'Brand Brussels strives to enhance the city's image

September 23, 2024 by
Alanah Reynor

In 2021, the Brussels-Capital Region launched a campaign to bolster the city’s image, after an Ipsos survey revealed a deficit between the good quality of life to be had in Brussels and the perception of the city as a good place to live. As Edouard Cambier, Brussels Brand Ambassador at BECI, explains: “It’s not Brussels’ position in the rankings that’s a problem, it’s the perception of Brussels. The quality of life here is comparable to cities like Vienna, Amsterdam and Paris, but when you look at how attractive people perceive Brussels to be, it falls behind.” According to the Ipsos rankings, Brussels lags behind cities such as Vienna, Copenhagen, Luxemburg, Geneva and London in the general population’s perception of the city as a good place to live and do business.

The problem seems to be caused somewhat by mixed messaging. “Brussels is a diamond, but when I’m in the EU district, there’s a different message to the one in Uccle or Ixelles. The problem is not the diversity of the city, but the diversity of messages.” The fact that the headquarters of the European Union lie in the city is both a blessing and, to some extent, a curse. Brussels often makes the headlines of major news outlets around the world, but almost always in relation to the EU institutions. “When Ursula von der Leyen says something, they quote it as ‘Brussels says…’. Most of the time they’re talking about something negative like sanctions against China, pollution, taxes or the farmers’ protests. Most people know Brussels through that angle.”


The launch of Brand Brussels

The deficit in perception drove the Brussels-Capital Region’s push to turn things around in 2021. After preparing a briefing and launching a call for papers, Resonance – a major international agency specialised in city marketing and based in New York – was chosen to develop a campaign that would revitalise the city’s image. And thus Brand Brussels was born, launching with a big bang in June 2023 at The Square conference centre.  

Many cities are facing similar problems. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, much of the talent moved away from cities to the relative peace and quiet of the countryside. This left less income for cities themselves to fund schools, hospitals and so on. It was thus vital to start attracting talent back to the urban environment  

Brand Brussels launched as a collaboration between nine different stakeholders in the region: the City of Brussels, visit.Brussels, Brussels International, Bruxelles Synergie, hub. brussels, commissioner.brussels, ULB, VUB and BECI. Each stakeholder focuses on their area of expertise. Visit Brussels, for instance, directs its efforts at attracting more tourists to Brussels and specifically those who are more likely to spend money in the city.  

Meanwhile, the ULB and VUB universities are also undertaking city marketing of their own. “The ULB and VUB universities are using Brand Brussels to find new teachers. They want good teachers who are connected to the economy, who have a global network. A teacher who studied at Oxford is more likely to attract students than a teacher from a lesser known city. A well-known teacher will result in fuller classes and thus more revenue for the university.

BECI, on the other hand, is responsible for the private sector with Edouard Cambier, Director of City Marketing, spearheading the campaign. “Brand Brussels is an identity. I want to make Brussels shine and for us to develop a shared vision of Brussels. I would like us to have the same storytelling for different kinds of people living in Brussels. If we can have a shared message between the public and the private sectors, it will be easier for everyone to attract new people.”

Brand Brussels


Brand Brussels at BECI

Edouard Cambier took the head of City Marketing at BECI at the start of 2024, having already attended the Brand Brussels launch event the previous year. Thanks to this push, anyone who has attended an event at BECI this year should already have heard of Brand Brussels. But how exactly can Brand Brussels support companies? “The easiest way for me to communicate about the brand is to put the brand into action. Brand Brussels is a brand as a service,” explains Edouard Cambier. This means that companies based in and around Brussels can use all of the materials provided by Brand Brussels as part of their own marketing to attract talent, suppliers, vendors and clients.  

“Brussels pays for all of the material: photos, logo, slogan, pitch. If you go to the Brand Brussels website, you can download all of these elements for your company. You can use the brand for free. There are no royalties to pay, it’s a gift for Brussels entrepreneurs.” Thanks to these resources, companies have access to a photo library, brand guidelines and ready-made sales pitches that they can use to market Brussels as a destination, to vaunt their industry or capabilities, or to promote a service or product. For example, a company may wish to use the Atomium as part of their marketing campaign, in which case they can visit the Brand Brussels website and download the relevant resources directly.

Edouard Cambier insists that we need to focus on attracting good talent to the city and making them happy about coming here. “Some people see a promotion involving a move to Brussels as a punishment. But once they get here, after two to three months, they realise that it’s a good place to live. Compared to London, people can get a lot more for their money: a house with a garden, a car… We need to show talent what they can get for their money in Brussels.” According to Numbeo’s Cost of Living Index, Brussels – with an index of 66.7 – is less expensive than Amsterdam (71.8), Paris (76.8), Copenhagen (77.4), London (80.9) and Geneva (112.5).

Parc_de_Bruxelles_-_Warandepark-1-©_visit.brussels_-_Marin_Driguez

Why Brussels?

  Brussels is not just a great place to live due to its relatively low cost of living, but also thanks to its vibrancy. “If we have a variety of restaurants, bars, nightlife, museums, activities and concerts in Brussels every night, we will attract more talent.” By showing that Brussels is just as lively as Paris, Amsterdam or London, as well as more affordable, the perception of Brussels as a great place to live and do business should be revived. “We want to attract the same kind of talent you see in Portugal, Spain and London. If the city is clean and safe, has well-balanced mobility between public and private transport, has enough bars, restaurants and nightlife, then we can do that.” 

Brand Brussels has broken the attributes of the city down into four key messages for businesses:

​1.         Brussels should be known for its superior quality of life, rich with culture and food. It’s also an incredibly liveable city which makes it a great place to grow a family, thanks to one of the best healthcare and education systems in the world. On top of that, more than 52% of the region is covered with vegetation.

​2.         Brussels is Europe’s most welcoming destination. It’s a connected city that doesn’t live by codes, but instead is diverse and inclusive. Bringing together more than 183 nationalities, it’s a melting pot of personalities, perhaps thanks to the fact that it’s naturally bi-cultural and bilingual (French and Dutch). Brussels is Europe’s second-most welcoming city for LGBTIQ+ community and gender diversity. It’s also a hub for networkers, with 300 diplomatic delegations and a host of international institutions.

​3.         Brussels is a creative capital city where everyone is encouraged to dare to bring their vision to life and shape the future. The EU may often be portrayed as ‘Brussels says’, but let’s not forget what the EU is: Brussels hosts the world’s largest transnational democratic initiative where decisions are made daily to impact the lives of 500 million Europeans. It’s also the European headquarters of more than 1,500 international companies.

​4.         Brussels is a city at the forefront of innovation. It’s pioneering and open to change. It dares to take the lead in sustainability and is ranked as the top walkable city. Redevelopment projects are also rejuvenating Brussels while embracing its history. Previously a customs facility, Tour & Taxis has been revamped to host everything from art exhibitions to cultural events and local markets. The Northern Quarter and the Canal area, previously a monofunctional business district and an industrial zone linking factories to the south with the port of Antwerp in the north, are also being spruced up to develop trendy, mixed-use areas with a new lease of life.

In addition to these attractive features, Brussels benefits from a strategic location in the heart of Europe. It is an equal distance from Paris, London, Amsterdam and Cologne and well served by road networks. It’s also easy to access by plane (with direct flights to 200 destinations in 66 countries) and by train (thanks to Eurostar and other high-speed rail connections).
 

What’s next for Brand Brussels?

For businesses, there is plenty still to discover at BECI with new events under the Hello Brussels and Hello World banners. BECI has also set up the Brussels International desk, a onestop shop supporting thousands of international companies, expats and diplomats in Brussels (see also the article on the Enterprise Europe Network in this issue).

A new Brussels Ambassador programme is also in the pipeline. “We need big ambassadors, not the traditional ambassadors like Stromae or Angèle although they are welcome. But we would also like to have people from the tech industry, R&D, big pharma and so on”, explains Edouard Cambier. Ambassadors from different sectors would serve as a point of contact for people looking to work or expand their business in Brussels. “The idea is to have ambassadors living and working in Brussels but also ambassadors living abroad. They should be willing to give up some of their time to go for a coffee with someone who wants to set up shop in Brussels and give them some advice.”  

The Brussels Ambassador programme will go live in 2025, but the call for ambassadors is already open. “If you want to be a Brussels Ambassador, you can register to join the list. We’re currently collecting names and will try to select one ambassador per industry to start.” There will also be various events next year for interested ambassadors to learn more about the programme and network with each other.  

Officially launched a little over a year ago, Brand Brussels is developing step by step. “First, we needed to launch the brand, play with the brand and communicate about the brand. Once all the tourists, teachers, students and companies understand the strength of the brand, it will no longer be concentrated in the nine players currently working on it. It will be a project for the whole of Brussels.”  

For more information on Brand Brussels, visit www.internationalbrand.brussels  www.internationalbrand.brussels.




Alanah Reynor September 23, 2024
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