Best Practice
Development and application of the brand Šumava – original product®
After a one-year preparation, the first meeting of the certification commission could take place in Šumava in June 2006; three applications for the brand were accepted and all of them were approved, too.
Until now, there were twelve meetings of the commission, it has granted 73 certificates and altogether 500 kinds of products can use the brand. Nevertheless, the beginnings of branding were not easy at all; the local co-ordinator herself had to contact the producers actively (by phone, by e-mail and in person), always before every meeting of the certification commission, in order to persuade the producers to get involved in the system because the producers themselves contacted the co-ordinator to express interest in the brand only rarely.
The brand’s goals and benefits – the strengths
After a five-year period, it is possible to conclude that application of the brand has a number of positive impacts in the region:
- Support to environment-friendly business (in specially protected areas)
- Guarantee of the products’ origin
- Increasing quality of the products and services
- Growing competitiveness
- Support to patriotism and preservation of traditions
- Promotion of the local specialties and the region of Šumava
- Enlarged offer for tourists
- Strong bond to the region and mutual co-operation
- Appreciation of the producers (they have gone through the certification process that guarantees high quality for the customer)
After the two-year period, during which the validity of the certificate expires, 95% of the producers (i.e. 36 out of 38) applied again for the prolongation of the certificate; two producers did not apply because they terminated their production. This means that almost all of the certified producers reapply for the brand to be able to continue using it, which is a proof of the brand’s success and benefits. The regional co-ordinator has also carried out several research works to find out the brand’s benefits.
Weaknesses – the products
- False information provided by the applicants in their applications (check-ups continue)
- Both the public and the producers are aware of the brand only insufficiently
- Certified products are not separated from the others at selling points
- Small support from the authorities (regional authorities, CzechTrade, the Government)
- 30% of the products are not marked with the logo (check-ups continue)
- Financing – the promotion is costly
Weaknesses – the services
- Seeming complexity of the application discourages potential applicants
- The businesspeople are sceptical at the beginning
- The minimum benefits so far; the brand is mainly a prestigious thing
- So far there is no system to verify the guests’ satisfaction
- Time demands related to granting the brand
- Small support from the authorities (regional authorities, Czech Trade, the Government)
- Financing
Contacts:
http://www.regionalni-znacky.cz/sumava/
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