Debate around promotion of Polish design, entrepreneurship and culture abroad

The fourth exhibition of Polish design in Brazil has just come to an end in Rio de Janeiro in June. To mark this occasion, The Spirit of Poland, together with the City Council of Warsaw, held a debate focused on promotion Polish design, entrepreneurship and culture abroad.

On the 23rd of June, The Spirit of Poland and the City Council of Warsaw, invited experts to The Warsaw’s Praga Museum to discuss the most important aspects of promoting the Polish culture and entrepreneurship abroad. They discussed both the strategic and operational issues of running a business and organising cultural events in Brazil.

After an official welcome by Mrs. Katarzyna Kuzko-Zwierz, Director of The Warsaw’s Praga Museum and Mr. Tomasz Thun-Janowski – Director of the City Council of Warsaw’s Culture Department, our panelists presented their points of view. Wojciech Baczyński, who used to work at the Polish Consulate in São Paulo, spoke about the huge potential of the Brazilian market, as well as its barriers, e.g. high exportation costs, bureaucracy and even such issues as security. Łukasz Gierańczyk, owner of the travel online business, queropassagem.com.br, spoke about his experience with setting up a company in Brazil, as well as its day-to-day activities. Karolina Małaczek, who used to work as the cultural promotion specialist at the Polish Embassy in Brasilia outlined Brazilian-European collaboration in the cultural field over the last years. Barbara Krzeska from the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, spoke about preparations for a series of Polish cultural events that have already started in Brazil (The Spirit of Poland is one of those activities), and which will take place next year in the main Brazilian cities, such as São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba. Monika Brauntsch from The Spirit of Poland team, as well as owner of the lighting company Kafti, talked about the experience of promotion Polish design brands in such distant countries like Brazil and Japan, as well as about her company’s experience in international markets. We were also delighted with the presence of Mr. Andrzej Szumowski, President Wyborowa S.A., who shared his thoughts on the importance of promoting the brand of Poland through Polish brands.

We would like to thank all our panelists, our Partners, especially The Warsaw’s Praga Museum and the City Council of Warsaw. We were also delighted to see so many creatives and representatives of other sectors interested in Brazil. It was great to share some comments and talk about future projects over a glass of caipiroska prepared with vodka of one of the most well-known Polish brands. Thank you and see you soon again!

Organisers:
City Council of Warsaw
The Spirit of Poland

Partners:
The Warsaw’s Praga Museum
Culture.pl
WILK Open Cluster of Design