Amazon has leapfrogged Google and Apple to become the world’s most valuable brand after seeing its value increase by 42 per cent last year.
According to the latest Brand Finance Global 500 report, the retail and technology behemoth is now valued at $150.8 billion (£108.6 billion), hence moving up two spots from 3rd last year.
Now also the world’s largest internet business by both market capitalisation and revenue, Amazon has come a long way since its humble beginnings as an online bookstore.
In recent years it has expanded into artificial intelligence technologies, music, video streaming and the $13.7 billion (£10.7 billion) acquisition of Whole Foods – which paved the way for its entry into bricks-and-mortar retail.
“[Amazon boss] Jeff Bezos once said that ‘brands are more important online than they are in the physical world’,” Brand Finance chief executive David Haigh said.
“He has proved himself right by choosing the name Amazon, known as the largest, most powerful river in the world, as 23 years later the Amazon brand carries all before it as an unstoppable force.
“The strength and value of the Amazon brand gives it stakeholder permission to extend relentlessly into new sectors and geographies.
“All evidence suggests that the amazing Amazon brand is going to continue growing indefinitely and exponentially.”
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For the first time since the Brand Finance Global 500 was established, technology brands claim all top five rankings, with Apple in 2nd, Google in 3rd, Samsung 4th and Facebook in 5th.
The only other retailer to have made the top 10 is Asda’s American parent company Walmart, which came in at 9th with a value of $61.4 billion (£44.1 billion).
Chinese online retailer Alibaba is also the only other retailer in top 20, with a value of $54.9 billion (£39.4 billion) after growing 58 per cent year-on-year.
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