Brand equity trend analysis for fashion brands (2001-2021)

This paper aims to present the brand equity trends of top fashion brands using Interbrand’s annual list of top 100 global brands (2001 to 2021). Thirty fashion brands from eight countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, and the US) appeared. Analyses were made using Interbrand’s brand equity, brand ranking, and brand equity growth rate. This paper makes a unique contribution to the concept of the fashion industry and its segments. First, to the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper that has described the four different segments within the global fashion industry with live examples of fashion brands. These four segments include Apparel, Cosmetics, Sportswear, and Luxury. Secondly, this paper also illustrates that both the global financial crisis (2008–09) and global pandemic (2019–20) had affected the growth rate of brand equity among fashion brands, but brand equity amount kept increasing during both occasions. Furthermore, the apparel segment was more affected than other segments (sportswear, cosmetics, and luxury). Two minor findings include the emergence of France as a global center of fashion brands with a recent surge in brand equity and has housed more fashion brands than any other country. Similarly, Europe has proved its dominance in the fashion industry over the USA.