Zagreb gets its own communications mini-festival.
The first edition of Picnic, a gathering of representatives from the communications, marketing, media and business world, will be held today in Zagreb. Behind it stands the team which organizes the Weekend Media Festival in Rovinj. The Rovinj-based event is, according to many, the most successful communication festival in the region, reports Večernji List on March 21, 2016.
“In the past eight years at Weekend, we have often commented that similar gatherings held throughout the year and at different places would be a welcome addition. The entire communications industry is developing so quickly that the annual festivals can no longer cover all the topics and stay current while doing so. Moreover, one of the purposes of such events is to impose topics that are just emerging and therefore prompt the domestic market development. Rovinj has proved to be an excellent location for the end of the summer, but we also wanted to make sure to arrange something in Zagreb. Something of a shorter format, yet more frequent and more dynamic. Therefore, we will now have a Picnic gathering every two months”, said Nikola Vrdoljak, one of the organizers.
As for the concept, he explained that the one implemented in Rovinj proved to be very successful and thus they have not modified it significantly. “We want to research trends and opportunities, learn from the best, listen to inspirational lectures, exchange opinions, talk about problems. All the while, we do not want to be tiresome, because we believe, and this is what experience from the Weekend shows, that entertainment and networking are best for learning. This is why we went with the name Picnic”, Vrdoljak explained.
Picnic is for everyone who works in communications. “We expect that most of the participants will come from the media, marketing and agencies, also PR people, and advertisers too. I am sure that the first Picnic will attract the leaders of companies, because communications are a topic that is no longer limited to PR or marketing. Today, everyone is expected to know how to communicate”, he said.
The selection of the first guest is, according to reactions, an absolute success. The lecturer will be Russell Siegelman, a man who has been working in the Silicon Valley for more than 20 years. Russell has worked with Bill Gates at Microsoft, and he has invested into more than 40 technology startups during his career. Today, he teaches at Stanford University. A large group of students enrolled in Stanford and Yale MBA programs will be accompanying him. The American guests will meet with Croatia’s entrepreneurs. Croatian startups Bellabeat, Oradian and Photomath will have presentations at the Picnic.
