The World Needs To Know Bulgaria As an Excellent Investment Destination
By Maxim Behar
An excerpt from my interview on the show “The World is Business” on Bloomberg TV Bulgaria, hosted by Ivaylo Lakov, I discuss the Bulgarian brand and communication.
Host (Ivaylo Lakov): I know you have been working to promote Bulgaria as an investment destination for years. I don’t know if you are involved with the Webit Investment Network, but I know that you hold regular meetings with the CEOs of large foreign companies in Bulgaria and consistently discuss what needs to be done and how, what looks good, and what doesn’t. Tell me about these meetings with the CEOs and what feedback you receive from them.
Maxim: This is an idea I started to execute this year. We invite 10 people for lunch, called “CEO only,” to discuss, share opinions, and debate. The lunch is exclusively for CEOs, so we can all talk on the same level. As you said, the idea of the Bulgarian brand has been around for 20–25 years and, unfortunately, remains just that — an idea. And it is often discussed because, in my opinion, Bulgaria continues to be a well-kept secret.
I travel a lot worldwide, and borders are now much more open with many other countries, especially overseas. It’s not a big priority for us to promote Bulgaria overseas in North America or Latin America. But even in Europe, there is little clarity when mentioning Bulgaria. No one knows that we have the lowest taxes in Europe or that Sofia is a highly safe city.
Host: Why is that? How do you explain it? Why do we stick to symbols like the yogurt and the rose, as if there is nothing more to Bulgaria?
Maxim: Because successive groups of politicians have wanted to do something over the past 10 years but don’t know how to. In the previous caretaker government — that of Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov, I had 10–15 meetings with different ministers at various levels, and everyone found my ideas great. Ultimately, nothing happened because the Bulgarian branding didn’t interest anyone in this puddle where we exchanged epithets and quarreled.
Most importantly, we must succeed in promoting Bulgaria as a good and decent country and Bulgarians as intelligent people with a European mindset. No politician would take on this task because they don’t understand it.
When a minister from the last regular government invited me to a meeting, he told me about the “Brand Bulgaria” initiative and that its working group consists of ministers. And I wondered, what does the Minister of Environment or Agriculture understand about branding, communications, or presentation?
Instead of ministers, communication and branding professionals from Bulgaria and abroad should be invited to a large meeting to yield results. Also, Bulgaria doesn’t have a logo.
Host: People will immediately counter you on that — there is one with a rose that looks more like something else.
Maxim: That can’t be a logo. Bulgaria doesn’t have a message or slogan. There is no sentence that describes Bulgaria in terms of what it is. If you remember, 20 years ago, my partner, the governor of Nevada, Bob Miller, and I made a series of conferences called “Bulgaria — Dream Area.” I really liked “Bulgaria — Dream Area” because it rhymes and is easy to remember, and Bulgaria really is a dream area. We translated it as “Bulgaria — the land of dreams.”
We wanted it, dreamed a lot, and hosted seven consecutive conferences from 2001 to 2004 before we decided to stop. At one of them, in 2002, we even had a live connection with President Bill Clinton. At that time, there were no Zoom or fast communication tools, yet the American President connected live — we made history.
After that, starting with Ex-Prime Minister Boyko Borissov’s first cabinet, I started proposing to each government to sell them the “Bulgaria — Dream Area” brand, registered internationally, for which I have invested money, for 1 euro. All governments found my ideas interesting.
I told them that they don’t have to use it, and I am giving it to the state for 1 euro, but if they have something better, they can put it on the table or hold an international contest for the Bulgarian branding strategy. The problem with Bulgaria is that although there is no longer a negative perception of it, there is a lack of clarity around the country.
Host: There isn’t a good perception either.
Maxim: Yes, because there isn’t enough information about it. And I continue to claim that of all Eastern European countries, Bulgaria is the only one where we still have many niches for business. This is not Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, or Hungary, where you find it difficult to do business because the market is full. Here, you can come with 200–300 thousand euros and start a business, find the best niche, work 24/7 like everywhere else, and succeed.
I know dozens of successful foreigners. Something revolutionary must happen after so many years. Exactly 30 years ago, I organized the first investment conference in Bulgaria called “Doing Business in Bulgaria.” I think you were working at the Bulgarian National Television at the time and remember “Doing Business in Bulgaria” in ’94. In ’98, I founded the Bulgarian Investment Forum and was the executive director, along with Ilian Vassilev and Krasen Stanchev. Four thousand people from all over the world paid to attend the Forum at the National Palace of Culture.
The state did not give a penny to the Bulgarian Investment Forum, which probably continues to this day because many forums happened afterward. These were exceptionally well-organized and purposeful efforts to “sell” Bulgaria to the world in the best sense of the word — to show that it’s an excellent place for investment. Sofia is a very safe city, and no one knows that.
If someone walks through Alexanderplatz in Berlin or any other big European city, they will see that there are extremely risky areas, unclean at that, but not in Sofia. With my friends Ivan and Andrey, who are doing the wonderful initiative “Bulgaria Wants You,” we want nothing from the state except for it not to interfere with our work to promote Bulgaria abroad. Believe me, there is no greater priority right now than this. No state law is more important than the world knowing that Bulgaria is a good country.
Host: Why doesn’t this happen at the administration and government level, in your opinion? Is it because of money, or who will take the commissions?
Maxim: No. I don’t even want to imagine it’s because of some commissions, although these are quite large sums of money involved. There is simply no good strategy, plan, or organization stating the responsible people, their tasks, and their deadlines.
Read the full interview at https://www.maximbehar.com.
