Each year, the strategy team canvasses the industry and gathers a list of brands we feel are potentially deserving of the Brand of the Year title. Then we pit them against each other in a knockout fight to the finish, get experts to weigh in, and at the end only the strongest are left standing. The Brands of the Year need to have demonstrated brute marketing strength this calendar year, but also show more long-term growth as fighters, by that we mean top competitors, in their categories.
Sometimes they’re in a category unto themselves, like Ikea, or are proven heavyweights like Cadbury and our overall winner RBC. Maybe they’ve impressed by stepping into a whole new arena like Joe Fresh. Or perhaps they’ve fought an impressive battle against a bigger adversary in their region, like Vidéotron. Of course, everyone loves a homegrown hero, especially one that has remained true to who they are, and effectively leveraged their personal brand, like the reason for all these fighting analogies – the UFC’s Georges St-Pierre.
Read on to find out why these brands knocked the competition out this year…
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