Bigos, vodka, Lech Wałęsa are exceptions. Polish brands little known in the world. How to change this?

• Representatives of Polish chambers of commerce agree: our brands are very poorly recognized abroad, which is often the result of a lack of strategy and promotion.
• Meanwhile, brand success can also have a broader impact. "When brands start to achieve success in a given country, people start to associate it with the country's brand," emphasizes Fredrik Udd, vice-chairman of the Swedish-Polish Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm.
• "America will not come to you, you have to go to America and show your presence. Poland has to take the first step," says Daniel Santos Cori, senior partner and general manager for subsidiaries at the United States Foreign Trade Institute.

– Poland is not associated with any specific brand for Italians, apart from perhaps Żubrówka and Wyborowa vodka – openly admits Ewa Trzcińska, President of the Management Board of the Polish Business Chamber in Italy. As she emphasised during the "Safe Expansion" debate held as part of the European Economic Congress , Polish products are often anonymous in Italy, although in fact many of our companies sell their products in this country. As one of the few exceptions, she points to Oknoplast near Kraków , which at the beginning of the last decade became a sponsor of Inter Milan . And since Italians love football, and Inter itself is one of the most successful football clubs in this country, people immediately started asking who is behind it, and in this way the Polish company became present in the minds of the inhabitants of Italy.

– It's high time to boast, because we have the potential and people in individual sectors know about it, but in the general awareness we don't have any brand that we could boast about – appeals Ewa Trzcińska.

– Among specialists, there is prestige in terms of employee quality and product quality, but the Polish brand is not recognizable – confirms Javier Sosnowski, president of the board of the association of Polish Chambers of Commerce Abroad PolChambers and also president of the Spanish-Polish Chamber of Commerce.

The situation is similar across the Atlantic. Jan Rudomina, director of the Polish American Business Club in New York and also director of PolChambers, explains that in the United States, the image of Poland is very ambiguous, depending on the environment you end up in. Generally, however, we do not have a permanent, universally associated brand in the United States.

– The seasonal brand was Wałęsa and John Paul II. Some people associate Poland with vodka, bigos and polka dancing – said Jan Rudomina.

– Lech Wałęsa and Solidarity are still a good brand, but it was not an economic brand. Similarly to John Paul II – however, Mariusz Tomaka, president of the Polish-American Cooperation Council in Poland and vice president of the board of PolChambers, points out. In the absence of a widely known economic brand , one can count on the "personal brands" of Poles working in the US or people with Polish roots . And such – as PolChambers representatives emphasize – can be found among high-ranking specialists dealing with AI in Silicon Valley, as well as managers of large financial companies in New York or doctors.

– So, the brand is not in a good shape, but it is not hopeless either – says Mariusz Tomaka.

Lack of promotion and strategy. That's why it's worth learning from others

What is the reason for this lack of presence of Polish brands on world markets? Fredrik Udd, vice-chairman of the Swedish-Polish Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm, suggests that this is the effect of Polish companies concentrating on the relatively absorbent domestic market and giving up on foreign markets, although he points out that Sweden is currently becoming increasingly important for Polish companies, which is visible, for example, in their growing share in the Chamber. Javier Sosnowski and Ewa Trzcińska rather talk about the lack of promotion.

– We still have a few years ahead of us or some well-organized plan – says Sosnowski.

In the context of the need to create such a plan, other participants in the debate drew attention to the experiences of countries that, although much smaller than Poland, were able to build a reputation for themselves on global markets.

- Estonia's brand is digital. This brand was built in a very thoughtful way. An education system was created focused on educating engineers and education related to computers - says Artur Kuczmowski, chairman of the board of the Polish-Estonian Chamber of Commerce in Estonia and a member of the board of PolChambers. He recalls the participation of Estonian programmers in creating the well-known Skype communicator and Estonia's great care for its image.

– There is one coherent strategy that is being developed simultaneously by several government agencies that cooperate with each other – says Kuczmowski.

– Sweden takes a holistic approach to branding, starting with successful companies like Ikea, Volvo or Spotify. And when brands start to become successful in a given country, then people start to associate that with the country’s brand, suggests Fredrik Udd.

We are the tiger of economic development. With such a story will we set out to conquer world markets?

- America will not come to you, you have to go to America and show your presence. You have to be there, only then can you conduct a successful marketing campaign and attract the attention of the American business community. Poland must take the first step - calls Daniel Santos Cori, senior partner and general director of subsidiaries at the United States Foreign Trade Institute.

– But don't start with the whole of America, first focus on New York, Buffalo, Chicago, where you already have your own community, and go from there – he advises.

The representative of the United States Foreign Trade Institute emphasizes that in the context of the American market it is not only the content that is important, but also the standard.

– You talk about business, but it all comes down to narrative: who you are, what you represent, what values ​​you have. The new generation needs a new narrative. Poland needs to attract the attention of young people, not talk about the past – he adds.

– Poland is a tiger of economic development. From the very bottom, over the last 30 years we have found ourselves in a completely different world – answers the question about what could potentially be such a new Polish narrative accompanying the expansion into foreign markets, Mariusz Tomaka.

– Why is Luxembourg interested in Poland? Because there are already a hell of a lot of rich people here. And they interest us – says Artur Sosna, president of the board of the Luxembourg-Polish Chamber of Commerce in this context.

– Estonians look at Poland as the first stop on their expansion to the West, as a large sales market, but also as a market from which they can draw and buy many products. They look at us as a bigger brother with whom it would be nice to do business – Artur Kuczmowski agrees, although he points out that we are still not taking advantage of this.

– I also think that the times for Polish-Swedish relations are very good. Poland is becoming stronger, both in the European and global context: the economy is doing great, also in the political context in the EU it is gaining importance, and in terms of defense it is one of the key players in Europe – Fredrik Udd looks optimistically to the future.

Watch the report from the "Safe Expansion" debate:

17th European Economic Congress