What does it take to be a winner at the City Nation Place Awards? And what can we learn from previous year’s finalist and winner case studies about the key ingredients of a successful nation, city, or place brand and marketing strategy?
Join us online for a global tour of the very best work being implemented by nation branding teams, city marketing boards, destination marketing, and economic development organisations around the world.
Book now to be inspired by best practice in….
- Citizen engagement
- Use of data
- Use of design
- Marketing communications
- Longer term strategic thinking for place brands
Plus you’ll hear from a panel of our 2023 Awards jurors who will share what they’re looking for in a winning entry and how you can make sure that your entry stands out from the crowd.
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SpeakersIrina Tolstousov Head of Country Brand Promotion Invest Moldova Agency
Lucy von Weber Head of Marketing Visit Wales
Clare Dewhirst Director City Nation Place
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Irina Tolstousov is a seasoned professional as the Head of the Country Brand Promotion Department, boasting a rich history of success in both public and private sectors. With expertise in marketing strategy, public relations, and brand promotion, she stands out as a strong marketing professional, adept communicator, and collaborative team player.
Specializing in the economic field, Irina has actively contributed to European Union projects related to the DCFTA implementation. Notably, she holds the distinctive role as the first and sole individual in Moldova entrusted with managing the country's brand.
At the Invest Moldova Agency, Ms. Tolstousov leads efforts to promote the Republic of Moldova as an investment magnet, export hub, and tourist haven. Her dedication to this unique role is highlighted by her exclusive responsibility for Moldova's comprehensive brand management.
Irina holds a Bachelor's and a Master's Degree in Marketing Management, with her master's thesis focused on the branding of the Republic of Moldova. Additionally, she served as a jury member for the prestigious City Nation Place Awards in 2023, the foremost platform for place builders. This further attests to her influential role in shaping global perceptions of regions and nations.
With 25 years of practical experience in the tourism industry (from attractions, and academic research to private sector tourism consultancy and senior roles for destination organisations) Lucy joined Visit Wales as Head of Marketing in November 2018 after running her own company.
Having delivered projects embracing all aspects of integrated marketing, Lucy’s remit at Visit Wales includes B2B as well as B2C activity, delivered alongside product development and comprehensive industry engagement foundation work.
Visit Wales activity is undertaken under the umbrella of the Cymru Wales country brand and Visit Wales 5-year plan, at the heart of which is “Growing tourism for the good of Wales”. Stakeholder engagement activity aims to ensure that from the smallest business to the largest organisation, there is an opportunity to be part of the Cymru Wales approach.
Clare is the Founder and Director of City Nation Place, the global forum for the people and stories behind places.
City Nation Place creates connections and shares best practice between country brands, regional brands, and city brands around the world through articles, interviews, surveys, white papers, the advisory group network, and conferences.
Clare’s interest in the complex area of place branding was sparked whilst working on a series of Nation Branding Masterclass events, led by Simon Anholt, one of the first thought-leaders to speak about and promote the concept of place branding. Having listened to Simon address audiences in Accra, Delhi, Dubai, London and Singapore on how policy, governance, and symbolic actions need to combine with branding and marketing to create a competitive identity and drive economic growth, she continued to follow the growth in this sector.
Clare launched the first City Nation Place Global conference in London in 2015. CityNationPlace.com has been steadily building followers and in 2017, the first City Nation Place Americas conference was launched. In 2018 City Nation Place Asia Pacific took place in Singapore, and 2019 saw the first City Nation Place UK, specifically for towns, cities and regions across the UK, and the launch of the first City Nation Place LatAm & Caribbean event.
Clare manages the small team at City Nation Place alongside providing event consultancy and management for a number of clients in the publishing and trade association sector, including running the World Media Awards for the World Media Group and event consultancy for the UK Association for Online Publishers.