Dutch cities must lift marketing game, regional expert warns

Dutch cities are being overtaken by their European rivals in countries such as Poland and Spain when it comes to attracting foreign businesses and skilled workers, according to Greg Clark, senior fellow of ULI Europe. 'Dutch cities are bumping down the global rankings and if they do nothing, they will move further down,' the regional expert warned.

One of the key problems facing the Netherlands, which faces the highest office vacancy rates in Europe, is that it is 'old, slow and over-governed,' Clark said. 'Dutch cities had an edge 30 years ago...but the Dutch national brand has got lost. I think the Dutch have become happy with their lifestyle. There's a feeling of complacency.'

Speaking at a forum held on Wednesday in Amsterdam by PropertyEU's sister company PropertyNL, Clark said that second-tier cities like Madrid and Barcelona had lifted their act in the past 20 years and that many Polish cities were now following in Spain's footsteps, thanks not least to EU infrastructure subsidies. 'Some cities face stiff competition for specialisations and niches as workers become more mobile and footloose. The fight is on and a city like Amsterdam faces intense competition.'

The problems are not confined to Amsterdam, Clark added. Commenting on the visibility of The Hague and Rotterdam, he said: 'They're not yet there.' An integrated marketing strategy is vital, he noted. While The Hague is positioning itself clearly as the global city of justice, Clark advised the municipal authorities to adopt a more aggressive approach and bring other international organisations to the city. As for medium-sized Dutch cities such as Nijmegen, Groningen, Maastricht and Enschede, they score well on liveability, but are not strong on the economic front, he added.

As the globalisation of the economy continues, some European metropolitan regions are becoming more organised with a view to strengthening their competitive position. ‘In the Netherlands, this process has been resisted,’ Clark said, pointing to the succession of marketing strategies for the highly-populated western agglomeration in the country. ‘There are even different terms for the area, Holland Region and Randstad!’ Clark said a change of mentality was needed to avoid the risk of hyper-localism. ‘The government system is old and slow and the marketing has been weak. There’s a gap and leadership is needed to reform marketing strategies and the system. The national government has a role to play in initiating reforms for the global era.’

One of the lessons that can be learned from successful American cities is the importance of business climate and business friendliness, Clark said. He predicted that the importance of business-friendly measures will increase in city rankings and said: ‘Dutch and British cities will not be near the top.’