1 in 5 foreigners familiar with Ukrainian brands, supporting country is top reason to purchase – survey
Around 20% of non-native residents can recall at least one Ukrainian brand and the primary motivation for purchasing Ukrainian products is to show support for the country.
The results of a new international survey by the BRAND UKRAINE organization evidence this.
"With the strengthening of Ukraine's brand worldwide, the "Made in Ukraine" brand has also strengthened. Foreigners are interested in Ukrainian goods and services and have a desire to buy and order them. The primary driver of this is the desire to support Ukraine in difficult times. This is expected and natural. At the same time, no less other, more pragmatic factors are also important, such as the high quality of Ukrainian products and their affordable price," the head of BRAND UKRAINE, Maria Lypiatska, said.
Lypiatska noted that the study shows that a strong and stable brand of Ukraine improves the country's perception abroad and has direct positive economic consequences for businesses operating in international markets.
According to the survey results, agriculture is considered the strongest branch of Ukraine's economy abroad. Energy is in second place, and food and mining industries are in third and fourth place.
In Türkiye, the production of alcoholic beverages from Ukraine is highly regarded compared to other countries. France and Spain often mention the strong Ukrainian economy in metallurgy, while Türkiye and the USA recognize the defense industry. Ukrainian pet products receive much praise in the UK, surpassing the average in other countries. Similarly, the US is well acquainted with Ukraine's technological products and machine-building industry.
The main incentive for foreigners to buy Ukrainian goods is the opportunity to support Ukraine. 47% of respondents are ready to try a Ukrainian product if they see it in a store. Second, the affordable price is among the reasons for paying attention to Ukrainian brands. This is especially important for the French (49%) and Poles (48%). Third on the list of motivations is curiosity about Ukrainian products or goods. This indicator is the highest in Poland (52%) and the USA (45%).
Most of the respondents refrain from buying goods from Ukrainian manufacturers because they are not well-known and lack advertising.
Two key spheres of public life from which the world knows the most famous Ukrainians are politics and sports. Politics, as the field in which Ukraine has the most famous and influential people, won in four countries (France, Türkiye, the USA, Great Britain), and sports—in the rest of the studied countries (Poland, Germany, Spain). Business took third place, and music and the fashion industry shared fourth place.
Ukrainian public figures are better known abroad than brands of goods or services. Half of the surveyed foreigners could name at least one famous person from Ukraine (or originally from Ukraine) without prompting. The highest level of knowledge is in Poland (59%) and Türkiye (57%), and the lowest is in the USA (33%).
Around 20% of foreigners are familiar with Ukrainian brands and can name one:
- Out of those asked, only 3% were able to name Roshen, a confectionery company (10% of respondents in Poland also mentioned this brand);
- 2% of respondents mentioned the brand Sleeper, known for their women's clothing (actress Margot Robbie was spotted wearing their pajamas at a screening of "Barbie".)
- Another 2% named the alcoholic beverage producer Nemiroff, as well as the heating equipment or clothing brand Paskal.
In Türkiye, people frequently brought up the juice company Sandora without any prompting, while in France, the top choice was the headwear brand Ruslan Baginskiy. In the UK, many mentions went to the couture clothing brand FROLOV, a favorite of singers Beyoncé, Dua Lipa, and Jennifer Lopez.
When choosing between familiar brands, foreigners usually mention Ukrainian IT companies the most. The company that stood out the most was Grammarly, which is known for its AI-powered communication assistant that enhances English communication. In second place was the GitLab web repository, followed by Roshen in third. BetterMe, an IT company specializing in health applications, and Ajax, a security systems manufacturer, were also mentioned.
The survey was conducted in May 2024 and covered the adult urban population of seven countries: Great Britain, Spain, Germany, Poland, the USA, Türkiye, and France. The total sample was 2,800 respondents (400 in each country).
For reference:
BRAND UKRAINE is an independent organization that has been systematically working on the development of Ukraine's national brand in the international arena since February 2022. The team implements international communication projects to develop Ukraine's brand worldwide and provides expert support to the government in strategic communications, data analysis, and quality content development.
It is worth mentioning that, for Embroidery Day, the Ukrainian brand GAPTUVALNYA has released one-of-a-kind embroidered shirts featuring symbols representing female strength from the "Zemliachky" public organization. These symbols include the protector, the tree of life, and the unity of all women as one family.
