The experts discussed collaborations in business as a basis for economic and social development and the impact of this phenomenon particularly in the context of a pandemic.

The discussion took place during the meeting of the Marketing and Corporate Strategy Committee of the Managers Association.

Speakers of the event presented best practices of joint cooperation of various companies both in business and marketing and stated the positive influence of such a trend on the economy and society in general. In addition, experts generally discussed various models of collaborations by the example of regional, national and global brands.

During the discussion they also touched upon the influence of the pandemic on the interaction between entrepreneurs and discussed the probable transformation of the law of competition in the near future into the law of cooperation in business.

Marina Bezuglova, Executive Director of Ipsos in Russia, pointed out the trend among companies to cooperate in the face of epidemic restrictions that have affected all areas of life and virtually every market segment.

As Artem Zasursky, Sistema's vice president for strategy and development, pointed out, it is important to match the values and principles of the corporate culture in order to establish sustainable and long-term partnerships.

Mikhail Sadchenkov, General Director of Made in Russia, said that the company is a kind of conductor between organisations and external markets. This can be explained by the fact that among the functional features of the project is the support of medium and small enterprises in increasing their brand awareness in the country and export of products.

"The "Made in Russia" project is basically positioned as a tool, which is based on collaboration, as about 700 companies have already become participants of the project to date. We are implementing plans with many of them for promotion, development and creation of joint products, " he said, adding that at the moment, for instance, a joint office with Gzhel has been formed in order to significantly increase recognition of folk arts and crafts. The trade office, according to Sadchenkov, will combine all the features of 'Made in Russia' in terms of communications and promotion.

Speaking about regional brands, he noted that today there are a large number of unique companies across the country, but they face difficulties in promotion. For that, in his opinion, certain collaborations with business, government, regions and experts have to be created, which would help to build a promotion strategy for companies.

Kosta Kadzov, Deputy General Director for Development of Folk Arts Crafts Group of Companies (affiliated to AFK Sistema), acquainted the panelists with promotion of the legendary Gzhel crafts in the framework of the strategic partnership with Roscongress Foundation and Made in Russia brand, pointing out the importance of preservation of the cultural code.

The established trading house will supply souvenirs for all Roscongress events starting from this year.

As of today People's Arts Crafts together with Roskongress are engaged in promotion and sales of products of folk arts and crafts. The parties have also joined their efforts to promote Russian culture in general, national brands, Russian companies, exporters and experts through participation in international exhibitions and events, which will increase awareness of Russian commercial and cultural brands.

Last year, the Roscongress Foundation launched an online platform for representatives of the creative industries and people in the creative professions, RK-Art. This digital space united artists, artists, musicians, vocalists, scriptwriters, publishers and bloggers from all over the country.

Another example of collaborative work was a road trip by representatives of Roskongress, RK-Art, Folk Arts Crafts, and Made in Russia to Ivanovo, Shuya, Kholta, and Palekh in the framework of the "With Their Own Eyes" tourist project. The event was a preliminary preparation for the Year of Folk Arts and Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Peoples of Russia - 2022.

In January, the production center "RK-ART" and "Folk Arts and Crafts" signed an agreement on cooperation in which the parties exchange information about projects and programs in the cultural sphere and hold joint congresses, exhibitions, fairs and presentations.

The participants of the discussion agreed to continue active creation of strategic partnerships, to support the trend and promote such cases in order to make them more visible for the business community.

Other participants in the event included Yekaterina Pogodina, head of Johnson & Johnson in Russia, Natalia Beneslavskaya, head of IKEA's sustainability department in Russia, and Andrei Baturin, marketing director of the Cosmos Hotel Group.

The event was held with the support of AFK Sistema at the Roscongress venue.

Roscongress Foundation - is a socially oriented non-financial development institution, the largest organiser of international, congress, exhibition, business, social, sporting and cultural events.

The Foundation was established in 2007 in order to facilitate the development of Russia's economic potential, advance the national interests and strengthen the image of Russia. The Foundation conducts comprehensive research, analysis and coverage of the Russian and global economic agenda. It provides administration and facilitates promotion of business projects and investment attraction, and promotes social entrepreneurship and charitable projects.

The Fund events gather participants from 208 countries and territories, more than 15 thousand media representatives annually work on the platforms of the Fund, and more than 5 thousand experts in Russia and abroad are involved in analytical and expert work. Cooperation has been established with 133 foreign trade partners, associations of industrialists and entrepreneurs, financial, trade and business associations in 70 countries of the world.

"Made in Russia is a digital trade and media platform for nationally oriented businesses. It consists of the Made in Russia business information agency with an officially registered media outlet (madeinrussia.ru), a trading house that sells and promotes goods and services outside the country.

All information is broadcast in 12 languages at once. The project's audience exceeds 70 thousand readers from 114 countries. The number of users of the site, according to the general director's forecasts, will grow three to four times by the end of this year.