The Media Marketing portal has new owners, and after nearly 20 years, I am slowly stepping away from the project. All the projects I initiated and successfully led now have new owners. I would particularly highlight two of them: the Managers’ Concert in Ljubljana, which has been running for 42 years (Slobodan Šibinčič), and Woman.Comm (Irena Miličević Vukoja).
The little strength and creative energy I have left after 75 years of life I will now devote to Advertisimo – an annual philharmonic concert dedicated to the communications industry, agencies, advertisers, and media. The idea is to bring the advertising industry together at the start of each year to celebrate the achievements of the previous one. Advertisimo is a chance for people from the industry to connect, exchange experiences, establish new contacts and collaborations, and embark on new projects full of energy.
The first concert was held this January in Sarajevo, performed by the Sarajevo Philharmonic. The second concert (February 20, 2026), and likely the third as well, will also be held in Sarajevo, after which we plan to gradually expand into the region. Ultimately, Advertisimo aims to gather the regional industry once a year for a concert. The countries that emerged from the former Yugoslavia have built strong borders between each other – but the market knows no borders. Agencies, advertisers, and media operate throughout the region – and that should be supported.
As mentioned, Advertisimo also carries a philanthropic mission: donating a portion of the proceeds from tickets and sponsorships to the Sarajevo Philharmonic for the purchase of new instruments. That is a serious responsibility for us.
The first Advertisimo was held in January – which, in hindsight, proved to be a poor choice. January is when many people take their remaining vacation days, and it’s also the time of the winter school break and family travel. As a result, a significant number of industry professionals couldn’t attend the concert, so we have moved the date to February.
In preparation for the second concert, I signed a three-year agreement with Maestro Ivo Lipanović from Zagreb – arguably the best conductor in the region – who is now the Artistic Director of Advertisimo.
This year, the concert program will feature Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 18 and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, with the exceptional Croatian pianist Martina Filjak (Director of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival) as the soloist. The concert will, of course, be conducted by Maestro Lipanović.
That’s all for now.
I’m certain you will enjoy it!
