The topic of discussion during Impact'26 was building the brands of Polish enterprises abroad and their cooperation with the state in this field. The participants — Rafał Brzoska, Michał Sołowow, Dariusz Miłek and Rafael Szczepaniak — answered, among others: to questions about whether it is easy to build and scale a company in Poland and what is needed for effective foreign expansion.
— Poland is not a sandbox, it is a mature, very competitive market. If someone wins on such a market, he or she builds a foundation for international development – emphasized Michał Sołowow – the richest Pole according to Forbes, operating, among others, in the chemical and biotechnology industry.
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Polish businessmen to politicians: don't be afraid of us
Rafał Brzoska – the founder of InPost and a well-known patron of startups – emphasized that scaling a business is as difficult in Poland as it is abroad. He gave his own example.
— I tried to do both things at the same time in 2010 and 2012 and I failed, I almost fell over, he said, adding that “it's good to have a place where you know no one is bothering you” and to first strengthen your business and only then “invade your opponents.” He noted that there are more and more businesses in Poland whose creators are not afraid of challenges and are so strong in Poland that they are not afraid of investing money in foreign markets.
Michał Sołowow pointed out that Poland as a country does not yet have a strong enough brand abroad. He gave the example of Switzerland, whose state brand is so strong that it paves the way for its companies around the world. He also recalled that his company produces “the best rubber in the world”, but only under the German brand was it possible to introduce it to markets on a large scale. – All tires in Formula 1 are made of our rubber – he emphasized.
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Polish businessmen also indicated the most important barriers to business development in the country, in their opinion. Rafael Szczepaniak, vice-president of Unicredit, said that such an obstacle is the unstable and unpredictable tax system in Poland.which is why dynamic entrepreneurs “focus on survival” instead of investments or automation. Dariusz Miłek, founder and president of Modivo Platform (formerly the CCC group), has a similar opinion, adding that tax regulations in the country should be equal for all entrepreneurs. Nowadays – in his opinion – the situation is different and companies like his own suffer from it.
Michał Sołowow mentioned energy prices in Poland. In his opinion we have the most expensive energy in the world and if we don't change it, “the future won't be rosy”. He emphasized that Polish business needs a new energy mix and investments in nuclear energy, because at the moment we do not have reserves that will help improve efficiency.
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Rafał Brzoska: “nothing bothers me”
Rafał Brzoska's answer was surprising: – Nothing bothers me. It seems to me that as entrepreneurs we adapt to changing environmental conditions. […] Let's not expect it to get easier, we have to deal with what we have, believing that it raises the bar for us.
The businessmen participating in the discussion agreed on one thing – Polish politicians should be more open and favorable to entrepreneurs. Although things are getting better in this respect, changes are happening too slowly. – Don't be afraid of us, we don't want anything, we just want Poland to be better – said Sołowow, and Brzoska mentioned his recent meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, which – as he said – “amazed him”.
— He came, shook my hand and the first thing he said was: thank you for taking the time to meet with me. […] The second sentence was – what can I do for you to make you invest more?
