As the year comes to a close, a short reflection on what shaped The Place Brand Observer over the past twelve months.
A central milestone was the publication of the Place Brand Leaders Yearbook 2025, with Sweden as the cover story. The edition brought together places and organisations increasingly focused on long-term delivery, institutional strength, and credibility — reflecting a broader shift in the field away from campaigns and towards sustained place leadership.
Another defining highlight was the launch of Places to Watch: Africa & the Middle East. Shaped in close collaboration with local leaders and TPBO’s international expert community, the Special Edition explored where ambition, delivery, and context are beginning to align across the region. Al Madinah, as the cover story, stood out as a powerful example of how place strategy, values, and long-term vision can be brought together in practice.
The inaugural Place Brand Impact Awards marked another important step. Rather than announcing winners in isolation, the awards were brought to life through a panel discussion at the PLACExNordic conference in Sweden in June. Featuring the winning places – Royal Djurgarden and Little Tasmanian – alongside members of the jury, the conversation focused on what impact actually looks like on the ground — and how place branding connects to wider social, environmental, and economic outcomes.
Throughout the year, we continued to expand our editorial work through place showcases, interviews, and expert profiles. The Places to Watch online series grew in particular, with destinations such as Venlo, the Peloponnese, and ’s-Hertogenbosch offering very different, but equally instructive perspectives on positioning, governance, and implementation. Several of these stories — including award winners and shortlisted places — stood out not for their polish, but for their clarity of purpose and consistency over time.
The Place Brand Observatory continued to evolve as a reference point for the most relevant rankings and indices, including those published by Brand Finance. The intention remains unchanged: not to promote league tables, but to help practitioners understand what rankings measure and how they can be interpreted responsibly.
Beyond publishing, the year also involved being present where conversations happen — from PLACExNordic in Uppsala to City Nation Place Global in London and the IPBA conference in Manchester.
And: the platform itself continued to develop. The website’s structure, navigation, and presentation were refined, with further changes already in motion — guided by the aim of making content easier to explore, contextualise, and use.
Behind all of this sits the expert community. Peer nominations, jury work, surveys, feedback, and informal exchanges continue to shape much of what we publish. This collective intelligence is often invisible, but it remains the backbone of the platform.
Thank you to everyone who contributed, challenged assumptions, shared insights, or followed along. The conversations continue into the year ahead.
You can reach me at florian@placebrandobserver.com. I welcome your thoughts.
