For years, the Krakow Metropolis has successfully confirmed its status as one of the most important metropolitan centres in the country, firmly focusing on innovation and intelligent development in precisely defined areas. In the Metropolis, investors, both domestic and foreign, the scientific communities and start-ups are constantly encouraged to take advantage of European Funds and the natural potential of Małopolska. A specific indication of the brand of the Małopolska region, of which the Krakow Metropolis is a part, and the directions of its development are the areas of smart specialization, within which many successful companies in Poland and abroad already operate in the Metropolis.
Under the name of Małopolska smart specialization are, inter alia, such areas as:
- Life Science;
- Sustainable Energy;
- Information and communication technologies, including multimedia (ICT);
- Chemistry;
- Manufacture of metals and metal products (excluding machinery and equipment);
- Electrical engineering and engineering industry;
- Creative and leisure industries.
How the potential available in the Krakow Metropolitan Area is used in practice is perfectly demonstrated by the experience of Małopolska companies.
Key location in Małopolska
Many companies notice very quickly that Krakow, with all its metropolitan centres, is an excellent place to develop a company and expand into Eastern Europe. One of them is the Krakow-based Blue Fifty Polska Sp. z o.o., which deals with projects in the field of the environment, renewable energy sources and solutions reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Dutch founder Ralph Koekkoek appreciated how well Krakow is connected to other key locations in Poland, and that the highway network and proximity to Krakow Airport additionally provide numerous international connections. Considering the prospect of distributing technology to countries such as Lithuania, the Czech Republic or Hungary, the decision from the year 2015 to start operations in the capital of Małopolska was most justified.
Technological and educational facilities
Many innovative companies pursuing their ideas and globally unique solutions condition their further development on access to knowledge, qualified scientific staff and also the right personnel. DISKUS Polska Sp. z o.o. is one of the innovation leaders offering state-of-the-art solutions for secure data erasure and physical disposal of data carriers. At one of the most important moments in its development, the company decided to build its own laboratory and office in Wieliczka, as this provided it with cooperation with renowned universities, such as the Stanisław Staszic AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow, as well as cooperation with other innovative companies in the region. As the company's managers assure, regardless of the production of equipment in Poland and the location in Małopolska, the company is focused on continuous development, as evidenced by the distribution network established in more than 40 countries around the world.
Investment offer of Krakow Metropolis opens up opportunities for international cooperation
Can the investment offer of a metropolitan area be a suitable springboard for the expansion of products or services to foreign markets? Another example of GoPOS, a Krakow-based company that provides innovative technological solutions for gastronomy, perfectly demonstrates that the Krakow Metropolis offers a huge field for development regardless of the industry. Attracting millions of tourists a year, Krakow has proven to be an excellent platform for developing software specifically dedicated to hotel gastronomy, restaurants and catering services. This is confirmed by the words of Grzegorz Kożuchowski, CEO of GoPos Sp. z o.o. who notes that the development of new technologies and the demand for them is practically directly proportional to how the entire Metropolis is developing and how attractive it is. More than 1,000 different customers are already using the innovative restaurant support solutions, demonstrating that operating in the Krakow Metropolitan Area not only leads to the company's position in the Małopolska regional market becoming more established, but is also an ideal preparatory stage before expanding abroad.
This example proves that the investment offer of the Krakow Metropolis not only guarantees demand for innovative services in various fields, but also makes it possible to perfect the solutions created here to then offer them outside Poland.
The project KMA4Business is financed from the Małopolska Regional Operational Programme 2014-2020, Priority Axis 3 "Entrepreneurial Małopolska", Measure 3.3 "Internationalisation of the Małopolska economy", Sub-measure 3.3.1 "Economic promotion of Małopolska"
For more information, visit https://kma4business.metropoliakrakowska.pl/
