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City Nation Place UK 2025

Glasgow

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The UK’s premier event for place branding and place marketing

The seventh annual City Nation Place UK conference will bring together the leadership teams of local authorities, LVEPs and destination marketing organisations, BIDs and economic development teams for a day of sharing innovative ideas and thought leadership.


If you would like to nominate a speaker, or share your ideas, please email Clare

If you missed last year's event, here are the key takeaways: 

  1. The interlocking layers of place brands are complex but understanding how they work together allows you to amplify place distinctiveness
  2. Don’t lose sight of they things that make your place unique: it’s beyond branding and positioning, it’s your DNA. Yes it’s your people, your heritage and cultural assets, but it’s also your challenges and your opportunities.
  3. The LVEP structure is finally putting tourism economy leaders at the top table of discussion around strategy in some places: all stakeholders need to be engaged in place-led strategy, policy, and branding discussions. It will mean changing mindsets but it’s worth the effort.
  4. We need new ways to measure the impact of place brand and marketing strategy beyond economic measures. How are you measuring social impact?
  5. “If it’s about us, it must include us” – community engagement is essential and we need to get better at more inclusive engagement.  It’s hard to see where your own biases lie so you must always ask your community for support.
  6. When budgets are tight, you can’t afford to be boring. Be bold.


“We are delighted to be the first Scottish city to host City Nation Place UK in what will be a big year for Glasgow as we celebrate our 850th birthday. The event will be an opportunity to reflect on how the city has and is transforming and how we can inspire accelerated change, for a better, sustainable, future, over the next fifty years. 

Delegates will observe first-hand how culture, economic development and inward investment are combining to form a dynamic economy, embracing emerging challenges and opportunities ahead. We look forward to hosting place marketing professionals from across the country to meet and learn from each other, demonstrating Glasgow’s world-famous hospitality and creating memorable experiences that showcase our city as one with creativity and innovation running through its veins.”

Councillor Susan Aitken, Leader of Glasgow City Council

"Glasgow is known internationally for its world-class cultural and sporting attractions and events, as well as its sustainability credentials, all of which make it a great setting for the 2025 City Nation Place conference. Our city is renowned as a first-choice destination for major brands and worldwide event organisers, and a place which attracts visitors from near and far all year round.

 We look forward to partnering with City Nation Place and welcoming global place branding leaders to Glasgow Royal Concert Hall to share ideas, learn from each other and work together to build more successful place economies around the world."

Billy Garrett, Director of Culture, Tourism & Events, Glasgow Life

2025 Partners