Birth pains of a brand
A brand image to promote Poland on the world stage moved a step closer last week when internationally renowned expert, Wally Olins, jetted into Warsaw to unveil the concept that his team has devised.
Under the title of 'Creative Tension', Olins says Poland can sell itself as a center for success, spawned from an environment of contrasts.
"Duality is present everywhere, representing a Poland torn between East and West, where people are full of passion and are idealistic but also practical, ambitious but down-to-earth," says Olins.
"These contrasting characteristics create tension, which opposes status quo, but also produce energy that is essential to act and achieve the seemingly impossible, as the First and Second World Wars showed."
Olins, who is working in cooperation with the Polish Chamber of Commerce (KIG) and the Polish Brand Institute, was in the country to present a progress report on the project.
The conference discussed the need to change Poland's image on the world arena under an integrated initiative. But so far no plan of action or budget has been drawn-up for the project, which has been more than two years in the making.
This last concern caused considerable disquiet among delegates during the public forum. The president of the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ), Andrzej Zdebski, summed up the gathering's general feeling of impatience when he said: "I hope that this is the last stage of pure discussions."
Olins and his team are due to meet the Council for the Promotion of Poland (CPP), which is chaired by Foreign Affairs Minister Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz, in early January. "At this meeting a decision will be made on whether to go ahead or not with further stages of work," he said.
The next hurdle in the operation will be finding public consensus on the brand image before it is finally approved by the CPP.
The question many are asking, though, is can the government and interested agencies manage to channel the national tension and paradox into creative and constructive action?
Under the title of 'Creative Tension', Olins says Poland can sell itself as a center for success, spawned from an environment of contrasts.
"Duality is present everywhere, representing a Poland torn between East and West, where people are full of passion and are idealistic but also practical, ambitious but down-to-earth," says Olins.
"These contrasting characteristics create tension, which opposes status quo, but also produce energy that is essential to act and achieve the seemingly impossible, as the First and Second World Wars showed."
Olins, who is working in cooperation with the Polish Chamber of Commerce (KIG) and the Polish Brand Institute, was in the country to present a progress report on the project.
The conference discussed the need to change Poland's image on the world arena under an integrated initiative. But so far no plan of action or budget has been drawn-up for the project, which has been more than two years in the making.
This last concern caused considerable disquiet among delegates during the public forum. The president of the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ), Andrzej Zdebski, summed up the gathering's general feeling of impatience when he said: "I hope that this is the last stage of pure discussions."
Olins and his team are due to meet the Council for the Promotion of Poland (CPP), which is chaired by Foreign Affairs Minister Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz, in early January. "At this meeting a decision will be made on whether to go ahead or not with further stages of work," he said.
The next hurdle in the operation will be finding public consensus on the brand image before it is finally approved by the CPP.
The question many are asking, though, is can the government and interested agencies manage to channel the national tension and paradox into creative and constructive action?
