The Lithuanian government is developing a new brand for the country’s exports. “Co-created in Lithuania” – to replace the old “Made in Lithuania” – will be offered to exporting firms, though business representatives are sceptical this kind of marketing will be of much use.
Created a year ago, the brand “Co-created in Lithuania” has been registered in other countries and is now being presented to Lithuanian companies.
Simona Buziliauskienė of the Innovation Agency – which operates under the Ministry of Economy – argues that the country of origin designation is one of the most important factors used by consumers when choosing a product.
“What will make this brand unique, different from ‘Made in Lithuania’ is that it is interesting, inviting to a discussion about who is the co-creator, what is the message we want to go out to the world with,” she tells LRT RADIO.
The message, Buzliauskaitė adds, is that Lithuania is a country open to collaborate and “co-create” together.
The “Made in Lithuania” brand will not be phased out either, she says, and firms will be able to use both.
So far, 12 companies have expressed interest in using the “Co-created in Lithuania” brand, according to Buziliauskaitė, and eight are ready to go ahead.
However, food industry representative Mindaugas Snarskis remains sceptical and unconvinced that new branding would bring more business.
“When a new [...] marketing manager joins a company, one of jobs he or she does is often revamping the existing brand or creating a new one. That’s what it reminds me of. I do not believe that a change of wordplay would change the substance,” Snarskis, chairman of the Lithuanian Food Industry Association, tells LRT RADIO.
Nor does he think that the previous “Made in Lithuania” branding campaign was particularly successful. “Sure, if the effort is focused, there may be an element of success, but it will not be because one or two words have changed in this particular brand,” he says.
He agrees that the country of origin plays a role in consumer choices, but stresses that the brand itself has little influence.
Moreover, Snarskis argues, this particular new label does not say anything unique about Lithuania: “Who are we going to impress with it being something else than ‘made in’?”
This does not mean, he adds, that the government has no role to play in promoting Lithuanian producers.
“Economic diplomacy helps, assistance in entering specific markets, opening up routes helps, opportunities to cooperate, to work together, to optimise costs, yes, that helps. But a logo on the packaging, a few centimetres in size, [...] well, excuse me, it looks like child play,” believes Snarskis.
A label is not something that creates associations for a particular country, he believes.
“If you ask what associations are linked with Italy, Brazil or Argentina, they are quick and clear enough. But consumers do not associate them with brands, they may associate them with products,” he says. “If we want [Lithuania] to be associated with šaltibarščiai, that could probably be done.”
Meanwhile, Lineta Ramonienė, associate professor at the ISM University of Management and Economics in Vilnius, welcomes the idea of creating a new Lithuanian export brand.
It is “very beautiful and strong”, she believes.
However, she stresses that any brand should be seen from two angles: its value for Lithuania and its value for businesses. Its use in the latter respect is still in doubt.
“It is still very difficult to see that value for businesses because the brand itself does not have any values encoded in it,” she tells LRT RADIO.
While the country of origin designation is indeed important, she says, producers can put it on their products themselves and do not need help from the government.
“We, all Lithuanians, want Lithuania to be known, but will this label bring some boundless export opportunities? That is certainly not going to happen,” says Ramonienė.
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