
business in a way that ensures the things
we love today will still be here for us to

itself with its market share in a fiercely competitive

energy and utilities landscape, Origin has
enjoy in the future. This campaign aims
to set Origin apart as a brand leader in

sustainability been able to differentiate itself with its

sustainability credentials, yet the threat
the energy industry and communicate
its commitment to the brand promise.

credentials. of imitation by competition remains.

22 Best Australian Brands 2009

JB Hi-Fi’s mix of high
selling products, quality
service without the
attitude, and pared-back
store environment
combines to create an
authentic value proposition
that is very popular
among consumers.
20
BENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK.
Bendigo Bank’s value continues to rise
due to continued organic growth and its
A$ 1.6 billion merger with Adelaide Bank
in 2007. Bendigo’s market share has been
largely driven by the publicity surrounding
its community bank positioning and by
growing its suite of innovative financial
services options. The consolidation of both
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank should prove
to be a successful union with consumers
due to the positioning of both institutions
as community banking brands with solid
financial services offerings. Given St. George’s
acquisition by Westpac, Bendigo and
Adelaide Bank have the opportunity to
position themselves as the leading
independent community bank that engages
with local communities. The fact that
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank
have the opportunity to position
themselves as the leading
independent community bank.
19 190 A$m
JB Hi-Fi has emerged as one of the high
performers in the music retailing and
consumer electronics category. Despite
worsening economic conditions in retailing,
JB Hi-Fi has demonstrated the extraordinary
strength of its brand in the past year. Its mix
of high-selling products, quality service
without the attitude, and pared-back store
environment combines to create an
authentic value proposition that is very
popular among consumers. JB Hi-Fi continues
to gain market share on the back of this
best-in-category business model, and it will
press ahead with the roll out of 24 new stores,
as well as a planned aggressive expansion
into New Zealand. Shifting towards
consumer electronics has increased the
competitive pressure from the likes of
category leaders like Harvey Norman,
however, the JB Hi-Fi brand has continued
to take share as it stretches into these core
categories. The brand’s authentic value
proposition and the staff’s instinctive ability
to make a sale should place the brand in
a strong position to tackle the downturn.
150 A$m
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has also held
the highest level of customer satisfaction
in the local banking sector will also serve to
increase market share. The strengths of the
partnership will include a stronger wealth
management business, larger retail
network, increased margin lending
capabilities, and a continued push towards
the SME banking segment. With a
demonstrable commitment to communities
with various arts, sports and charitable
foundations, the emergence of Bendigo bank
to use the Olympics as a brand building
opportunity signals their intent to grow their
national deposit base. Bendigo has about
400 branches and through the merger now
has a greater ability to leverage brand
investments to contend with the big banks
to win customers.
Best Australian Brands 2009 23
Other prominent
Australian brands
A number of strong and well-performing brands
were not featured in the ranking, but they
nevertheless play a significant role in the Australian
brand landscape. We dedicate this section to
other prominent Australian brands that came
close to making the Top 20 table or were unable
to be included.

QANTAS is the world’s second oldest and
Australia’s largest airline with 51 percent
value share in the domestic air
transportation industry. Qantas also
continues to build on a strong position in
Australasia and in key strategic markets
in Asia-Pacific and Western Europe.
Despite a potentially disastrous dalliance
with private equity in 2006, the airline is
in comparably strong shape versus many
of its international and domestic peers,
bolstered by a solid cash position and
a revitalised fleet. Qantas has also been
consistently responsive in meeting volatile
and uncertain market conditions while
delivering a highly successful dual brand
strategy with Jetstar. 2007 also marked the
year of brand renewal for Qantas, with the
airline unveiling a new identity to complement
its new fleet of state-of-the-art Boeing 787
and Airbus A380 aircraft. The Flying Kangaroo,
as it is affectionately known, has also unveiled
new, more spacious seating, enhanced
interiors, lounges designed by Marc Newson,
luxurious first class check-in facilities, and
a new flying experience courtesy of the
premium economy cabin. Through continual
support of the brand and investment in
its capital base, Qantas is making a genuine
effort to stay relevant and maintain
its long-term growth strategy despite the
economic downturn. The significant
investment in its new fleet and its continual
focus on its 5 million Frequent Flyer members
is expected to boost customer loyalty and
satisfaction. In 2008, the global airline
industry drastically cut capacity as fuel prices
rallied to record highs. However, as energy
prices later retreated, pushed lower by the
economic crisis that continues to dampen
demand, Qantas is currently entertaining
possible merger opportunities with rivals
to exploit long-term cost, marketing and
supply-synergy benefits.

2007 marked the year of brand

renewal for Qantas, with the
airline unveiling a new identity
to complement its new fleet
of state-of-the-art Boeing 787
and Airbus A380 aircraft.
24 Best Australian Brands 2009
NETWORK TEN. Although Network Ten has
slipped to third in overall market share ratings,
it has been able to maintain leadership in
the coveted, yet hard to reach, 16-39 year
old segment. Ten continue to pursue this
targeted strategy and offer a clearly
differentiated proposition to the market
where programming is aimed at those
audiences that are of most interest to
advertisers. After enjoying an excellent run
in popularity for local programming in the
past few years, Big Brother has finally come
to an end but Australian Idol, The Biggest
Loser and So You Think You Can Dance are
still holding up well. While the other
Suncorp has focused
on customer service to
differentiate itself from its
considerably larger Sydney
and Melbourne peers.
commercial channels have developed online
partnerships with related entertainment
companies, Ten has resisted establishing
a more comprehensive service online.
However, Ten has been proactive in
addressing the opportunities presented by
the multi-channeling capabilities of digital
television, demonstrated by its first mover
advantage with the new dedicated 24-hour
free-to-air channel, One. This new sports
programming platform will utilise a high
integration advertising model to avoid
dilution of revenue derived from the existing
mainstream analogue channel.
SUNCORP is Australia’s sixth largest bank
and a leading finance, insurance, and banking
corporation. Suncorp’s acquisition of
Promina in 2007 established the company
nationally and gave weight to its model as
a diversified retail financial services
organisation. Although a pricing war on
insurance premiums cut the performance
of the insurance arm, the banking division
has continued to grow with the relative
buoyancy of the Australian economy up until
late 2008 and the significant growth of the
Queensland property market. Suncorp has
focused on customer service to differentiate
itself from its considerably larger Sydney
and Melbourne peers, boasting 68 percent
customer satisfaction compared to the
“big four’s” average of around 60 percent.
The banking division has attempted to reduce
its reliance on the Queensland market by
expanding its presence in NSW, Victoria
and WA to grab additional market share
and become a super-regional bank brand.
However, Suncorp’s exposure to the cooling
Queensland property market has exposed
the bank’s reliance on its home market and
its performance in 2009 has suffered
accordingly. Chief executive John Mulcahy
has agreed to step down from his post after
six years in the role. Due to the global financial
crisis, falling asset values and access to the
wholesale lending market continues to
threaten the stability of Australia’s regional
banks, with Suncorp’s long-term future
currently uncertain.
Best Australian Brands 2009 25
 AGL. For energy providers like AGL
the past number of years has seen
significant change unfold in every area of
the domestic gas and electricity market.
New markets have opened and existing
markets have evolved as the national
grid was privatised and opened up to
competitive energy wholesaling and
retailing amidst a climate of volatile
wholesale energy costs. In an industry
where oil and gas prices determine
profitability, AGL distinguishes itself
through building its reputation,
customer relationships, and reliability.
With increasing competition and the
upcoming privatisation of the NSW
power network, AGL has continued to
focus on downstream retail activity to
build a point of difference in its brand for
Lend Lease has been very
successful on a global
scale, operating in more
than 40 countries and
employing more than
11,000 people worldwide.
26 Best Australian Brands 2009
a commoditised product, and it has
grown its customer base to over 6 million
to become Australia’s leading energy
supplier. In 2007 and 2008 global energy
prices increased significantly, while
government and public pressure to
improve sustainability and innovation
into clean fuels and subsequent
compliance with various emissions goals
provided further incentive for more
effective brand building activities. In early
2008, AGL launched its new retail brand
campaign, “Energy in Action”, across
a variety of media. This re‑positioning
highlights the actions AGL has taken in its
renewable energy portfolio and positions
AGL with its new brand and staff promise
of “Actions, not words”.
LEND LEASE. Having come a long way from
its original Dutch/Australian roots, Lend
Lease is now Australia’s largest property
management and investment company.
The company has been successful on a global
scale, operating in more than 40 countries
and employing more than 11,000 people
worldwide. In all markets, the Bovis Lend
Lease division constructs and manages large
building projects. In the Asia-Pacific region,
Lend Lease also operates as Delfin Lend
Lease, a major Australian residential property
developer. In addition, Lend Lease also
operates a retail development investment
business in the UK, and a number of other
ventures in the United States. With the
re-pricing of asset values, a major symptom
of the fallout in the global financial crisis,
current volatility in the commercial
property market is likely to continue for the
foreseeable future. Last year, Lend Lease
reported a 46.7 percent fall in its annual
profit due to property revaluations and
write-downs in the value of some of its UK
businesses, as both the US and UK residential
markets continue to suffer. Looking towards
its future growth, Lend Lease is contracted
to develop the A$ 13.2 billion Olympic village
for the London Olympic Games. Not only
will this make up for some of its lost profit,
it will also create brand awareness and
expand knowledge of its expertise in the
international market.
Answers to the
most commonly
asked questions
The purpose of this section is to address the
questions that you might be asking in relation
to the Best Australian Brands table.

01 What is brand value? 28 11 Is it possible to recognise brand

02 Why value brands? 28
03 How does Interbrand derive the
value of brands? 28
04 What was the basis for the
financial assessments? 29
05 What was the basis for the
marketing assessments? 29
06 Why are certain brands not
on the list? 29
value on a balance sheet? 30
12 What is Interbrand’s view on brands
appearing on balance sheets? 30
13 Why is Interbrand an expert
in assessing brand value? 31
14 Does Interbrand conduct other
brand studies? 31
15 What is the difference between
the valuations in Best Australian Brands
and consulting valuations for clients? 31

07 Was there a limit to the number of

brands included from any one industry? 29

08 What is the relationship between the

following terms: brand awareness, brand
equity, brand share, and brand value? 29

09 Do the valuations reflect the

underlying state of the economy? 30

10 How does brand value rank against

ad spending? 30

Best Australian Brands 2009 27

 01 What is brand value?
Brand value is the dollar value of a
brand, calculated as Net Present Value
(NPV) or today’s value of the earnings
the brand is expected to generate in the
future. Like any other financial value,
brand value is based on the assumptions
and information available at that point
in time. Brand value is calculated
according to the most widely accepted
and used valuation principles. This makes
brand value comparable to business-
and all NPV-based asset values.
The valuations of brands appearing in
the Best Australian Brands are calculated
in their current use to their current
owner. Therefore, these valuations do
not necessarily represent the potential
purchase, extension or licensing value
of the brands.
02 Why value brands?
The purpose of these valuations is to
demonstrate to the business community
that brands are very important business
assets and, in many cases, the single
most valuable company asset. We also
aim to make branding and marketing key
business issues that have direct
shareholder value impact. Through eight
years of publishing Best Global Brands
in BusinessWeek magazine, we have
created the world’s most significant and
influential brand and marketing study.
In fact, PRWeek magazine produced
a study demonstrating that the
BusinessWeek/Interbrand Best Global
Brands ranking was the third most
sought-after benchmark report by CEOs,
CFOs and Marketing Directors.
28 Best Australian Brands 2009
03 How does Interbrand derive the
value of brands?
Our valuation approach is a derivative
of the way businesses and financial
assets are valued. It fits with current
corporate finance theory and practice.
There are three key elements and they
are detailed below.
Financial Forecasting
We identify the revenues from products
or services that are generated with the
brand. From these branded revenues
we deduct operating costs, applicable
taxes, and a charge for the capital
employed to derive the economic value
that is generated by all tangible and
intangible business assets of the branded
business. Economic Value Added (EVA)
is a value-based management concept
and is a generally accepted principle to
measure the ability of a business to
generate returns over and above its
invested capital. Based on reports from
financial analysts, we prepare a financial
forecast and calculate the EVA of the
branded business.
Role of Branding
Since EVA includes the returns for all
assets employed in the business, we
need to identify the earnings that are
specifically attributable to the brand.
Through our proprietary analytical
framework, called Role of Branding,
we can calculate the percentage of EVA
that is entirely generated by the brand.
In some businesses, e.g. in fragrances
or packaged goods, the Role of Branding
is very high – as the brand is the
predominant driver of the customer
buying decision. However, in other
businesses (in particular B2B) the brand
is only one purchase driver among many,
and the Role of Branding is therefore
lower. For example, people are buying
Microsoft not only because of the brand,
but because the company has an installed
base of 80 percent of the market and it
would be extremely difficult for most
users to switch their existing files to a
new software platform. In the case of
Shell, people buy not only because of the
brand, but also because of the location
of the petrol stations and use of loyalty
programs. For each of the brands (and
categories) we have assessed the Role of
Branding. The Role of Branding is derived
as a percentage (%). Thus, if it is 50%, we
take 50% of the EVA as brand earnings.
If it is 10%, we only take 10% of the EVA.
Brand Strength
To derive the net present value of the
forecast brand earnings, we need
a discount rate that represents the risk
profile of these earnings. There are two
factors at play: firstly, the time value of
money (i.e. $100 today is more valuable
than $100 in five years because one
can earn interest on the money in the
meantime); and secondly, the risk
that the forecast earnings will actually
materialise. The discount rate represents
these factors as it provides an asset-
specific risk rate. The higher the risk
of the future earnings stream, the higher
the discount rate will be. To derive today’s
value of a future expected earnings
stream, it needs to be discounted by
a rate that reflects the risk of the
earnings actually materialising and the
time for which it is expected. For example,
$100 from the Coca-Cola brand in five
years requires a lower discount rate than
$100 from the Fanta brand in five years,
as the Coca-Cola brand is stronger and
therefore more likely to deliver the
expected earnings.
The assessment of Brand Strength
is a structured way of assessing the
specific risk of the brand. We compare
the brand against a notional ideal and
score it against common factors of
brand strength. The ideal brand is
virtually risk-free and would be
discounted at a rate almost as low as
government bonds or a similar risk-free
investment. The lower the brand
strength, the further it is from the
risk-free investment and so the higher
the discount rate (and therefore the
lower the NPV).
04 What was the basis for the
financial assessments?
Published annual reports were used
to examine the revenues, earnings
and balance sheets of the brand-
owning companies. Analyst reports
from investment banks are used as
the basis for identifying the specific
brand revenues and earnings, and for
forecasting future earnings.
05 What was the basis for the
marketing assessments?
Unlike other brand value rankings,
Interbrand does not rely on a single
source of marketing information.
Using a single brand study would limit
the type of information (usually
perceptual data) and the type of
customer (usually general public) that
can be considered. Because many leading
brands operate in specific customer
segments (particularly B2B brands),
sourcing data exclusively from the
general public would prove very
restrictive. Instead, Interbrand refers to
a wide array of primary and secondary
sources, which are applicable to each
brand. These include ACNielsen,
IBIS World, Factiva, BRW, Thompson
Reuters, Australian Financial Review,
Adnews, B&T and Datamonitor, among
many others.
06 Why are certain brands not
on the list?
This is a frequent question, especially
from companies who would expect their
brands to be on the list. The most likely
possible reasons are as follows:
• T
 he brand has a pure B2B audience
and little wider public profile
and awareness
• T
 here is insufficient level of public
financial data available to enable
us to identify the branded business
(e.g. the company has multiple
brands, as in the case of Fosters,
or has unbranded production)
• T
 he brand is not big enough or profit
was insufficient
• I t is not a customer facing brand -
holding companies were excluded
(e.g. IAG, Wesfarmers)
• W
 holly owned or local subsidiaries of
global brands were excluded on the
basis that their value is not entirely
rooted in Australia and/or they did
not originate here (e.g. GM Holden,
Arnott’s, Kmart)
Best Australian Brands 2009 29
07 Was there a limit to the number of
brands included from any one industry?
No. However, one of the requirements
of a leading brand is that it is, in fact,
leading. The mark of leadership is not
just about market share, but also about
behaving as a leader – setting trends,
quality standards, authority and so on.
As a result, there are brands that are in
the top three of their category’s market
share but did not make the cut, and there
are brands that are not top three that
did make the ranking. The rules described
are guidelines and, ultimately, each
brand was assessed for inclusion on its
own merits.
08 What is the relationship between
the following terms: brand awareness,
brand equity, brand share and
brand value?
Brand value is the only measure that
looks at the economic benefit of the
brand to its owner. In other words, it is
an end in itself. Brand awareness and
brand equity are a means to an end.
Brand awareness is simply knowledge
that a brand exists, thus brand
awareness may prompt customers to
consider buying a product. Brand equity
is a measure of customer perceptions
of a brand, thus it may give a customer
reason to prefer one product over the
alternatives. Brand share is simply the
market share achieved by the brand.
Thus brand awareness, equity and share
are all measures of what a customer
thinks or does. It is not an assessment
of the economic value created by those
thoughts or actions.
 09 Do the valuations reflect the
underlying state of the economy?
Yes – in two ways. The forecasts are
prepared with an overall view on
economic growth at a point in time.
The formula for converting the Brand
Strength Score into a discount rate is
tied to the underlying government
bond yield.
10 How does brand value rank against
advertising and marketing spending?
It is not really appropriate to try to
correlate these two components.
Brand value is a measure of the output
from a series of brand investments and
initiatives over a long period of time.
Advertising is one component amidst
a wide spectrum of communications
that companies employ. Other
communications include sponsorships,
online, point of sale, word of mouth,
experiential marketing and customer
service. In some cases, brands are built
with very little or no advertising, as in the
case of Google where the online space,
word of mouth and public relations are
the key communications channels.
30 Best Australian Brands 2009
11 Is it possible to recognise brand
value on a balance sheet?
Several accounting standards – such as
International Accounting Standards IFRS
and US-GAAP – require the recognition
of acquired goodwill, including brands,
on the balance sheet. The standards clearly
identify brands as intangible assets with
an infinite economic life. This means that,
unlike other intangible assets (e.g. patents,
databases) or goodwill (e.g. training,
workforce), brand value does not have
to be amortised through the income
statement. However, they are subject
to an annual impairment test and their
carrying value needs to be reduced if the
value declined. The technique is consistent
with the way in which Interbrand
has assessed brands for balance sheet
inclusion – although, of course, using
more extensive and proprietary data.
12 What is Interbrand’s view on
brands appearing on balance sheets?
We support the decision by the different
accounting standards to recognise the
value of brands on the balance sheet.
Interbrand has led the debate on this
issue for many years. However, current
accounting standards allow only for the
recognition of acquired brands, not
internally developed brands. Also, the
impairment test for brands on the
balance sheet allows only for a potential
value reduction but not increase.
The acquisition criterion means that the
Gucci brand is recognised on the balance
sheet of PPR as an intangible asset, while
the Louis Vuitton brand does not show
up on the balance sheet of LVMH.
We conclude that the recognition of
acquired brands on the balance sheet is
a step in the right direction for providing
shareholders with better information
about the assets in which they have
invested. However, it is still not sufficient,
as the value of internally generated
brands cannot be disclosed despite
making up the vast majority of the most
valuable brands around the world.
13 Why is Interbrand an expert
in assessing brand value?
In 1988, Interbrand developed and
introduced the first valuation of a portfolio
of brands that used a brand specific
valuation approach. Since then, we have
continuously updated and improved our
valuation approach to make it the global
industry standard of brand valuation.
The Interbrand brand valuation
methodology is the most widely
endorsed and employed valuation
approach around the world. Interbrand
alone has valued more than 5,000 brands
in all industries worldwide. Our valuations
have been endorsed by leading academic
institutions including Harvard,
Thunderbird, Columbia, Emory and
St. Gallen. Our valuation approach has
a wide range of applications, including
strategic brand management, marketing
budget allocation, marketing ROI,
portfolio management, brand extensions,
mergers and acquisitions, balance sheet
recognition, licensing, transfer pricing
and investor relations. Our valuations
have been audited for inclusion on the
balance sheet by all leading accounting
firms. Also, many tax authorities and law
courts around the world have accepted
our valuation approach.
14 Does Interbrand conduct other
brand studies?
In addition to Australia, we have
established national brand value rankings
in Switzerland, France, Spain, Singapore,
China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Mexico,
Russia, Canada and Brazil. These follow
an identical valuation process to our
Annual Global Best Brands study but only
evaluate locally-owned brands.
15 What is the difference between the
valuations in Best Australian Brands
and consulting valuations for clients?
The valuation methodology is the same,
however, the level of detail and the
data input differ significantly. The Best
Australian Brand valuations are based on
publicly available marketing and financial
data. Also, the Best Australian Brand
valuations are mostly consolidated
top-line assessments, although we
recognise segment differences for
diversified brands by product or service
but not geography or any other
classification (e.g. financial services or
technology). As the valuations are based
on publicly available data, they are only
as reliable as the data that the brand-
owning companies publish about
themselves (in annual reports, analyst
briefings, press articles, syndicated
market research). Consulting valuations
are based on detailed customer
segmentations, as well as in-depth
marketing and financial analyses.
They have a much higher level of
accuracy and granularity. The purpose
of a consulting valuation extends well
beyond assessing financial numbers and
goes on to identify and quantify value
drivers so as to manage brands for
increasing the shareholder value of the
underlying businesses. However, if
clients undertake consulting valuations,
we are in a much better position to
identify publicly available data that is
likely to align the Best Australian Brands
valuation with the consulting valuation.
In cases where companies make our
consulting valuations publicly available,
for example through a note in the
balance sheet, these values will also be
published as the Best Australian Brands
ranking value.
Best Australian Brands 2009 31
About Interbrand
Interbrand began in 1974 when the world
still thought of brands as just another
word for logo. We have changed the
dialogue, defined the meaning of brand
management and continue to lead the
debate on understanding brands as
valuable business assets.
We now have nearly 40 offices and are
the world’s largest brand consultancy.
Our practice brings together a diverse
range of insightful right – and left – brain
thinkers making our business both
rigorously analytical and highly creative.
Our work creates and manages brand
value for clients by making the brand
central to the business’s strategic goals.
We’re not interested in simply being the
world’s biggest brand consultancy. We want
to be the most the most valued.
We pioneered the technique for valuing
brands in 1984 and have continued to
improve upon the methodology and set the
pace for other approaches. Our valuation
techniques have long been recognised by
business, academics and regulatory bodies
as a uniquely valuable strategic tool. Today,
we have conducted over 5,000 valuations
for clients to provide guidance in managing
their most valuable asset – their brand.

Contact us
General and media inquiries:

Damian Borchok Additional information on brands

Managing Director www.interbrand.com
Interbrand Australia www.brandchannel.com
Tel: +61 2 8260 2031
Mob: +61 437 478 586
damian.borchok@interbrand.com.au

Renzo Scacco
General Manager
Interbrand Australia
Tel: +61 3 8416 3218
Mob: +61 438 722 825
renzo.scacco@interbrand.com.au

32 Best Australian Brands 2009

 Creating and managing
www.interbrand.com brand value TM