Apple tops Google, Coca-Cola once again as 2014’s most valuable brand

The world’s most valuable brands of 2014 have been unveiled once again by brand consultancy Interbrand. As the case was last year, Apple has been dubbed the most valuable brand in the world, valued at US$118 863.

Apple‘s popularity is highlighted by some significant milestones made in recent months. These include Apple CEO Tim Cook’s bold vision of replacing the traditional wallet with the recently unveiled mobile payments platform, Apple Pay, together with the introduction of the Apple Watch and two new iPhones. The latter have been showing impressive sales. Interestingly however, the iPad range has not.

Here’s the ranking of all global brands:

Apple’s popularity is further attributed for its exceptional talent. Interbrand refers to Apple’s hiring of TAG Heuer sales director and a Nike digital marketing director to Angela Ahrendts (former Burberry CEO), and Jay Blahnik (Nike’s FuelBand developer). The report goes:

From taking your pulse and making purchases to controlling devices in your home, Apple’s supreme goal is to make everything in your life work better. With sensors everywhere and the brand’s consumer interactions deepening every day, it’s safe to say that Apple is not only “back,” but also boldly paving the way to the Age of You.

Search and tech conglomerate Google is ranked close second to Apple with an estimated brand value of US$107 439. The ranking goes on to include soft drink giant Coca-Cola as the second runner up followed by manufacturers IBM, Microsoft, General Electric, Samsung and Toyota.

“As consumers and devices become more connected and integrated, the data being generated is creating value for consumers, for brands, and for the world at large,” said Interbrand CEO Jez Frampton. He refers to the Age of You, stating that brands are becoming more and more personal:

As a result, brands from all categories and sectors will get smarter—with products and devices working in concert with one another, across supply chains, and in tandem with our own individual data sets. Brands that seek to lead in the forthcoming Age of You will have to create truly personalized and curated experiences, or what we call ‘Mecosystems,’ around each and every one of us. Such brands will have to rehumanize the data, uncover genuine insights, and deliver against individual wants, needs, and desires.

Overall, tech and automotive seem to be the name of the game these days. Ranked from highest to lowest, the brands showing the fastest growth are Amazon which ranks 15th overall, followed by Facebook and BMW at 29th and 31st, respectively. Audi and Nissan have also been labeled as some of the fastest growing brands.

Below is the top ranking tech brands: