In 2030, Finland will be the world’s problem-solver, the report of the Country Brand Delegation states in its final report. “Our practical and forthright approach to dealing with challenges offers the country an excellent opportunity to earn distinction, for instance, in resolving problems associated with international conflicts, water shortage and education” – so says a press release…
Last Saturday we reported on the release of the ‘Mission for Finland’ nation branding report. This 365 pages document compiles two years of hard work (the Finnish country-branding delegation was created in September 2008) by a taskforce chaired by former Nokia CEO Jorma Ollila and appointed to draft a nation branding strategy for Finland. The…
As we announced on this update on Finland’s nation branding project, the Brand Finland delegation published the results of their work last Thursday, November 25th. The delegation, set up in 2008 by Alexander Stubb, the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs, was charged with the task to think and discuss ways to make Finland more visible,…
A noteworthy trend can be seen by looking at the rankings in the 2010 Country Brand Index. In Europe, nation branding value is moving from South to North. Without a doubt, the countries winning more nation-brand value this year at the Country Brand Index were the Scandinavian ones. They all have improved their ranks in…
The Finnish Foreign Ministry’s press release, according to which former Nokia CEO Jorma Ollila was to start work on creating a country brand for Finland, took many by surprise in September 2008. According to the press release, Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Stubb had set up a high-level delegation to develop a national brand for Finland….
Some 80 guests and friends of Finland gathered on a sunny October 14th afternoon at Dutch Zoetermeer to hear a panel discussion about the theme “Finland Country Branding”. The purpose of the event was to raise awareness about the ongoing country branding project in Finland and create discussion around the theme among the Finnish-minded business…
For the most part, Finns seem fairly content with their home country. In fact, they are one of the happiest nations in the world, reports the OECD in a 2009 study. Outsiders, however, tend to see things differently. In an international survey on how nations perceive one another, Finland ranked 18th out of 50, according to…
Just like its Scandinavian counterparts, Finland enjoys one of the best country brands in the world. All country/ nation brand rankings show that Finland scores very well in most country brands facets, especially in exports, governance and transparency. But the Finns do not want to lose track and have been working in the last months…
Finland’s image abroad has been enhanced by defining a country specific brand of tourism. It can be described by four C’s: credible, contrasting, creative and cool. The country represents all of these. In December 2007, the Cabinet agreed on the need to define a country brand and to enhance coordination of international communication. Work on…
In a weird twist of fate, a group of legal experts have said that the commission set up to develop a national brand for Finland (about which an article was posted a few days ago here), is in violation of the law on gender equality. The group is only 28 percent female, while state committees,…
Finland’s brand new foreign Minister Alexander Stubb, who has always shown strong interest for brands and branding (and had previously written about the brand of Finland), has appointed a high-level delegation to lead efforts to develop a country brand for Finland, according to a press release from Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Jorma Ollila, Chairman…
Brands are modern ambassadors, who tell a lot about the place that they come from. What’s up with Finland’s brands and brand Finland? A Finnish member of the European Parliament and a branding-lover, Cai-Göran Alexander Stub, has written this short yet interesting piece at the European Voices magazine about branding Finland: In Finland, we love…
