British Airways tops consumer brands for 2015

British Airways has been ranked as the top consumer brand in the UK for 2015.

An annual survey, carried out by The Centre for Brand Analysis, ranks the top 20 consumer brands across the country. It placed the airline at the top of the list, while established names such as Marks and Spencer (M&S) and Cadbury fell out of the list. For M&S it was the first time its not featured in the rankings since 2009.

Other notable absentees from the list included Heinz, electronics firm Sony, oil giant Shell and online retailer Amazon. M&S lost its place in the rankings after experiencing challenging trading conditions in recent months. Cadbury also suffered after a decision to change the recipe of its Creme Egg, replacing the Dairy Milk shell with "standard, traditional Cadbury milk chocolate".

Stephen Cheliotis, chief executive of The Centre for Brand Analysis, said: "The continued lack of impact from some of the newer brands is pretty ubiquitous. They don't seem to be capturing people's imagination in the same way as traditional brands."

The expert explained that he was surprised that so many traditional companies has been retaining their consumer base while newer companies were struggling to make the same impact. The top five of the survey, behind British Airways, was made up of Rolex, BBC, Microsoft and Nike, while the likes of John Lewis, Gillette and Mercedes-Benz featured in the top ten.

British Airways expansion?

The owner of British Airways, International Airlines Group (IAG), has been eyeing expansion in recent months. The organisation currently has a bid for Irish carrier Aer Lingus being considered by stakeholders, which include the Irish government and budget airline Ryanair.

IAG's interest surrounds a need for a larger presence at Heathrow Airport. Aer Lingus currently boasts a significant number of take-off and landing slots at the London airport with only British Airways, Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic having more.