The qualitative leap of the Barcelona brand in the last 20 years

Barcelona has demonstrated the strength of its brand in the context of the economic crisis caused by the pandemic, as reflected in the 2022 Report of the Barcelona Observatory, presented this Tuesday at the third edition of the React conferences. Many international rankings are led by the Catalan capital, with a list that is increasingly growing. It is the sixth most attractive city in the world for visitors and entrepreneurs, according to the World Best Cities; it ranks 13th as a digital hub, according to the Digital Cities Index; it remains among the top 20 global cities in competitiveness, according to the Global Power City Index; it is the ninth most attractive city in the world to work abroad, according to the Boston Consulting Group, or it is the third preferred city in Europe to locate a startup, according to StartUp Heatmap Europe.

The Barcelona City Council and the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce are responsible for preparing the Barcelona Observatory report, collecting some thirty indicators to compare the city with other capitals in Europe and around the world. Aspects such as economic activity, quality of life, the labor market, training, the knowledge society, tourism, and prices are analyzed.

This year, the Barcelona Observatory celebrates its 20th anniversary and highlights the qualitative leap the city has made, "with a trajectory that has led it to be among the leading global cities in areas such as competitiveness, attractiveness, and talent attraction."

With data from 2021 and 2022, the latest edition of the report emphasizes that "Barcelona shows itself as a resilient city capable of maintaining its attractiveness and good economic and business positioning, both at European and global levels." In this regard, the third deputy mayor, Laia Bonet, highlighted that the data "are very good and valuable and reaffirm that Barcelona is in a very good position." "They are a clear confirmation that we are on the right track and that we have good tools," Bonet defended. For her part, the president of the Chamber of Commerce, Mònica Roca, wanted to underline "the resilience of the city in such difficult times as the pandemic and the general competitiveness of the city" while praising the "maintenance" of the city in international rankings.