Viking Range Corporation has been named by Fortune magazine as one of the “10 Breakaway Brands” of 2006 in its September 18th edition.  For this annual report, Fortune turned to Landor Associates, a brand and design consultant, and BrandEconomics, a division of global consulting firm Stern Stewart & Co. for input from their Breakaway Brands Survey. 

Landor and BrandEconomics studied more than 2,500 brands in the U.S. BrandAsset® Valuator database to determine brands that exhibited the greatest increases in brand strength over a three-year period from 2002-2005.  The study evaluated differentiation-what makes a brand stand out, relevance-how the consumer feels it meets his/her needs, esteem-how well regarded it is, and knowledge-how much the consumer knows about the brand. 

Viking Range Corporation, ranked #2 of the top brands, was noted for its focus on lifestyle with cooking schools and travel components as its way of connecting with its customers and “breaking away” from its competition.  The creation of The Viking Life, ww.thevikinglife.com, and the “Worlds of Flavor” travel program have played integral roles as Viking has begun offering consumers an alternative path to its customer experience.

To view a PDF of the complete article, please click here, or pick up a copy of the magazine at local newsstands.