According to Kantar’s report ”Japan’s Top 50 Brand Values”, the total brand value of Japanese brands is $225.9 billion.
According to the latest rankings, strong brands have seen  4% year-on-year decline due to Japan’s macroeconomic pressures and challenges in international markets. On the other hand, it is said that the decline in value will be moderate and that an early recovery will be seen.
Toyota maintained its No. 1 ranking for the second time last year with a brand value of more than $28.5 billion, and its brand value accounts for 12.6% of the total. One of the few truly global Japanese brands, Toyota ranks 62nd in Kantar’s Global Top 100 ranking and ranks 2nd in the Global Top 10 Automotive Brands ranking.
NTT (2nd place: $22.9 billion) and Sony (3rd place: $20.2 billion) are the top three in Japan’s ranking.
Uniqlo ranks fourth ($13.7 billion), with brand value increasing 26% year-on-year. With approximately two-thirds of its stores outside Japan, the innovative fashion brand puts quality and affordability at the heart of its business in international markets.
Two new apparel brands have entered the ranking: GU (33rd place: 1.6 billion yen) and ASICS (42nd place: 1.2 billion yen).
GU, Uniqlo’s sister brand, has established a strong presence in Asia and has recently expanded into the United States.
　　
According to Kantar, the past few years have been extremely difficult for Japanese brands. However, signs of recovery are beginning to appear as pandemic restrictions are lifted, the hospitality sector regains vitality, and the weaker yen has a positive effect on exports. They believe this will have a particularly big impact on brands with strong international credibility.
They also pointed out that differentiation is extremely important for Japanese brands.
The company says that branding can be strengthened by strengthening three aspects: ” Difference,” ” Meaning,” and ” Salience.”
Although there are Japanese brands that excel in one or two of these three, there are very few that excel in all three.
Compared to the global top 100, Japanese brands are at a slight disadvantage.
Kanter points out that a brand with a strong meaningful difference creates the ability for the brand to justify its price point.