Delta’s Brand Remains World’s Most Valuable Airlines Begin Recovering Covid-19
According to a recent analysis published by the industry’s preeminent brand value consultant, Brand Finance, airline brands all over the globe are resuming their trajectory toward expansion after the significant disruption caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. During the pandemic, the airline sector saw significant drops in brand value due to the fact that countries enacted travel restrictions in an effort to slow the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic. Although many airline brands are seeing positive growth, they have not yet reached the values they had before the epidemic.
Brand Finance, a major brand valuation consultant, conducts research on 5,000 of the world’s most well-known brands every year and releases over 100 reports that rate the brands in question across all industries and nations. The annual Brand Finance Airlines 50 2022 ranking takes a look at the top 50 airline brands across the globe in terms of both their value and their strength.
Delta continues to hold the crown as the most valuable airline in the world, with a valuation of $7.3 billion in US dollars.
Delta has increased its brand value by 27 percent, reaching a total of $7.3 billion. This places it at the top of the list, surpassing all of its rivals. In order to maintain customer loyalty during periods of low demand, the premier American airline has introduced a number of innovative new services over the course of the last year.
The previous year has seen a number of exciting new developments, some of which include the addition of six additional transatlantic routes to the company’s current network as well as the launch of new partner hubs around Europe, including locations such as London, Paris, and Amsterdam, amongst others. Additionally, the Delta business has made investments in airlines all over the world such as Aeromexico (brand value increased by 42 percent to US $0.3 billion), Virgin Atlantic (brand value increased by 37 percent to US $0.4 billion), Korean Air (brand value increased by 15 percent to US $1.3 billion), and China Eastern (brand value increased by 4 percent to US $2.3 billion) in order to build the Delta brand by being able to deliver improved travel connectivity.
Carbon emissions present difficulties for the airline sector, and Delta is working to address these worries by implementing the appropriate measures. In an effort to find ways to minimize the airline’s overall carbon footprint, Delta has formed a partnership with the European aerospace manufacturer Airbus. It’s possible that the aviation industry’s impact on the environment might be reduced if they stopped using conventional jet fuel and started utilizing alternative kinds of fuel instead.
“The COVID-19 epidemic caused significant travel limitations around the globe,” said Savio D’Souza, Valuation Director of Brand Finance. “This had extremely substantial and direct consequences on airline brand values,” he said. “Brand values have increased this year but have a long way to return to pre-pandemic levels,” Delta, the industry leader, said. “Brand values have risen this year but have a long way to return to pre-pandemic levels.”
With a AAA brand rating, WestJet, an airline based in Canada, has the most powerful brand of any airline in the world.
Brand Finance uses a balanced scorecard of criteria to establish the relative strength of brands. These metrics evaluate marketing investment, shareholder equity, and business success. In addition to determining the value of brands, Brand Finance also evaluates the worth of individual brands. The evaluation of stakeholder equity done by Brand Finance takes into account primary data gleaned from market research conducted with over 100,000 participants from more than 35 countries and almost 30 different industries.
With a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 84 out of 100 and a matching AAA-brand grade, WestJet has established itself as the most powerful airline brand in the world. The company’s brand value has increased by 22 percent, reaching US $0.6 billion. As a result of the addition of 24 new routes throughout Canada, consumers in that country have a stronger sense of affiliation with the brand. This is due to the fact that the brand identification of the Canadian airline has been reinforced across the country.
The effects of COVID-19 are being progressively overcome by the brand, and for the first time since the worst of the epidemic, more than 500 flights depart each day.
Airlines from Spain Iberia’s brand value has increased by 36% over the last year, making it the most rapidly expanding airline brand.
Iberia has the fastest growing airline brand in the ranking with an impressive 36 percent growth in brand value, narrowly beating out Singapore Airlines, which increased brand value by just under 36 percent to US $2.25 billion. Iberia’s growth rate is slightly higher than Singapore Airlines’ growth rate.
The speed with which Iberia adapted to the interruption caused by COVID-19 contributed to an increase in the value of its brand. Additionally, the Spanish airline is in the process of forming a new strategic collaboration with the Spanish oil business Cepsa in order to lessen the amount of carbon emissions produced by air travel and to provide more environmentally friendly fuel for aircraft.
Sauda is the airline brand with the quickest expansion rate in the Middle East.
The most rapidly expanding airline in the Middle East is Sauda, whose brand value has increased by 13 percent to reach half a billion dollars in the United States. As part of its Vision 2030 initiative, Saudi Arabia intends to raise the number of tourists to 100 million per year by the year 2030, while also increasing the number of religious visits to 30 million. As it prepares to welcome tourists to the country for the first time, Saudi Arabia is making significant investments in the quality of both its goods and its services in order to provide an improved experience for customers.
Numerous projects are now under way as a major facilitator of the Kingdom’s ambitious tourist ambitions as part of Vision 2030. These initiatives include growing the number of routes it operates and boosting the size of its fleet at its brand new, state-of-the-art Jeddah Hub airport.
By using digital transformation, AirAsia increases customer recognition and familiarity with its brand.
According to the report, AirAsia is one of the top 10 strongest airline brands, with its brand value having increased by 18 percent to reach $1.4 billion in the United States. Beyond its primary business in air travel, the company also provides services in the areas of business, finance, cuisine, and travel, all of which contribute to the widespread recognition of the brand.
With its highly adaptable online travel agency (OTA) mobile application known as Super App, the company places a premium on the client experience as well as digital integration. The fact that the brand has achieved a market share of 63% in Malaysia is evidence of how well it is doing in the markets that are geographically concentrated in that country.
As a direct result of the epidemic, Indian airline brands have been seeing continuous expansion.
Indian airlines are beginning to recover from a drop in demand that occurred during numerous shutdown guidelines around the country. Both IndiGo (whose brand value increased by 22 percent to US $0.7 billion) and Air India (whose brand value increased by 19 percent to US $0.3 billion) accomplished significant growth, however Air India’s position in the ranking of the top 50 airline brands was unaltered.
The brands of Indian airlines that appeared in the list had tremendous growth, with year-over-year brand value increase of 22 percent. There is more opportunity for these brands as the globe prepares for a post-COVID future.