Wir in Sachsen 2012 - Wirtschaftsjournal

Zeigt Flagge für seine Heimat:
Der ehemalige Großolbersdorfer
Marco Petermann hat sein Auto mit
dem Erzgebirgslogo versehen.
Showing the flag for his homeland:
Marco Petermann, who is originally
from Grossolbersdorf, has put the
Erzgebirge logo on his car.
Regionalmanagement
Erzgebirge
c/o Wirtschaftsförderung
Erzgebirge GmbH
Adam-Ries-Straße 16
D-09456 Annaberg-Buchholz
Telefon: +49 3733 145140
Telefax: +49 3733 145147
kontakt@wirtschaft-imerzgebirge.de
www.wirtschaft-im-erzgebirge.de
The Erzgebirge business location
New faces advertise the region
There are now some 77 "Advocates of the Erzgebirge" who
are giving their all after being appointed as special representatives
of the Regional Business Management since
2010. This year the Advocates Team has been joined by six
new personalities from business and culture who are
banging the drum for the region across the country. The
local patriotism of people from the Erzgebirge can also be
seen on four wheels across the whole country.
At the "3rd Meeting of the Advocates of the Erzgebirge"
held at the end of April at the Scherdel automobile supp -
liers in Marienberg, the actor Teresa Weissbach, together
with Volker Cordier, Managing Director of the Schönfeld
Paper Factory, received the coveted nomination document
from District Administrator Frank Vogel. This award was also
made to four other businessmen: Markus Gorny (Managing
Director of the "Saigerhütte" hotel in Olbernhau), Steffen
Totzauer (Managing Director of MKT Metal and Plastics Processing
in Sehmatal-Cranzahl), Jens Stiehler (Managing Director
of the Bernsbach tin molding works) and Thomas
Wagler (Managing Director of Wagler Stonemasons in
Mildenau) were also appointed as new brand advocates.
For more than two years now, the Erzgebirge Advocates
have been actively representing the region across the Federal
Republic, using their personal success stories to advertise it
officially. The advocates for the Erzgebirge are also, how ever,
beating the advertising drum on German and other Euro -
pean freeways. The campaign, which began at the end of last
year under the slogan "We are driving for the Erzgebirge",
is becoming ever more popular. A total of six local transport
companies are carrying the region's message out into the
rest of the world in the form of a logo and slogan on more
P R O M OT I N G A N D N E T WO R K I N G
than 60 vehicles. Car drivers too are increasingly getting a
taste for this form of advertising, and are decorating the rear
windows of their cars with the "conceived and made" logo.
Matthias Göthel was one of the first drivers to become
interested in allowing his vehicles to be used for this campaign.
Mr. Göthel is the owner of a haulage business of the
same name which was founded in 1951 by his father Johannes
in Bernsbach. The ten vehicles in his company mainly
carry goods for the Bernsbach tin molding works across the
whole of Germany. In answer to the question of why he
responded positively to the request from the Regional
Management, he explains: "I had no doubts about this campaign
and it was clear to me immediately that we should
take part in it. The stickers are very attractive and with our
local patriotism we can show that we are proud of our
homeland." The addition of Arendt haulers in Elterlein, the
Hess transport company in Crottendorf, Wolf haulers in
Scheibenberg, Weber haulers in Wolkenstein and Thomas
Prause Transport Services in Elterlein means a further five
businesses have so far joined in the scheme.
Almost 180 people have now registered to use the logo
since the slogan "Erzgebirge – conceived and made" was
first introduced. These include both representatives of companies
or communities who use it for letterheads or internet
sites and also private individuals. One of these is Marco
Petermann. Mr. Petermann is originally from Grossolbersdorf
but now lives and works in Switzerland. For a while he
retained his Erzgebirge car license plate to indicate his
homeland, but after buying a new car he had to change his
license plate for a local one. Without further ado the 34year-old
decided on a new way of advertising his origins,
and attached the logo to the rear window of his car which,
he assures me, is always a good way of steering the conversation
around to the Erzgebirge.
Both marketing by advocates and attaching adverts to
motor vehicles are components in the current campaign to
boost the region's image, "Erzgebirge – conceived and
made." The Erzgebirge Regional Management, which is an
initiative of the 12 largest cities in the Erzgebirge and the
Erzgebirge district, has for more than ten years now been
transforming the image of the region from that of a dreamy
Christmas landscape to that of an attractive business
location which is pleasant to live in. The Regional Management
Team sees its role in this as being to provide ideas,
to advise and to provide services – true to the slogan: "Living
and working where others go on vacation."
WIR in SACHSEN 2012 93