Sofia – the next Barcelona? Europe’s hidden gems revealed
Watch out Barcelona – the Bulgarian capital of Sofia could become one of the new wave of magnetic European cities, along with Lithuania’s Vilnius and Poland’s Krakow.
Together with ‘old Europe’ trading centres such as Lisbon and Antwerp, these ‘hidden gems’ have the innate qualities to attract tourism and business but are underselling their potential, while the UK’s Liverpool and Berlin, Germany, are overplaying theirs, according to new analysis into Europe’s strongest city brands.
The City Brand Barometer, created by Saffron Brand Consultants, is the first study of its kind to rank 72 of Europe’s largest cities based on a comparison of their assets and attractions against the strength of their brands. To support the analysis, Saffron commissioned a YouGov poll of 2,000 consumers to find out what people most want from a city.
The impact of EU enlargement, easier travel, and a rediscovery of regional identity and cultures is intensifying competition among European cities for a share of international tourism, trade and investment. Whether from old or new Europe, how successfully these cities project their assets and attractions could mean the difference between future prosperity and obscurity.
Brand Strength rank – Top 10
1 Paris, France
2 London, UK
3 Barcelona, Spain
3 Berlin, Germany
3 Amsterdam, Neth.
6 Munich, Germany
7 Stockholm, Sweden
8 Prague, Czech Republic
9 Rome, Italy
10 Athens, Greece
Asset Strength rank – Top 10
1 Paris, France
2 London, UK
3 Munich, Germany
3 Barcelona, Spain
5 Amsterdam, Neth.
6 Rome, Italy
7 Vienna, Austria
7 Milan, Italy
9 Madrid, Spain
10 Athens, Greece
By Chitra Mogul
Chitra Mogul
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