Law / Trying to do business with Polish businessmen... but it's not easy. [41]


Brian,

You have my sympathy !!

I've made the same observation and it really is infuriating. It makes no difference if you communicate with them in English or Polish. I guess some Polish business people are quite content with their "lot" .

Real Estate / buy off the plan in tri-city [25]

John,

Hope your meeting was productive with Dagmara earlier today. I'll be arriving in Gdansk
next Wednesday for a short vacation but will probably miss you as I'm heading straight to the Kaszuby lakelands. Are you still at the Grand ?

Real Estate / Advice on what Polish city to invest in.... [101]

The company she works for has a website but as a real estate broker she has a large amount of independance from this company. I'm happy to provide you with all the contact details but would prefer you to email me (or I email you) as I don't want to abuse the forum by advertising companies on it. My email address is info@spiritusagency.com

Mods, if I am out of line then please correct me.

Real Estate / Advice on what Polish city to invest in.... [101]

Litigate,

I have a good contact based in Gdynia who has extensive knowledge of the Tri City market.

If you email me then I can pass your details onto her.

Travel / How do Poles Spend their Summer Holidays? [8]

tut tut Grzegorz

Travel / Krakow hotels [29]

Szarlotka,

Ever stayed at the Polonia Palace ? I stayed a night there over a year ago and was blown away by the place..........especially the restaurant.

Real Estate / Advice on what Polish city to invest in.... [101]


Nick,

There is so "sure bet" when it comes to property investing and if a sales man tells you the opposite then start walking in the opposite direction.

Krakow (along with Warsaw) is one of Poland's primary cities for property.

If you buy in September you'll be buying into a market that has grown phenomenally over the last few years so don't expect any bargains. However, prices are continuing to rise so you can still make money. I don't know your budget but the Old Town is ridiculously expensive but frustratingly the best place to buy. Investors are now starting to look at the areas south of the Old Town, across the river.

Another possibility is to buy something small near the university to rent out to students.

I don't know much about Poznan except that it hasn't enjoyed the spectacular price growth of Krakow and Warsaw and that alone makes it a better prospect (although it does lack the sexiness of those two cities).

Wroclaw would be an excellent choice. Lots of foreign investment pouring in. I believe LG Philips have signed a contract to open a plant nearby. The Old Town has been beautifully restored and with Wroclaw also being a university town then student tenants are again a possibility. It's also popular with tourists-a lot of Germans like to visit and get misty eyed at their lost slice of the Fatherland.

Gdansk and the Tri City in general is also a good prospect. A lot of Westerners don't realise how high the prices already are in this part of Poland as it doesn't attract the same kind of attention as other places.

Another option is the holiday resort town of Zakopane. The one thing holding it back in my opinion is the lack of road infrastructure surrounding the town (it's a national park after all). If the government can find a way of getting round this then I expect prices will rocket.

Real Estate / Selling commercial property in Poland [22]

Savvan,

You're welcome to email me further details. I will see if I can help.

Real Estate / I have just recently bought a house in Poland... [20]

A close friend of mine recently bought an apartment in Krakow. To save on conversion rates in Poland they actually took the cash with them to Poland.

300,000 PLN !!!!!!!!

Travel / Polish National Tourist Board [8]

America,

Just to offer another example.

This year I have been to Poland a few times and before I go I have the usual chit chat with work colleagues about where I am going etc. They are shocked that a flight to Poland from the UK takes only about 2.5 hours and I am equally shocked at their reaction to this fact :)

If people knew what Poland was about and what to expect there and then decide NOT to visit then that's fine-at least they are making an informed choice. The trouble is they know virtually nothing about the country, it's geography or climate. This failure to "educate" potential tourists falls at the feet of the tourist board.

BubbaWoo gives examples of Spain and Australia to demonstrate how effective marketing can be. I'd like to add Bulgaria to that list. I'm of Eastern European descent myself (parents are Polish) but I have never considered visiting Bulgaria for my holiday even though I have more knowledge of this part of Europe than most Brits. Yet Bulgaria is quite succesfully marketing itself as a holiday destination to British tourists.

Travel / Isn't Warsaw a Sh*thole? [20]


Wilanow

Lazienki Park

Stare Miasto

Some wise man said "whatever you look for you will find".

Travel / Polish National Tourist Board [8]

I'm sorry American. No offence intended but even hard work, if it's channelled in the wrong direction, is ineffective. I'm not referring personally to your loved one but to the Polish tourist board as a whole.

Personally, tourist expos can only take you so far. The tourist board cannot rely on people coming to them asking for information. They need to launch marketing campaigns and be pro-active.

The web link you gave me is for a professional looking website however, when I started clicking on the links I discovered that there is actually very little content on there. Example: When I clicked on Krakow there were only 3 short paragraphs about the city and not a single photo !

I'm even confused as to which organisation is the actual tourist board as there seem to be a few organisations claiming to be so.

Law / American beer business opportunities in Poland [84]


"Import kudos" is exactly what I was trying clumsily to express.


Of course it has something to do with it but perhaps not as significant as you might think. Zywiec has been readily available in the UK for quite a few years. The many Polish clubs dotted around the country have stocked it so I'm sure that Poles would know where to get it if they yearned for some beer from the motherland.

Zywiec's introduction to British stores and pubs isn't purely aimed at Poles. In my area you don't see many Poles going to pubs. They're here to save money not drink it away.

Law / American beer business opportunities in Poland [84]


I share your sentiment UKinPoland and I wouldn't want someone to risk their money based on my advice alone but I'm sure RegionPolski isn't going to make a move simply by canvassing opinion from an internet forum board.

I actually disagree with your comments about listening to the majority etc etc. Business is about finding an opportunity that nobody else sees and then exploiting it.

The majority of people in the UK had never heard of Tyskie or Zywiec but these brands are growing quickly in bars and supermarkets across the country.

Also, Budweiser is a massive global brand and I'm actually surprised it isn't already in Poland.

Real Estate / Buying a plot and building a house in Poland? [26]


Excellent insight there ! It's very true that when business is booming companies pay little attention to providing good customer service as they know another one will be coming round the corner.

Having said that not EVERYONE is a crook.

Law / American beer business opportunities in Poland [84]


Go for it RegionPolska.

I do have to admit that American beer is considered to be inferior to European beer only due to it being so light/lite. However Budweiser has done well in the UK marketplace and regardless of what others may see there is always an opportunity for global brands to gain a foothold in emerging economies.............if only for the kudos factor amonst consumers.

Real Estate / Apartment purchase in Poland [226]


JK-My girlfriend works for Carisma in the Tri-City. She's a real estate broker who focuses on land purchases. If you're interested then let me know.

Travel / Hotel websites that show all hotels available in areas of Poland? [18]

21stcenturypoland.com/accommodation%20in%20Poland.htm

They also have a google map so you can browse where their hotels are located.

Travel / Holidays in Sopot, Poland [22]

Just come back from a short break to the Tri City-my first ever visit !

It was fantastic !!!

Just to add to Anna's excellent advice:-

* The pier in Sopot (Molo) is the longest wooden pier in Europe and is wonderful for an afternoon stroll.

* Krzywy Dom (sorry for the spelling) on Ul. Monte Cassino. A building that looks like it's come right out of a Salvador Dali painting. Made to look like the structure is melting it certainly catches the eye. Not much inside to get excited about but there you go.

* WielkoRyb (sorry for the spelling again). A very eccentric pub/bar walking distance from Monte Cassino. The interior looks like a dream of Jacques Cousteau after he's tripped on some absinthe. Well worth a look !

* The cliff face at Orlowo is a beautiful place to walk as are the beaches along the Hel Peninsula

UK, Ireland / Polish Migrants makes room for '20 to a house [59]

Sadly, this type of story is often true.

I'm one of the first to defend Poland and Poles against racist remarks but we also have to accept the truth.

Life / Best Sat Nav devices for use in Poland [41]

I see your point Car Thief-I don't really need a Sat Nav I just feel the urge to have one :)

You also make a good point about the increase in theft of these devices. Even if you remove the device from view when you are parked up criminals have now started looking for the sucker marks on the windscreen as a telltale sign the car may have a Sat Nav in the glove compartment.

Life / Polish PAYG sim/Network [24]

You can buy Polish sim cards at

phonetek-nation.co.uk/product_details.php?id=1474

I think they only stock Heyah but it's great value for money when you're in Poland. However, using this card to call Poland from the UK works out pretty expensive.

Life / Best Sat Nav devices for use in Poland [41]

Thanks but do you know the extent of the coverage ?

TomTom also has coverage of Poland but on reading the small print I found out that only a quarter of the country is covered.

Travel / Accommodation in Wroclaw [27]

I've also seen and and found it very impressive !

The thing is when my friend told me we were going to see a painting I have to tell you I wasn't really all that excited about the prospect.

The Panorama is a cylindrical painting. The Rotunda was purposely built to house it.

Apart from the sheer scale of the painting what impressed me most was the way the museum uses props to bring the painting to life. For example, one scene will show a grassy area with a painting of a wooden fence. The museum then artfully place a real wooden fence in front of the canvas and tastefully add tufts of grass here and there.

The clever use of props gives the painting an almost 3D effect.

At the end of the day it is still only a painting so some people won't be impressed no matter what. Personally, I would recommend seeing it.

Life / Best Sat Nav devices for use in Poland [41]

Thanks- I think I will wait a few months to see what comes onto the market.

Nokia have a new smartphone coming out called the N95. It will have an integrated GPS receiver and if I'm lucky also full coverage of Poland.

Life / Best Sat Nav devices for use in Poland [41]

Thanks guys. I've trawled the internet these last couple of weeks without a great deal of success. That normally means that what I'm looking for isn't easily available.

TomTom seem to be the market leader in the UK but even if you buy one of their maps specifically for Poland the small print states that it only offers 26% coverage which is crap !

I have come across automapa.co.uk

This seems to offer over 90% coverage for Poland but is geared towards the pocket PC market so StupidWelsh you might be bang on the money with your suggestion.

Another option I guess is to buy one in Poland the next time I am there.