Sinfo_11_2014

The expression cool has emphatically entered the Slovenian language, and

not only as a youth slang word. Cool denotes something funny, original,

alluring, worthy of attention, top quality, special or even socially responsible.

Competition in the business environment is harsh, and companies must never

stop fighting to maintain and increase their market share. A good market

strategy is essential. Companies not only have to follow trends but must

indeed create them. They must, in other words, be cool. Cool products are

produced by cool people. So let’s take a look at who’s cool in Slovenia. Here

we introduce some outstanding companies with long traditions whose middle

name is “success”. These are companies open to innovation and ready to

take risks with innovations like those presented by Slovenian innovators at

the recent exhibition entitled “Creating New Jobs with Innovations”. Trends

are made by innovators. So we spoke about various aspects of creativity and

about who was currently catching the eye in Slovenia with fashion expert

Jožica Brodarič.

About those who stand out from the crowd. One such was the OHO group,

whose founding father was the sculptor Marko Pogačnik. They developed a

concept of art that is neither art for art’s sake nor serving just one culture.

One incubator of such trends in Ljubljana is now Kino Šiška - Centre for

Urban Culture. In Slovenia there are numerous trendsetters active in a variety

of fields – music, fashion, sports, media, culture...

Slovenia has much to show that is cool. Slovenia is green, clean, small and

diverse. It has plenty of interesting stories, so we have selected for you some

that show the character of the individual regions. For instance, the story of the

Carniolan sausage in space, shining among the stars. Both figuratively and

literally! Green, active and healthy – this is the message Slovenia will convey

at the Milan Expo next year. In its pavilion totally made of natural materials,

Slovenia will unfold its story of salt, bees, water, mountains and much more.

Cool, isn’t it?

Yes, it’s also true that something that is cool one moment may become utterly

uncool the next. But anyone who has the ability to think creatively stays cool

forever! If we wish to stay cool, we must unrelentingly look for new ideas and

create our own style. And it is this, in my opinion, that is really cool!