Since embracing economic liberalization policies in 1990, Poland has impressed the world with its unbridled growth. In only 25 years, the former communist country has become a high-income economy, among the ten largest in the European Union and the 25 largest in the world, based on the World Bank rankings.
Home to 300 R&D operations, Poland also hosts about 40 percent of the largest companies in Central and Eastern Europe. Helping some of these foreign investors is K&L Gates, an international law firm that opened its office in Warsaw in 1991.
From a global perspective, the office of K&L Gates in Warsaw is a hub of Central and Eastern Europe. We play that role. Our business is fully connected with international businesses,” said K&L Gates Administrative Partner Maciej Jamka.
Jamka explained that around 60% of K&L Gates’s business is domestic and that the unified law practice ensures all of its partner firms meet global best practice standards.
With more that 48 offices around the world, 2,000 lawyers and average revenues exceeding $1 billion in the last six years, K&L Gates was included in the top 10 rankings for client service by BTI consulting group and was named among the top 25 U.S. corporate law firms by Corporate Board Member magazine and FTI consulting.
And as the Polish market grew increasingly competitive, it has also developed advantages that consistently attracts investment from its European neighbors, among them IT developers that service vital industries, such as logistics and transport.
Rohlig Suus, a full-service logistics and supply management company based in Warsaw, has kept up with the competition because of its investment in the latest technology. Since 1990, the company has grown from a single office to an operation with more than a dozen branch offices across the country.
“Digitalization and delivery of certain features will help us increase productivity. This is something that needs to be in place,” said Rohlig Suus Chairman Tadeusz Chmielewski.
Poland wouldn’t have developed into a strong economy without its entrepreneurs who have unapologetically embraced capitalism.
Marking its 27th year, Inter-Team has become one of the leading distributors for car parts in the country. It is part of the international consortium Nordic Forum incorporated in Copenhagen. It is also a member of Hella Group, one of the 40 largest suppliers of automotive parts in the world.
“Poland is finding its strength as more and more people are getting into entrepreneurship. One of our greatest assets is our aggressive operations. We are hungry for success,” stressed Inter-Team President and CEO Anita Niemczyk.
According to Niemczyk, Poland has proved to be one of the most significant players within the EU over the last two decades.
In the field of medical research, the Maria Sklodowska-Curie Memorial Institute and Oncology Centre has made a name for itself around the world because of its extensive investigations into cancer.
With branches in the southern cities of Krakow and Gliwice, the Maria Sklodowska-Curie Memorial Institute and Oncology Centre relies on a top-caliber team and built a valuable data bank, gathered from more than 70,000 patient records.
“Patients come here from all over Poland. Modern and active laboratories are gaining ground in research, both in national and international networks of corporations in Europe and the United States,” said Director Prof. Jan Walewski.
And with the growth of business, the country has also experienced a surge in tourism.
The Orbis Hotel Group has over 64 hotel establishments across the country: 12 in Warsaw, 7 in Wroclaw and 6 in Krakow.
“In terms of number of hotels and performance, we are the leader in Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic, among other countries. We’re looking at developing where we are at present to make our leadership position even stronger,” said Orbis President and CEO Gilles Clavie.
Clavie views Poland as a robust and extremely dynamic country with more domestic markets than that of its neighbors.
