News
Interbrand launches Best Korea Brands 2025
‘2025 Best Korea Brands’ Conference held at Walkerhill Hotel ‘Théâtre des Lumières’ on June 17, unveiling Korea’s top 50 brands
Provides brand strategy insights for sustainable growth under the theme of ‘Brand Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis’
2025’s top 50 brands total value surpasses KRW 234 trillion, marking 9.6% growth from previous year
Korea’s top 5 brands—Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor Company, Kia, Naver, and LG Electronics—account for 74.8% of total brand value
Samsung Biologics, Samyang Foods, and Yanolja make notable debuts in the top 50 brands
Seoul,
June 17 2025
Interbrand, the world’s leading brand consultancy (Global Managing Partner Moon Jihun), today hosted the 13th annual ‘Best Korea Brands 2025’ conference, announcing Korea’s top 50 brands and presenting brand strategy insights under the theme of ‘Brand Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis.’
The ‘2025 Best Korea Brands’ recognized Korean brands that achieved remarkable results over the past year, introducing their growth factors and brand strategies. According to Interbrand, the total value of the 2025 Best Korea Brands Top 50 reached KRW 234.77 trillion, representing 9.6% growth year-on-year. Interbrand evaluated that despite long-term uncertainty and rapidly changing market conditions, Korean brands demonstrated exceptional performance through agile and flexible strategies combined with continuous innovation.
Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor Company, Kia, Naver, and LG Electronics Named 2025 Best Korea Brands Top 5
Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor Company maintained their positions as first and second place, respectively, continuing from last year. Samsung Electronics’ brand value grew 12% year-on-year to KRW 122.19 trillion, while Hyundai Motor Company rose 14.6% to record a brand value of KRW 27.93 trillion. Third and fourth places went to Kia and Naver, which recorded brand value increases of 16.6% and 8.9%, respectively. Kia’s brand value reached KRW 9.83 trillion with 16.6% growth, while Naver showed KRW 7.86 trillion with an 8.9% increase. Meanwhile, LG Electronics in fifth place achieved a remarkable 40.9% increase year-on-year, reaching a brand value of KRW 7.86 trillion. The combined value of the top 5 brands totaled KRW 175.66 trillion, accounting for approximately 74.8% of the entire top 50 brands’ value.
Daiso Climbs Five Spots Within One Year of Top 50 Entry (Top Growing Brand)
Transforms into lifestyle platform based on solid sales growth and customer satisfaction.
Daiso (44th place, KRW 452.2 billion) showed significant brand value growth, climbing five spots from the previous year in the 2025 Best Korea Brands Top 50. After first entering the Best Korea Brands Top 50 last year, Daiso recorded a brand value of KRW 452.2 billion this year, rising from 49th to 44th place with a 9.8% growth rate.
Despite overall sluggish growth in Korea’s retail industry, the ‘national store’ Daiso has maintained steady growth, securing high consumer loyalty and repurchase rates based on maximizing customer satisfaction and quality-first principles. After surpassing annual sales of approximately KRW 3.4 trillion in 2023, the company achieved nearly KRW 4 trillion in 2024, demonstrating its unrivaled offline competitiveness. Recent expansion into beauty and health functional foods under the vision of becoming ‘Korea’s No.1 lifestyle culture company’ represents efforts to leap beyond ‘household goods distribution’ to become a ‘lifestyle platform,’ positively impacting brand value. Particularly in beauty, the company recorded 144% year-on-year sales growth in 2024 by expanding its presence with reasonably priced private brands alongside products from major corporations like Amorepacific and LG Household & Health Care, as well as global brands. The company has also entered the health functional foods market, establishing a firm position as a shopping destination for both health and beauty with flagship products including lutein, omega-3, and vitamin D.
Samsung Biologics, Samyang Foods, and Yanolja Join 2025 Top 50 Brands (New Entrants)
Establish foundation for sustained growth through global market expansion and brand identity redefinition.
This year, Samsung Biologics (43rd place, KRW 456.9 billion), Samyang Foods (47th place, KRW 416.9 billion), and Yanolja (50th place, KRW 359.5 billion) newly entered the top 50 brands. These companies received high marks for expanding their influence on the global stage while redefining their core brand values and clarifying strategic direction for long-term growth.
Samsung Biologics, which achieved record-breaking performance, demonstrated exceptional business results under the mission ‘Driven. For Life.’ by expanding production infrastructure and portfolio, broadening geographical presence, and securing 17 of the global top 20 pharmaceutical companies as clients. The company not only sets new standards in the biopharmaceutical industry through core value-based brand strategy, cutting-edge technology, and operational efficiency, but also actively pursues global carbon neutrality through ESG management.
Samyang Foods is expanding its influence in the global food market based on the ‘Buldak phenomenon,’ evolving into a comprehensive food company with diverse product portfolios including ramen, snacks, and convenience foods. ‘Buldak Stir-fried Noodles,’ which has surpassed cumulative sales of 7 billion units, has established itself as a representative K-food product accounting for more than half of Korea’s ramen exports and a cultural phenomenon enjoyed worldwide. The company is accelerating construction of a factory in China to meet global demand, which accounts for 77% of total sales.
Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Yanolja redefined its group identity as a global travel tech company centered on the brand philosophy of “making everyone’s travel ten times easier through technological innovation.” Additionally, by integrating previously dispersed services under Yanolja, Interpark Tour & Tickets, and Triple into ‘NOL,’ and newly establishing brand identity as a lifestyle super app encompassing travel, leisure, and culture, the company is accelerating its leap toward becoming an Only One platform.
Top 10 Brands Design Future Brand Value Through Customer-Centric Philosophy and Technological Innovation
The top 10 brands in the 2025 Best Korea Brands maintained strong positions by combining customer-tailored strategies with innovative technology to enhance brand experiences and realize sustainable future value.
Kia (3rd place) is presenting a new paradigm in the mobility industry centered on electrification, autonomous driving, and PBV (Platform Beyond Vehicle). The new brand slogan ‘Movement that Inspires’ reflects ambitions to transform customers’ lives through product and service innovation. Following the electric SUV EV9, the compact electric SUV EV3 was selected as ‘World Car of the Year’ for two consecutive years, simultaneously demonstrating technological prowess and brand competitiveness in the global market. Furthermore, the company is strengthening collaboration with over 100 global companies to provide vehicle spaces and software optimized for customers’ diverse lifestyles. In 2025, starting with the launch of the first PBV model PV5, the company plans to begin building a future mobility ecosystem in earnest by combining autonomous driving technology and AI-based vehicle control systems.
LG Electronics (5th place) achieved record-high sales despite an unstable external environment, driven by balanced growth in core businesses like home appliances and future businesses such as automotive components. 2024 marked the beginning of its leap as a ‘Smart Life Solution Company,’ further strengthening customer engagement and connection centered on the brand philosophy ‘Life’s Good.’ By creating short-form content with positive messages inspired by social media algorithm characteristics, the company sought to spread positive influence across online and offline channels. Starting in the first half of 2025, the company has been sharing ordinary people’s special and meaningful ‘Life’s Good’ moments through its official Instagram channel, promoting the value of better life in warm daily experiences. The company plans to continue activities to create ‘Better Life for All’ at various customer touchpoints while building an online fandom through diverse platforms.
Coupang (10th place) entered the Top 10 for the first time in the 2025 Best Korea Brands following its first annual profit in 2023 and maintaining stable growth in 2024. The company’s strong presence in Korea’s retail market, rapid expansion into premium categories, and lifestyle-oriented service strategies drove brand value growth. Under the brand motto of ‘providing the best customer experience on earth,’ Coupang is materializing the future of the commerce industry. All of Coupang’s services are closely connected to customers’ daily lives, going beyond convenience to revolutionarily transform lifestyles themselves. This is reportedly strengthening loyalty and connection between customers and the brand, Coupang’s ultimate goal. The company is also actively pursuing sophisticated customer experiences and advanced services through continuous investment in AI-based personalized recommendation technology and large-scale logistics infrastructure.
2025 Best Korea Brands Notable Brand: Hyundai Mobis
Achieves 6th place among global automotive suppliers through distinctive mobility technology and expanded global competitiveness.
Hyundai Mobis (19th place) achieved stable business performance centered on high-value core components despite uncertain global conditions, rising to 6th place among global automotive suppliers. Under the new vision ‘Lead the Shift in Mobility, Move the World beyond Possibilities,’ the company is strengthening future vehicle core technology development and global market expansion in areas such as autonomous driving, connectivity, and electrification. Recently, the company demonstrated technological leadership by unveiling M.VICS 5.0, a next-generation integrated cockpit system optimized for autonomous driving, and the world’s first airbag specialized for Purpose Built Vehicles (PBV). The company has also secured consistent global competitiveness by filing approximately 8,000 patents over the past three years. At last year’s CEO Investor Day, the company announced plans to increase its overseas customer sales ratio to 40% by 2033, targeting North America and Europe. The company is also actively conducting various brand activities to strengthen touchpoints with B2B customers. At CES 2025, the company unveiled numerous ‘human tech’ technologies under the theme ‘Beyond and More,’ with particular attention paid to technology that organically responds to indoor lighting based on users’ emotions or driving environments.
‘Brand Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis’ Branding Insights Reveal Guiding Principles for Enduring Brands
Through the 2025 Best Korea Brands, Interbrand redefined the essence of brand strategy and presented branding insights on the evolutionary direction sustainable brands should take in changing market environments. The conference’s core theme, ‘Brand Thesis-Antithesis-Synthesis,’ addresses how brands reach new synthesis through change and conflict amid the times, focusing not on simple branding techniques but on integrated perspectives of brands’ essential aspirations and business strategies.
According to Interbrand, brands have long grown based on sophisticated strategies centered on their reason for being and target audiences, but existing orthodoxies (thesis) have been overturned in recent years due to rapid digital technology development and changing consumer perceptions. This is interpreted not as a simple crisis but as an ‘antithesis’ flow for brands to evolve to the next stage, ultimately a process of reestablishing brand essence and creating ‘synthesis.’
The presentation particularly emphasized that brand and business strategies must operate organically without disconnection. It explained that only when brand aspirations are integrated into business operations can sustainable trust and value be created for consumers, investors, and the market overall.
The presentation centered on five strategic insights for new branding solutions: ▲ the importance of enduring brand aspirations ▲ active experimentation and testing of customer needs ▲ balance between performance marketing and branding ▲ flexible brand ecosystem formation methods ▲ the necessity of agenda setting based on brand aspirations.
Moon Jihun, Interbrand’s Global Managing Partner, stated, “Through this 2025 Best Korea Brands conference, we’ve reconfirmed that brand strategy is no longer about following fixed formulas but must continuously evolve in response to market changes. We aim to re-examine brands’ essence and potential through the dialectical process of thesis-antithesis-synthesis, providing practical direction for companies contemplating long-term brand leadership based on these insights.”
Meanwhile, Interbrand annually evaluates global brand values and announces the ‘Best Global Brands,’ selecting 100 brands in order of brand value. ‘Best Global Brands’ is recognized as one of the world’s most influential brand and marketing-related rankings.
In the Korean market, Interbrand has selected ‘Best Korea Brands’ annually since 2013 using the same methodology as global evaluation criteria, presenting new directions from a business perspective to corporate branding and marketing professionals. The annual ‘Best Korea Brands conference’ has established itself as an essential venue for Korea’s leading corporate brand and marketing professionals to exchange ideas and gain branding insights.
Detailed information about the 2025 Best Korea Brands and rankings can be found on Interbrand’s website and official blog channels.
About Interbrand
Interbrand, the world’s largest global brand consultancy, was founded in 1974 with headquarters in New York and approximately 1,200 consultants operating as one Interbrand across 16 offices in 15 countries worldwide. As part of the brand consulting group under Omnicom Group (NYSE: OMC), Interbrand contributes to brand value creation and management through environmental analysis for business growth, sophisticated brand strategy development, world-class verbal branding and design, and differentiated brand experience implementation. Over the past 50 years, the company has developed iconic brands representing various industries and built diverse tools used by market-leading brands to enhance competitiveness.
In an era with more alternatives than ever and rapid innovation, customer expectations always change one step ahead of business strategies. While ‘improving’ current brand/product/service/communication strategies is necessary to meet changed needs, ‘improvement’ alone is insufficient. Interbrand states that ‘Iconic Moves’ that can change the rules of the game are needed. Interbrand’s consultants and designers are creating ‘tomorrow’s brands’ that will change the world together. Through strategies that strengthen brand competitiveness by building relationships rather than transactions with customers, and ‘Iconic Moves’ that discover customer needs and improve loyalty to reach business performance, the company provides optimal branding solutions to clients.
About 2025 Best Korea Brands
Interbrand annually conducts brand value evaluations for global brands and selects and announces 100 brands in order of brand value. ‘Best Global Brands’ is evaluated as one of the most important and influential brand and marketing-related rankings, selected as one of the most influential rankings by PR Week. Additionally, Interbrand’s brand valuation methodology is the world’s most widely recognized and used evaluation methodology, becoming the first in the industry to receive ‘ISO 10668’ certification in 2010.
Using the same methodology as global evaluation criteria, Interbrand has been selecting and announcing ‘Best Korea Brands,’ the 50 corporate brands with the highest brand value in Korea, since 2013, and holds conferences annually. By presenting new directions from brand and business perspectives, it has established itself as a venue for Korea’s leading corporate brand/marketing/design professionals to gain branding insights and network with each other. The 13th ‘2025 Best Korea Brands’ selects Korea’s top 50 brands that showed the most brilliant performance over the year and shares success stories related to brand experience based on their achievements.
Interbrand’s Brand Valuation Methodology
Brand Value as defined by Interbrand represents the asset value of a specific brand expressed in monetary terms, indicating the present value of revenue expected to be generated by the brand in the future. Its importance is growing as brands are increasingly recognized as very important corporate assets. Interbrand’s brand valuation method is based on brand and financial asset valuation methods, consisting of three core elements: ‘Financial Analysis’ that calculates financial performance created by brands, ‘Role of Brand’ analysis that calculates intangible profits generated by brands, and ‘Brand Strength’ analysis that measures risk based on brand status to derive the net present value of future profits obtained through brands.