Protobrand 25 | 1

NEWENGLAND’SMOST POWERFULBRANDS

2 | IntroductIonto power.

new England is a brand powerhouse. one of the country’s oldest economic centers, it is filled with brands that play on a national stage.

out of its surprisingly deep portfolio, what are the brands that have captured and hold the attention of the rest of the country? Which brands drive the marketing conversation among the experts outside of new England? Where do those experts think these brands stand today, and where do they see them heading?

Exploring questions like these, this study reflects the experts’ picks of the most powerful new England brands. at some, you’ll nod knowingly; at others, you’ll raise an eyebrow, or maybe even both of them.

notice we’re not talking here about brand value, but brand power. Just as it’s easy to rank, say, pro athletes by salary, it’s also easy

to reduce brands to a value number. What’s more interesting is to explore who gets the juices flowing in the fans and the pundits—or, in this case the marketing experts.

dissecting that kind of power keeps the lines buzzing on sports talk shows, and it can energize the branding conversation throughout new England. More important, by exploring the examples of these powerful brands, we can expand our understanding of how to ad-vance our own.

brands today have a vibrant social life beyond the official

efforts of brand managers. out in the world, multiple voices

appropriate the brand, contribute to its meaning, and give it

a biography all its own. Protobrand decodes the underlying

dynamics of this rich, unseen life to develop evidence-based

insight. this leads to a powerful brand strategy, which then

shapes the brand’s core elements: name, mark, voice, and

design system. think of Protobrand as your architect. We

construct the strategy and brand attributes that align the

work of your ad agencies, Pr firms, interactive shops,

and other communications partners. the result? Powerful

brands that sustain their vitality as they move across mar-

kets, cultures, economies, and time.

About protobrAnd.

 

 

bob robbins phil Granof

Co-founders of Protobrand

Protobrand 25 | 5the method to our mAdness.

on their home turf, top brands always seem strong, sometimes only because of their steady presence. that fact can skew insiders’ judgment of how influential these brands really are on a national scale. as Mel brooks said in his 1983 film To Be or Not To Be, “We’re world famous in Poland!”

Since outside-in assessments always provide an interesting per-spective, as well as balancing the regional view, we set out to see what the rest of the country thinks.

to make it into the study, a brand had to:

1. be headquartered in new England.2. Have marketing direction coming from new England.3. Have some portion of revenue coming from consumer markets,

which excluded notable brands that operate purely business-to-business, such as State Street and boston Scientific.

4. Have a national footprint.

Brands ExpErt’s shortlist individual Brand ranking

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who did we Ask?the study surveyed 350 marketing professionals from across the country, but outside of new England. they average 46 years of age with 18 years of experience.

what did we Ask?Participants were asked to select what they believe are the six strongest brands among those that meet the criteria for inclusion in the study. then, for each brand that was selected, they rated whether or not it was gaining momentum; its uniqueness, dis-tinctiveness, and quality relative to other brands in its category; if consumers are loyal to the brand; if experience working with the brand enhances a marketing professional’s credentials; and, finally, if they admire the brand.

how on earth did Those Guys make the protobrand 25?by definition, any “Most” list is controversial. Everyone has a favor-ite they think should be on the list, but isn’t. (ours happens to be Protobrand, but that would have looked suspicious.)

So, how did these powerful brands make the Protobrand 25? the short answer is quality and quantity.

Each expert short-listed the six brands they think are most power-ful, and then rated each of them in seven categories. Since the objective was to get a broad-based assessment of new England brands, the aggregate of the number of experts selecting a brand, along with the brand’s rating scores, determined its overall ranking.

this means, for example, that although a brand may have scored very well in the rating questions, comparatively few experts short-listed it as a powerful brand. the inverse is also true: a brand may have made a number of short-lists, but its rating scores were low. Consequently, in both cases, the aggregate score did not merit in-clusion in the Protobrand 25.

Protobrand 25 | 7

markets apparel and merchandise; manages events; and owns ESPn Zone that offers dining, interactive games, and sports view-ing. ESPn Plaza, the company’s headquarters, includes more than 700,000 square feet in more than a dozen buildings on 116 acres. the company is 80 percent owned by abC, Inc., an indirect sub-sidiary of the Walt disney Company. the Hearst Corporation holds a 20 percent interest in ESPn.

ESPn markets itself as the worldwide leader in sports and un-deniably has become ingrained in american pop culture since its launch in 1979. the company is the leading cable sports broad-caster, reaching about 100 million U.S. viewers per month with its stable of channels, including ESPn, ESPn2, and ESPn Classic. In addition to its broadcast portfolio of multimedia sports assets, ESPn also publishes periodicals, Cds, dVds, and video games;

Headquarters: bristol, Ct2009 revenue: $16.2 billion

new enGlAnd’s most powerful brAnds 2010Establishing a powerful brand presence regionally is tough

enough. Establishing it nationally is exponentially harder.

Keeping it vibrant over time? Harder still. those of us in

the business of branding and marketing benefit by watch-

ing what admired companies—including competitors—are

doing. It’s a valuable part of keeping on top of our game.

this study identifies some brands you may not have no-

ticed or thought much about. but your expert peers have

noticed them, and they think these brands matter. Here are

25 powerful brands you may want to pay some attention

to in order to borrow from, or expand on, their playbook. InCreasIng stable DeCreasIngbranD MoMentuM:

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2a leading global brand, GE’s history of innovation spans over 130 years. Continuously ranking high in numerous business publications’ lists, whether for innovation, admi-ration, or overall size, the company strikes an emotional chord with its consumers through marketing of home appliances and medical equipment. GE has global busi-nesses in infrastructure, finance, and media. With recent developments in its “Healthymagination” and “Ecomagi-nation” sectors, GE is striving to tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges.

Consistently ranking at the top of Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500 list, Subway has rapidly expanded from its roots in Connecticut. the Subway chain of sandwich shops is the second-largest quick-service chain behind Mcdonald’s. It boasts more than 31,000 locations in 90 countries, with more U.S. locations than the “Golden arches.” Sub-way continues to gain appeal among consumers with its healthier menu options at affordable prices. responding to various campaigns like “Jared” and “$5 Footlongs,” con-sumers are continually choosing to “Eat Fresh.”

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Headquarters: Fairfield, Ct2009 revenue: $156.8 billion

Headquarters: Milford, Ct2009 revenue: $13.8 billion

through recent expansion, dunkin’ donuts is living up to its “america runs on dunkin’” slogan. Powering america from East to West, the franchise chain, founded in 1950, is now the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world, serving over three million customers a day. With over 8,800 locations in 31 countries and an expanding menu, the company has a growing popularity. dunkin’ do-nuts is a subsidiary of dunkin’ brands. the parent com-pany strives to deliver on “Quick Quality” in the food and beverage industry.

ben & Jerry’s was founded in 1978 in Vermont as a pre-mium ice cream brand. the company sells its colorfully named ice cream, ice cream novelties, and frozen yogurt under such monikers as Chunky Monkey, Phish Food, and Cherry Garcia. It also franchises some 750 ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shops worldwide. ben & Jerry’s donates over $1 million of pretax profits to philanthropic causes annually. the brand was acquired by Unilever in 2000, but still marches to the beat of its own drums of ice cream.

3 Headquarters: Canton, Ma2009 revenue: $6.9 billion

Headquarters: South burlington, Vt2009 revenue: $350 million

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6L.L.bean Inc., has been providing consumers with qual-ity apparel and outdoor equipment for almost 100 years. L.L.bean’s library includes about 10 specialty catalogs of-fering products in categories such as children’s clothing, fly fishing, outerwear, sportswear, housewares, footwear, camping and hiking gear, and the Maine Hunting Shoe, upon which the company was built. L.L.bean is a highly recognizable new England brand and now a global orga-nization.

not just a Founding Father of the United States, but also a brewer himself, Samuel adams was founder Jim Koch’s inspiration behind the original boston Lager. a company with humble beginnings in 1985 has since expanded to the boston beer Company, with product availability na-tionwide and in 20 other countries. Samuel adams beer has won more awards and competitions than any other beer in history.

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Headquarters: Freeport, ME2009 revenue: $1.4 billion

Headquarters: boston, Ma2009 revenue: $453 million

In 1964, dr. amar G. bose, an MIt professor of electrical engineering, set out to create speakers that could more closely reproduce the realism of a live performance. now bose is used wherever quality sound matters most: olym-pic Games, broadway shows, the Sistine Chapel, naSa space shuttles, cars, home theater systems, outdoor are-nas, and more. bose operates 151 retail stores, and in addition to speakers, sells award-winning radios, players, and headphones.

ocean Spray Cranberries transformed that quivering red thanksgiving side dish into beverages, cereals, and snacks. ocean Spray is the nation’s largest producer of canned, bottled, and shelf-stable juice drinks. a cooperative owned by about 600 cranberry and 50 grapefruit growers in north america, the company produces its line of juice drinks by blending the cranberries with other fruits ranging from apples to tangerines. It also offers other cranberry products and grapefruit juice for food retailers, foodservice providers, and other food manufacturers worldwide.

Headquarters: Framingham, Ma2009 revenue: $2.5 billion

Headquarters: Lakeville-Middleboro, Ma2009 revenue: $1.5 billion

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the world’s largest office products company, Staples has presence in 27 countries. It sells office products, furni-ture, computers, and other supplies through more than 2,200 Staples and Staples Express stores in the americas, Europe, asia, and australia. Using the slogan “that was easy,” Staples has focused on simplifying the purchase of office supplies and offering a wide selection of products and services at competitive prices for over 24 years.

Fidelity Investments is one of the largest mutual fund com-panies in the world. Meeting the investment needs of its customers for over 60 years, Fidelity offers a full range of products and services that include brokerage services, estate planning, retirement plans, wealth management, life insurance, and more. Fidelity Management & research Company employs the largest staff in the industry for invest-ment advising with more than 500 analysts and traders.

10 Headquarters: Framingham, Ma2009 revenue: $24 billion

Headquarters: boston, Ma2009 revenue: $12 billion

a trusted and recognizable brand, the company’s latest ad campaign “trusted Everywhere” exemplifies its motto. duracell was introduced in 1964 as a manufacturer of bat-teries. Moving into a new energy-saving initiative “Smart Power,” duracell has retained its large customer base by delivering on safety, performance, and trust. duracell was acquired by Gillette in 1996 and is now part of P&G.

Founded in 1906, Xerox is credited with introducing the first paper photocopier. Still best known for its copiers, the company also makes printers, scanners, and fax machines. although still a leader in office equipment and document management, it has seen a recent decline in sales. on a positive note, Xerox is developing environmentally friendly technology and offers recycling and reusing of office equip-ment. the company employs more than 130,000 people in 160 countries.

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Headquarters: bethel, Ct2009 revenue: $1.2 billion

Headquarters: norwalk, Ct2009 revenue: $15 billion

InCreasIng stable DeCreasIngbranD MoMentuM:

Revenue DiffeRence inTop Ten bRanDs

Staples 10

Samuel Adams 8

L.L.Bean 6

Subway 4

3 Dunkin’ Donuts

5 Ben & Jerry’s

7 Bose

9 Ocean Spray

ESPN 1

GE 2

CVS opened its first retail store in 1963 in Lowell, Ma, and immediate success followed with 17 more stores opening within one year. the CVS Caremark Corporation includes retail pharmacies, retail-based health clinics, and Pharmacy benefit Management (PbM) services. CVS, an abbreviation for Consumer Value Stores, now operates 7,000 retail stores and sees an average of four million customers each day. the company ranked 19th on the Fortune 500 in 2009, and was the #1 provider of pre-scriptions in the country.

a strong american brand with a global reach, Ethan allen has evolved into a one stop shop for the home. their belief that “home is a blueprint for your life” has led them to be one of the most creative, innovative, and relevant retailers in their category. Ethan allen has 295 design centers and studios, six manufacturing facilities, six wholesale distri-bution centers, 29 retail service centers, and one hotel.

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Headquarters: Woonsocket, rI2009 revenue: $98 billion

Headquarters: danbury, Ct2009 revenue: $674 million

With a history dating to 1906, new balance footwear manufacturer started out of boston and proudly claims to be the only athletic shoe manufacturer still making shoes in the country. Unlike its rivals, it shuns celebrity endors-ers. by spotlighting lesser-known athletes, the company claims to emphasize substance over style. What started as an arch support company looking to relieve pain for the average day laborer, has turned into a global shoe and ap-parel company that has grown from $210 million in 1991 to $1.64 billion in 2009.

Founded in 1928, Cole Haan has evolved into a global life-style brand that defines american style, beauty, and luxury. the company offers many products, including men’s and women’s dress and casual footwear, belts, hosiery, hand-bags, gloves, scarves, hats, outerwear, and sunglasses. It operates over 100 Cole Haan stores in some 25 U.S. states and Canada, as well as stores in Japan. the brand is owned by nike.

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Headquarters: boston, Ma2009 revenue: $1.6 billion

Headquarters: Yarmouth, ME2009 revenue: $496 million

Monster, the primary operating unit of Monster World-wide, headlines a network of online career services. It maintains job search websites tailored for local markets throughout north america, Europe, and asia, spanning about 50 countries overall. In 2009, Monster relaunched its website adding more tools and resources such as Career Mapping, Career Snapshots, and Career benchmarking, all in an effort to meet Monster’s mission “to inspire people to improve their lives.” Monster Worldwide made industry news when it agreed in February 2010 to acquire rival HotJobs from Yahoo! Inc.

Founded in 1947, talbots Inc. is a leading apparel retail-er, specializing in mostly private-label, classically styled women’s apparel, accessories, and shoes. talbots runs some 585 stores across the U.S. and Canada, and also sells through its website and multiple catalogs. responding to customer surveys in which women in their mid- to late-60s said the brand was “for someone older,” the company is revamping its lines to be more appealing to its traditional target market of women 35 and up. after selling its J.Jill business in 2009, talbots bought out its majority share-holder, tokyo-based retailer aEon, in 2010.

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Headquarters: Maynard, Ma2009 revenue: $905 million

Headquarters: Hingham, Ma2009 revenue: $1.2 billion

the manufacturing and marketing arm of the national Grape Cooperative association, Inc., Welch’s is now the global leader in Concord and niagara-based grape prod-ucts and is known particularly for their grape juices and jellies. It also offers an array of other products, including re-frigerated juices, frozen and shelf-stable concentrates, and organic grape juice. Welch’s products are sold throughout the U.S. and in over 35 other countries. In a 2007 study, the company’s juices were proven to have the most anti-oxidants in the category.

the timberland Company manufactures and retails premi-um quality gear with a focus on footwear for men, women, and children. timberland also makes apparel (outerwear, shirts, pants, socks) and accessories (sunglasses, watch-es, belts). the company sells its products through about 215 company-owned stores and through department and athletic stores in the americas, asia, Europe, and the Mid-dle East.

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Headquarters: Concord, Ma2009 revenue: $673 million

Headquarters: Stratham, nH2009 revenue: $1.3 billion

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the Yankee Candle Company is the largest U.S. manu-facturer of scented candles and operates more than 425 retail stores throughout the country. although it has be-come a candle making giant, Yankee Candle still maintains its homespun charm at its Massachusetts headquarters, which draws millions of visitors each year. today, with over 150 fragrances, Yankee Candle offers the world’s largest and most compelling selection of candle and home fragrance scents.

the Hartford Financial Services Group is one of the larg-est insurance and investment companies in the country. Founded in 1810, the Hartford provides life, auto, business, and homeowners insurance, as well as mutual funds, investment products, annuities, retirement plans, and college savings plans. With 200 years of service, the company is trusted for its stability, experience, and continued success even through some of the nation’s most difficult economic times.

22 Headquarters: South deerfield, Ma2009 revenue: $714 million

Headquarters: Hartford, Ct2009 revenue: $24.7 billion

WWE is the global leader, producer, and promoter of wres-tling matches for tV and live audiences, with more than 300 live events each year, including more than 70 interna-tional matches. WWE programming is aired in more than 145 countries in 30 languages, and reaches more than 500 million homes worldwide. the company has offices in Los angeles, new York City, London, toronto, and Sydney.

Founded in 1854, timex has expanded to become timex Group, a privately held company with several operating units and more than 5,000 employees worldwide. timex Group designs, manufactures, and markets innovative timepieces and jewelry. one of the largest watchmakers in the world, timex Group companies include the timex business Unit (timex, timex Ironman, opex, tX, nautica, Marc Ecko); timex Group Luxury Watches (Valentino, Sal-vatore Ferragamo); Sequel (Guess, Gc); Vertime (Versace, Versus); and Vincent berard.

23 Headquarters: Stamford, Ct2009 revenue: $475 million

Headquarters: Middlebury, Ct2009 revenue: $700 million

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InCreasIng stable DeCreasIngbranD MoMentuM:

sizE of twittEr following prEdicts powEr

0%

50%

100%

LOWEST HIGHEST

NUMBER OF TWITTER FOLLOWERS

LIKEL

IHOOD

OF BE

ING IN

TOP 1

0

a fair question to ask is whether or not consumers are following the Proto-brand 25 as closely as marketing professionals. the answer is yes. We conducted a regression analysis of the Protobrand 25 ranking and the size of their twitter following. Simply put, those brands that have the largest fol-lowing are far more likely to be ranked higher in the Protobrand 25 than those with smaller followings.

Protobrand 25 | 17the storIes behInd the story.and so, in the first ever professional ranking of new England brands, ESPn emerges as the most powerful.

We expected the Protobrand 25 to include behemoths such as GE. but we were surprised to find a sports channel keeping company with the likes of ben & Jerry’s, Subway, and Samuel adams.

From brand Uniqueness to brand Momentum, ESPn ranks in the top 5 for most dimensions we measured. the power of ESPn lies not just in its media presence, which is obviously formidable, but also in its keen insight into the people who love the brand. ESPn provides addictive, testosterone-filled content that is unashamedly brash. In ESPn’s own research, the brand is only slightly less re-called than nFL, nIKE, and nba, and it beats MLb, nascar, nHL, and adidas.

How have they done it? Focus.

ESPn is so focused on satisfying young, affluent, male sports fans that you can hardly find a mention of women in their 2009 media programming guide. Further, they have one of the strongest portfo-lios for creating and sustaining an ongoing conversation with fans, including a feature- and data-rich website, daily radio shows with live phone calls, and sports personalities who connect emotionally with information-hungry enthusiasts. ESPn SportsCenter has even created its own lingo, with phrases like “dunk you very much.”

the sports category holds another surprise: new balance finished as the 15th most powerful brand, while reebok did not make the cut. new balance was selected by more marketing professionals than reebok and outperformed its rival on almost all dimensions. new balance is not only gaining momentum, but also is one of new England’s most admired brands. the once-iconic reebok ap-pears to have lost sight of what propelled the brand in the ‘80s. Even with the power of its owner adidas behind it, reebok doesn’t seem to keep pace.

on a different note, it’s also interesting to see who reached the top 5 in the individual dimensions we asked about. as #2 GE shows, it

wasn’t always those at the top of the overall ranking. of the seven dimensions, GE ends up 3rd on enhancing a marketing profession-al’s resume, but is not among the top 5 in any other dimension.

Contrast that with bose, which makes the top 5 in six out of the seven dimensions, and finishes #1 in three of them. Clearly, bose is well-respected among those marketing professionals who short-listed it.

one brand we would like to see turn around is Ethan allen. While it does make the Protobrand 25, weighing in at #16, its position is tenuous at best. the brand achieves 4th place in terms of brand Quality, but never makes the top 5 in any other dimension. and as far as brand Momentum is concerned, only timex does less well.

L.L.bean’s brand Momentum scores trail many of the other brands. Facing stiff competition from comparable brands that have kept better pace with changing tastes, L.L.bean risks becoming the oldsmobile of outdoor apparel.

Protobrand predicts that WWE is the brand to watch for 2011. It was rated highly on brand Loyalty, brand Uniqueness, and brand distinctiveness. Say what you will about the category of sports en-tertainment, the WWE knows and loves its core target. the WWE is in the business of creating modern day mythic figures, as capti-vating as anything from ancient Greece.

the numbers provide engaging and provocative food for thought. but since this is the first annual report on new England’s most powerful brands, its longer-term value is as a benchmark moving forward.

We suspect that the rankings in future years will provide inter-esting insights into the effects of marketing campaigns, including traditional advertising and emerging media, as well as corporate news, world developments, and all the other factors that affect the mindshare a brand is able to establish and hold.

as ESPn would say, “Stay tuned.”

Brand admiration

1. new balance

2. bose

3. ben & Jerry’s

4. ESPn

5. L.L.bean

most powErful Brands

1. ESPn

2. GE

3. dunkin’ donuts

4. Subway

5. ben & Jerry’s

Brand loYaltY Brand QualitY

1. new balance

2. ESPn

3. bose

4. ben & Jerry’s

5. WWE

1. bose

2. ben & Jerry’s

3. Cole Haan

4. Ethan allen

5. L.L.bean

Brand uniQuEnEss

Brand momEntum

Brand distinctivEnEss

rEsumE EnhancEr

1. bose

2. ESPn

3. ben & Jerry’s

4. WWE

5. timberland

1. dunkin’ donuts

2. CVS/Pharmacy

3. Samuel adams

4. Subway

5. ESPn

1. bose

2. ben & Jerry’s

3. ESPn

4. WWE

5. Subway

1. ESPn

2. new balance

3. GE

4. bose

5. ben & Jerry’s

+1.617.267.1400 www.protobrand.com