“Barbie,” Greta Gerwig’s color-splashed comedy about gender roles inside and outside the matriarchal fantasy world of Barbieland, became a blockbuster smash and the highest grossing film solely directed by a woman. (Here are the highest grossing movies directed by women.)
The film, however, is not without its critics, who object to what they consider the film’s “woke” feminist propaganda or overt promotion of consumerism — specifically the consumption of plastics.
Still, for Mattel, which spent $150 million in a global tie-in marketing campaign with the “Barbie” film release, according to estimates Variety magazine, the investment and the movie paid off. Mattel’s stock price surged 15% in the month ahead of the film’s release, and, according to Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Leaders List 2023, the brand’s loyalty ranking jumped from 88th place in 2022 to 42nd place this year. Only Tito’s brand vodka outperformed the toymaker by rising from 87th place No. 34. (These are companies with the best reputations.)
To find other brands customers are flocking to, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed Brand Keys’s list, which provides the loyalty rankings for 100 brands. (These are the top brands out of the 987 assessed in 110 industry categories in its Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index.) We ranked brands by the number of spots they increased in the ranking from 2022 to 2023. To break ties, we used the 2023 rank.
We also added revenue for the brand’s company in its most recent fiscal year and one-year revenue change, using data from Yahoo! Finance. For private companies we used the companies’ own reports or noted the source. For foreign companies we converted their revenue figures into U.S. dollars.
A dozen of the brands that customers are flocking to are makers of consumer products, including Samsung’s computers and smartphones, L’Oreal cosmetics, Chobani yogurt, and Subaru cars. Coors Light beer from Molson Coors Beverage Company jumped to 84th place from 93rd place in a year, when competing brand Bud Light, brewed by Anheuser-Busch, was the target of a brief boycott by conservatives for its sponsorship arrangement with TikTok transgender personality Dylan Mulvaney
Six of the brands on this list are retailers like Walmart, eBay, and Trader Joe’s, and two are restaurant chains — McDonald’s and Chipotle.
Despite the rising popularity of these brands, four brand owners on this list experienced revenue declines since 2022. Revenue of Taiwanese hardware manufacturer Acer fell the most, by nearly 14%, followed by a 6% revenue drop at eBay. McDonald’s revenue was almost flat, with a slight 0.2% decline.
Here are the brands customers are flocking to in 2023.
25. Impossible Foods
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 5 spots, from 90 to 85
- Category: Plant – based meat substitute
- Company: Impossible Foods
- Company revenue for year ended: Private
24. eBay
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 5 spots, from 33 to 28
- Category: Online Retail
- Company: eBay
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $9.8 billion — 6.0% decline from previous year
23. iMessage
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 7 spots, from 79 to 72
- Category: Instant Messaging
- Company: Apple
- Company revenue for year ended 9/30/2022: $394.3 billion — 7.8% growth from previous year
22. Dollar Tree
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 7 spots, from 63 to 56
- Category: Discount Retail
- Company: Dollar Tree
- Company revenue for year ended 1/31/2023: $28.3 billion — 7.6% growth from previous year
21. Subaru
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 8 spots, from 76 to 68
- Category: Automotive
- Company: Subaru
- Company revenue for year ended 3/31/2023: 3,774.5 billion yen (est. $28.3 billion) — 37.5% growth from previous year
20. Chobani
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 8 spots, from 38 to 30
- Category: Yogurt
- Company: Chobani
- Company revenue for year ended: Private — estimated $2 billion (according to CEO, CNN Business)
19. Trader Joes
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 8 spots, from 28 to 20
- Category: Natural Foods
- Company: Trader Joes
- Company revenue for year ended: Private — estimated $16.5 billion (BusinessInsider)
18. Coors Light
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 9 spots, from 93 to 84
- Category: Beer ( Lt. )
- Company: Molson Coors Brewing Company
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $10.7 billion — 4.1% growth from previous year
17. Samsung
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 9 spots, from 17 to 8
- Category: Smartphones
- Company: Samsung
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: 302,231 billion South Korean won (est. $240 billion) — 8.1% growth from previous year
16. Samsung
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 10 spots, from 37 to 27
- Category: Computers
- Company: Samsung
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: 302,231 billion South Korean won (est. $240 billion) — 8.1% growth from previous year
15. YouTube
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 10 spots, from 21 to 11
- Category: Social Networking
- Company: Alphabet (Google)
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $282.8 billion — 9.8% growth from previous year
14. Chipotle
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 11 spots, from 66 to 55
- Category: Fast Casual Restaurants
- Company: Chipotle Mexican Grill
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $8.6 billion — 14.4% growth from previous year
13. Uber
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 13 spots, from 99 to 86
- Category: Rideshare
- Company: Uber
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $31.9 billion — 82.6% growth from previous year
12. Walmart.com
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 13 spots, from 49 to 36
- Category: Online Retail
- Company: Walmart
- Company revenue for year ended 1/31/2023: $611.3 billion — 6.7% growth from previous year
11. Dick’s
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 14 spots, from 67 to 53
- Category: Sporting Goods Retail
- Company: Dick’s Sporting Goods
- Company revenue for year ended 1/31/2023: $12.4 billion — 0.6% growth from previous year
10. Lululemon
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 16 spots, from 83 to 67
- Category: Apparel Retailers
- Company: Lululemon Athletica
- Company revenue for year ended 1/31/2023: $8.1 billion — 29.6% growth from previous year
9. Acer
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 16 spots, from 57 to 41
- Category: Tablets
- Company: Acer
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: NT$275.42 billion (est. $9 billion) — 13.7% decline from previous year
8. Crest
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 17 spots, from 60 to 43
- Category: Toothpaste
- Company: Procter & Gamble
- Company revenue for year ended 6/30/2023: $82.0 billion — 2.3% growth from previous year
7. McDonald’s
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 17 spots, from 55 to 38
- Category: Quick Serve
- Company: McDonald’s
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $23.2 billion — 0.2% decline from previous year
6. Ford
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 19 spots, from 59 to 40
- Category: Automotive
- Company: Ford
- Company revenue for year ended 9/30/2022: $42.3 billion — 8.5% growth from previous year
5. American Express
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 19 spots, from 54 to 35
- Category: Credit Cards
- Company: American Express
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $52.9 billion — 24.7% growth from previous year
4. L’Oreal
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 27 spots, from 97 to 70
- Category: Cosmetics
- Company: L’Oreal
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: 38.3 billion euro (est. $40.8 billion) — 18.5% growth from previous year
3. T.J. Maxx
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 32 spots, from 86 to 54
- Category: Department Stores
- Company: TJX Companies
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $49.9 billion — 2.9% growth from previous year
2. Mattel
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 46 spots, from 88 to 42
- Category: Toys
- Company: Mattel
- Company revenue for year ended 12/31/2022: $5.4 billion — 0.4% decline from previous year
1. Tito’s
- Increase in loyalty ranking, 2022 to 2023: 53 spots, from 87 to 34
- Category: Vodka
- Company: Fifth Generation
- Company revenue for year ended: Private — estimated $1.9 billion (Bloomberg)
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