Virat Kohli tops Duff &Phelps' celebrity brands valuation list

Duff &Phelps has published the fourth edition of its Celebrity Brand Valuation Report 2018 titled ‘The Bold, the Beautiful and the Brilliant’. The report provides a ranking of India’s most powerful celebrity brands based on brand values derived from their endorsement contracts.

According to the key findings of the report, Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli continues to remain at the top spot for the second consecutive year. His value shot up by 18% to $170.9 million in 2018.

At the second place is Deepika Padukone with a brand value of $102.5 million. Akshay Kumar is at no. 3 with $67.3million. Ranveer Singh is at the fourth place with a brand value of $63.0 million. Shah Rukh Khan has slipped to the fifth place with a brand value of $60.7 million as compared to the second spot in 2017. Hrithik Roshan’s ranking as compared to last year has slipped down the charts and is at the 10th spot with a brand value of $31.0 million. Salman Khan’s ranking remains at the sixth place with a brand value of $55.8 million.

Amitabh Bachchan is at the seventh place with a brand value of $41.2 million. Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan take up the eighth and the ninth spot in the charts with a brand value of $36.5 million and $31.6 million, respectively.

Another key highlight of the report is the total value of the top 20 celebrity brands, which stands at $877 million. The top 10 contributes more than 75% of the total value.

Commenting on the rise of the endorsement market in India, Varun Gupta, Managing Director and Asia Pacific Leader for Valuation Services, Duff & Phelps, said, “The celebrity endorsement market in India has matured from vanilla endorsement deals to full-fledged partnerships through innovative routes such as equity deals and strategic partnerships. On the other hand, rising internet penetration, varied formats of content consumption and a burgeoning middleclass with increasing disposable incomes is boosting media spends for traditional and digital advertisements through celebrities. Millennial celebrities continue to be the first choice for brand endorsements as companies want to have a greater focus on the youth segment fuelled by demand in sectors such as e-commerce, retail, FMCG and smartphones, among others.”

Aviral Jain, Managing Director, Duff & Phelps, commented, “While Bollywood celebrities dominate the rankings of the top 20 celebrities, sportspersons provide tough competition. Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and PV Sindhu collectively contributed almost $241 million, which is over 27% of the cumulative brand value of the top 20 celebrities pegged at $877 million.”

Jain added, “Brands are also increasingly going regional in their endorsement strategy to cater to the heterogeneous peculiarities of Indian states. They are leveraging the equity that local celebrities enjoy. Product brands are also looking for better returns on their investment through a step up on regional markets and have started coming up with region-specific commercials featuring regional celebrities like Mahesh Babu and Tamannaah.”

The report focuses on the rising trend of power couples. This year, power couple Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma have endorsed around 40 brands together such as Head and Shoulders, Manyavar, Pepsi, Celkon, Boost, Audi, Fastrack, Goinee, Wrogn and Polaroid.

Speaking about the power of a celebrity’s social media influence, Christo van Wyk, Area Director, India and Middle East, Meltwater, said, “Like marketers, celebrities are continuously building their brand, and those that are aware of current trends and of the difficulties in breaking through the clutter, recognise that social media is a unique opportunity to stand out above the crowd. Celebrities with well-crafted social media strategies are able to maintain relevance, build more intimate relationships with fans and garner real-time feedback on their work. Much like a corporate brand’s, a thriving social media presence can serve as a reflection of a celebrity’s public desirability.”

Click here to view full Report.

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