Katowice - events reports

Is it inevitable that during times of crisis our ‘safely’ invested money will disappear without a trace? “Not really,” says Alfred Adamiec, a Noble Bank financial expert. “It depends on where it’s invested.”

Mr Adamiec met with a BPCC audience at the Katowice Business Breakfast on 11th February and shared some of his vast knowledge on the art of investing money. But what are the choices? Should we stash our money under the mattress away from the volatile market or take a risk and invest it with the hope that its value will at least remain the same even if it doesn’t appreciate?

There are of course many options open to us and one brief lecture during a breakfast is not enough to provide us with comprehensive advice but it can give as a general idea of what to do and when to save.

Mr Adamiec proved to be a very communicative lecturer and, speaking to us in layman’s terms, he passed on a small amount of his vast financial knowledge. Importantly, he also encouraged us to rationalise the crisis phenomenon and not to make rash decisions.

During the Breakfast the participants also learnt about a new savings product by Noble Bank, the main sponsor and two very attractive apartment locations in Warsaw which were presented by Orco, a co-sponsor of the event.

One may even say that all the elements you need to survive the crisis were provided at this breakfast: Mr Adamiec as your financial advisor, a savings plan from by Noble Bank and a luxurious apartment at ul. Złota offered by Orco!

By Witold Turant, BPCC Katowice

There has been much recent speculation about the investment potential and attractions of Katowice and other Silesian cities but events revealing new information and highlighting current developments are still interesting for many business people in many business sectors. That was the reason that the conference hall of Katowice Qubus hotel, sponsors of the event, was full to the limit on 15th January. The conference was launched by the Katowice City Council, the Metropolitan Union of Upper Silesia and the BPCC.

Mayor of Katowice and President of the Metropolitan Union, Piotr Uszok’s ongoing policy is to promote Katowice as a very attractive investment area, particularly for British investors. During the conference he pointed out the factors which make the area especially investor friendly such as the existing infrastructure, transport and communication system, and last but not least, the proximity to some of Europe’s other key business centres. BPCC Katowice acts as a platform for networking with business contacts in Upper Silesia. This, and other facts pertaining to British-Polish commercial exchange and co-operation, was included in a presentation delivered by Martin Oxley, BPCC CEO. It’s useful to note that the total value of British investment in Poland is €12,2 bln and that due to this investment more than 150,000 jobs have been created. The other benefit of investing in Poland is that this country is still considered to be an emerging market and the world financial crisis is expected to be relatively mild there.

There will, without a doubt, be a slow down but there is also going to be the opportunity to improve business skills, competitiveness and to gain better product and service quality and a good company, under creative and courageous management, may manage to gain strength from the situation.

The next presentation, given by sponsor Paweł Paszkiewicz of TriGranit, gave some recent history of investment in Katowice; the birth of the Silesia City Centre mega shopping area, a residential project Dębowe Tarasy which is currently under construction, and the plans for a new business centre and architectural accent for Katowice’s landscape – “Silesia Towers”.

There were then presentations on Silesia office space and the sophisticated new technology brought to Poland by foreign investors. Extremely interesting was Michał Łyczbiński from StartPeople’s commentary on Silesia’s labour market and the changes that might be expected in the near future. Unemployment, though very low for Poland (1.8% in Katowice) will soon grow as recruitment activities slow down. Paradoxically, as Ernst & Young also emphasised, the energy and coal sector may be a saving grace, as coal has made a come-back as Poland’s vital energy source and Silesian coal mines will soon employ over 4,000 people. StartPeople and Accea, also conference sponsors, stated that the Silesian market will continue to be a very important area for them as HR companies.

The reaction of the conference audience and the interest shown by the business community of Upper Silesia, shows that investment in Upper Silesia is still a “hot” issue.