By: Ivana Tarnaj, Lider
Photo: Davor Bruketa
According to the research of the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA), the European market of marketing and advertising industry is marked today by stagnation and decline in employment, and the fall in demand for services in this sector. Among the countries with negative trends in this study was Croatia.
However, Davor Bruketa, president of the Croatian Association of Communications Agencies (HURA), says that these estimates do not show the real situation in the sector, although he admits that indicators are bad.
“We still record increased investment in advertising, budgets are growing as well as the rates for this type of service. For two years now we’ve experienced growth, and the reason why Croatia is among the countries that recorded a decline in confidence lies in the political atmosphere,” Bruketa believes.
One example of how such a political situation affects business confidence is the United Kingdom. The country recorded the largest drop in confidence in April, which, according to EACA, is caused by the uncertainty of the result of the referendum about staying in the European Union. In the Croatian case, Bruketa also attributes the decline of trust to the political developments in Croatia.
“The stability of the Croatian Government is not particularly safe, but I hope that this is temporary. However, I repeat, in the domestic marketing and advertising industry situation remains stable. We’ve experienced growth over several quarters, the demand for services is increasing. I am not convinced that these figures reflect the actual situation,” added the president of HURA.
Earlier this year, Croatia has been on a par with Germany, Romania and Slovenia, but in April Croatia slipped into the company of countries with slightly lower index of business confidence, such as Malta, Estonia and Portugal.
