Germany’s 50 most valuable brands

The study, conducted by brand consultancy Interbrand and released on Monday, ranked the 50 German brands according to the competitive strength of the brand, the role the brand plays in a purchase decision, and the financial performance of the products and services.

"Germany has a long tradition in the fields of brand development and brand management," Nina Oswald, Interbrand Germany's managing director said. "Germany has a large number of extremely successful, major brands: almost half of the listed brands have brand values far exceeding €1 billion."

With a market worth of €25.55 billion, Mercedes-Benz took the top spot.

One of the leading luxury brands in the United States and Germany, the Stuttgart-based automaker is also racing to the top of the high-end markets in Russia and China. The study attributed the brand's success to green technology and a focus on customer service.

Munich-based automaker BMW came a close second with an estimated brand value of €25.49 billion.

The report cited the company's focus on sustainability and urban mobility through mobile apps as reasons for the brand's high placement. It also called attention to the brand's i series of electric and hybrid vehicles which are targeted at the premium market.

Volkswagen landed in fifth with a value of €8.9 billion. The brand of the "people's car" was lauded for its commitment to customers and design creativity.

Audi trailed behind in eighth (€6.2 billion). Its prominence in the Chinese market and investment in new technology were cited as grounds for the high market worth.

And luxury car brand Porsche fell just out of the top ten, landing in the number 12 spot (€5.18 billion).

"Automotive brands performed well above average overall," J. Justus Schneider, CEO of Interbrand Central and Eastern Europe said. "They make up 40 percent of the total brand value in the entire ranking."

Automakers aside, the software company SAP, which focuses on Big Data analytics and cloud-based solutions came in third place, with a value of €13.4 billion.

Leading German telecommunication provider Deutsche Telekom was fourth (€12.3 billion), for its pan-European acquisitions in other business sectors such as eHealth, and energy applications. Siemens fell behind Volkswagen in sixth place with €6.8 billion.

Find out more about Germany's 10 most valuable brands here

Below par

One of the world's leading financial service providers Deutsche Bank (€3 billion) landed in 15th behind Deutsche Telekom, Siemens and Allianz.

The study claimed that the banking giant has "much greater potential" and cited changes in company culture, frustrated employees and an overall "lack of clarity and commitment" as reasons for its low placement.

Interbrand also releases an annual Best Global Brands Report, which ranks the top 100 brands worldwide by market value. German brands have long enjoyed above-average representation in past years' rankings, yet the present study marks the first time the agency has surveyed the German market on its own.

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