Gulf Brand Value Surpasses $106B Through Sector Growth.
Finance, Telecom, Real Estate, and Aviation Fuel Brand Expansion in UAE and Saudi Arabia, but Global Reach Remains Limited.
The combined value of the top 30 brands in the UAE and Saudi Arabia has reached $106 billion in 2025, marking a 9% year-on-year increase. This is more than a statistical milestone; it signals the maturing of regional champions in markets where diversification is now central to national growth strategies. The UAE drove the surge with a 26% jump in brand value, while Saudi brands posted 1% growth, reflecting both resilience and the drag of wider macroeconomic pressures.
Kantar’s methodology ties brand strength to three enduring measures: Meaningful, Different, and Salient (MDS). In the Gulf, brands that grew the most were those seen as trustworthy, innovative, and distinctive in consumers’ eyes. Together, they now represent 6.5% of the region’s GDP, embedding branding not as a marketing exercise but as a pillar of economic competitiveness.
Finance: The Anchor of Regional Brand Value
Finance remains the largest sector by brand value, especially in Saudi Arabia where banks dominate the top ten. Al Rajhi Bank, SNB, and Riyad Bank secure positions through trust and wide consumer reach, while in the UAE, First Abu Dhabi Bank anchors the sector. These institutions are not just financial intermediaries; they symbolize national stability and credibility in fast-changing economies.
Kantar’s brand contribution analysis shows finance consistently scores high in meaningfulness, driven by consumer trust and necessity, but weaker in differentiation. The sector’s challenge is to pivot beyond reliability into innovation, whether through fintech partnerships or global expansion.
Telecom: Scale Meets Digital Transformation
Telecoms continue to act as regional powerhouses. Etisalat by e& remains one of the UAE’s strongest brands, while stc in Saudi Arabia is equally dominant. Both leverage vast infrastructure, national coverage, and heavy investment in 5G and digital services.
Yet their trajectories differ. Etisalat’s rebranding to “e&” reflects an ambition to transform into a global digital services player, stretching beyond telecom into entertainment and enterprise tech. In contrast, stc’s value rests more on domestic scale and brand salience in Saudi households. Both score highly on salience but face the test of proving difference as global challengers emerge.
Real Estate: UAE’s Growth Engine
The UAE’s surge in brand value owes much to real estate giants Emaar and Aldar. Emaar’s developments, from Downtown Dubai to its global residential projects, project ambition and scale. Aldar has doubled down on mixed-use communities that embody modern Gulf living.
Real estate brands in the UAE outperform their Saudi peers not just in revenue, but in perceived modernity and innovation. Kantar’s MDS framework highlights their strength in difference, standing out in a crowded, high-stakes sector. For Saudi Arabia, the Vision 2030 push into giga-projects like NEOM has yet to translate into consumer-facing brand equity at scale, but momentum is building.
Aviation: Endurance Through Global Recognition
Emirates Airline continues to rank among the UAE’s most valuable brands, underscoring the power of aviation as a global ambassador. Even amid industry volatility, Emirates’ consistency in service and brand codes, the A380 experience, iconic livery, and global sponsorships, keeps it among the Gulf’s few genuinely global names.
In Saudi Arabia, Saudia carries heritage but lacks the same differentiation, reflected in weaker MDS scores for innovation and salience. The kingdom’s aviation ambitions, including Riyadh Air, highlight the gap: building airlines as symbols of national identity while competing with entrenched global players like Emirates and Qatar Airways.
Energy and Retail: Divergent Stories
In Saudi Arabia, Aldrees Energy delivered one of the sharpest growth performances in the 2025 ranking, showing that consumer-facing energy companies can evolve beyond commodity into trusted service providers. By contrast, UAE energy names remain tied more to state identity than consumer equity.
Retail shows a similar divergence. UAE-based retail and lifestyle brands are expanding regionally, but few break through globally. Saudi retail leaders focus heavily on scale but lag on differentiation. Here, both markets face the same challenge: converting local trust into global pull.
The Globalization Gap
Despite progress, only 13% of Gulf brand value comes from overseas markets. This underlines the region’s dependence on domestic and regional consumers, and the limited transfer of brand equity into global recognition.
Aviation and some real estate brands are exceptions, but finance and telecom remain largely domestic fortresses.
Sustainability: The Unfinished Agenda
Kantar’s data makes clear that Gulf consumers increasingly expect brands to act on sustainability. Yet compared to their peers in Europe or Asia, Gulf brands lag in embedding environmental and social responsibility into their propositions.
As inclusion, climate, and transparency rise globally, the absence of clear action risks eroding both differentiation and trust.
Recommendations for Leaders
Finance must innovate: Banks that only signal stability will be outpaced; building difference is essential.
Telecoms need new codes: Invest in identity beyond coverage and pricing, digital ecosystems must feel distinctive.
Real estate should globalize: Emaar and Aldar show the template; Saudi giga-projects must translate into brand equity.
Aviation must protect codes: Emirates proves design and service rituals travel well; Saudia and Riyadh Air need their own.
Energy and retail should humanize: Aldrees shows local trust can grow; UAE peers must lean into customer experience.
Globalization and sustainability: Gulf brands must shift from domestic strength to international influence, embedding ESG as a differentiator, not an afterthought.
Bottom Line
The Gulf’s $106 billion in brand value proves that heritage sectors like finance, telecom, real estate, and aviation can become engines of growth when consumers trust them to be both meaningful and different.
Yet global relevance and sustainability remain the decisive tests. Without solving those gaps, Gulf brands will stay regionally dominant but globally marginal.
