Heads of departments of foreign companies operating in Kaunas, members of the Seimas, and representatives of other organizations unanimously agree that the resurgent Kaunas day after day is gaining greater potential to grow and thrive. At the same time the city leaders assess the compliments rationally.

“Kaunas is changing. Not only we were tired to live in an abandoned and forgotten city, we wanted changes for other people as well. We want that they would come here not only to study but also to live permanently, have families, and associate their future with Kaunas because it is a comfortable and great city,” said the Mayor of the City Visvaldas Matijošaitis to the participants of the Investors Initiative in Kaunas that was held for the first time.

As one of the major changes in the management of the city V. Matijošaitis named municipal workers’ changed approach to work: “They work by themselves, with their hands untied and without being influenced by political or business interests. This was also influenced by reduction in the number of employees. I am not saying that fired people were bad. Just their number was too big”.

This week representatives of the business sector, governmental institutions, and other organizations gathered in Kaunas City Municipality and held a forum to discuss the present-day possibilities, future visions, and perspectives of Kaunas city. The participants of the event positively evaluated the changes clearly visible in Kaunas that are definitely influencing the overall urban climate.

“Many are jealous of the success that is now taking place in Kaunas. The city is becoming the epicentre of the coming big changes. You have a really great vision here,” admitted one of the patrons of the event, Member of the Seimas Žygimantas Pavilionis.

Vice Mayor Povilas Mačiulis presented the trends of today’s urban development and noted that Kaunas is not only attractive for service centres, but also for manufacturing companies. According to him, each newly established company or division is a great achievement for the whole city; therefore, Kaunas pays special attention to that.

“A few years ago we repeatedly faced the sad situation when discussions with potential investors ended as soon as the issue about the work premises was raised. Today the situation has changed radically. I am pleased by the fact that investors are interested not only in new office buildings, but also in the authentic architecture of the interwar period, which Kaunas is famous for. Here, we also can offer a whole range of positive solutions,” said P. Mačiulis.

Lukas Jankauskas, Director of Intermedix Lithuania, the company having 700 employees, is convinced that current trends will help Kaunas to attract more investors. Dainius Aksinavičius, Head of Lithuanian Office of Callcredit Information Group, agreed with him: “It is very pleasant to see the movement which feels to be very positive. The city is no longer grey, it is becoming alive”.

Jeffrey Allen Nelson, Vice President of Strategic Staffing Solutions and Honorary Consul of Lithuania in the United States, noted that Kaunas residents are competitive to work effectively in the world-class companies. According to the guest, this is one of the more substantial contributions to the further prosperity of the city of Kaunas.

“Kaunas residents have always stood out by their extraordinary entrepreneurship. This is a significant feature which is particularly relevant today for the whole city on a much larger scale,” stated the Executive Director of Investors’ Forum and the Chairman of the Board of Transparent Business Initiative White Wave Rūta Skyrienė who moderated the meeting.