Introducing America’s Hottest Brands 2024—everything you need to know

For the sixth consecutive year, Ad Age is highlighting 20 brands, people and services that are having a moment. Popular in the late 2000s, America’s Hottest Brands took an eight-year hiatus before it was revived in 2019. The 2024 iteration debuts today. See America's Hottest Brands 20 brands that are trending in 2024 Click here What is America’s Hottest Brands? This feature is meant to chronicle brands that are currently enjoying buzz, however fleeting that buzz might be. Unlike Ad Age’s Marketers of the Year feature, which honors sustainable success at scale, America’s Hottest Brands is less focused on sales figures and more focused on chatter. Many of our Hottest Brands go on to bigger and better things—TikTok was featured on this list several years ago when it was just a nascent social media platform, long before it grew into a must-have advertising channel for all brands looking to attract Gen Z consumers. Similarly, Taylor Swift, who was on last year’s list, went on to become No. 2 on Ad Age’s Marketers of the Year list in December. How are the brands selected? While many Ad Age franchises such as Leading Women and 40 Under 40 are based on nominations, America’s Hottest Brands’ selection process is not submissions-based—though readers are certainly welcome to submit ideas. Every spring, our editorial committee meets to discuss brands that would fit the list. This year, we narrowed the pool of candidates pitched by our newsroom down from nearly 60 to 20 brands. We try to avoid repeats; if a company was on the list one year, it is unlikely to return the following year. What brands have been honored previously? Looking back on previous honorees, it was clear what was in vogue each year. In 2019, many direct-to-consumer brands, including Everlane, Glossier, Rothy’s and Billie, made the list. So did Baby Shark, the earworm of parents ’round the globe. The brands featured in 2020, including Drizly, Clorox and Zoom, reflected coronavirus pandemic-era trends. While some brands, such as TikTok, saw continued success, others had buzz that was short-lived, such as Peloton. In 2022, an NFT brand, Doodles, made the list; so did GasBuddy, as rising gasoline prices at the time provided an opportunity. Last year, Ad Age featured brands including Barbie, ChatGPT, Crumbl and Ozempic. What’s the scoop on this year’s list? The 2024 list of America’s Hottest Brands offers a snapshot of this year’s summer—there’s a scent, a song and what is shaping up to be a shoe of the summer. There’s also an Olympics gymnast who is back on brands’ radar and an up-and-coming athlete and rapper who will be. Brands hail from a variety of categories such as health care, automotive, fashion, food, beauty and skincare. An AI chipmaker and a social media platform are also getting buzz. See America's Hottest Brands 20 brands that are trending in 2024 Click here What can I do to get my company picked for Hottest Brands? Several things! Try pitching Ad Age with news about your brand and why it is trending with consumers. Also, read up on how the brands on this year’s list, as well as those honored in previous years, got their start and found success in culture. The marketing exploits of the companies and celebrities listed today have been well-chronicled on AdAge.com. See America's Hottest Brands 20 brands that are trending in 2024 Click here

Introducing America’s Hottest Brands 2024—everything you need to know

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