78.1% of promotion stakeholders believe Luxembourg's image has evolved positively over ten years, with a completion rate of 86% out of the 208 actions in the 2021-2025 action plan.
43 initiatives and institutions had joined the national brand architecture as of 2026, up from 13 in 2021, including Luxembourg for Finance, Luxembourg Trade & Invest and Work in Luxembourg.
While Luxembourg ranks 8th in INSEAD's 2025 Global Talent Competitiveness Index, the national brand plays a role in talent attractiveness, though retention remains a shared responsibility with companies.
Winner of the 2026 Brand Manager award, Beryl Koltz is Head of Brand Image Promotion at the Luxembourg Ministry of the Economy. In this interview, she looks back at the first ten years of LuXembourg - Let's Make It Happen, and discusses the role of the national brand in attracting and retaining talent in the Grand Duchy.
This progress is above all explained by the convergence between a solid Luxembourg reality and an unprecedented collective promotion effort. From its launch, LuXembourg - Let's Make It Happen was one of the first initiatives in Luxembourg to adopt a truly collaborative approach, bringing together institutions, economic players, the diplomatic network, sectoral initiatives and civil society around a shared vision. This dynamic made it possible to unite an increasingly broad ecosystem around common messages, tools and objectives.
At the same time, Luxembourg continued to perform well in key areas such as quality of life, competitiveness, education and talent attractiveness. Among the pivotal moments, I would mention the launch of the Signature in 2016, the gradual structuring of the brand architecture, the development of campaigns such as Luxembourg. Our Common Ground., as well as the growing integration of players into this shared ecosystem. This progress is therefore the result of a collective ambition carried over the long term.
I am particularly proud of the professionalisation of our approach. The www.LMIH.lu portal (an acronym for Let's Make It Happen), support for more than 40 initiatives integrated into the brand architecture, the development of international campaigns and the growth of the LuXembourg Collection all reflect a very positive momentum. Beyond the figures, it is above all the creation of a genuine promotion community that stands out as the greatest achievement.
What proved more complex was responding to the constantly growing number of requests while maintaining a clear scope of action. The larger the ecosystem grows, the more coordination and expectation management become strategic challenges.
"The national brand can be used to showcase Luxembourg, its ecosystem, its attractiveness or its international positioning."
Yes, clearly. As with any nation branding effort, it took time to move from a simple logo and slogan to a genuine shared brand culture. Over the years, the national brand has been enriched with content, tools, campaigns, partnerships and concrete initiatives that have given it greater visibility and substance. As its presence strengthened both in Luxembourg and internationally, it became more tangible and more useful for promotion stakeholders.
Today, 43 initiatives and institutions have joined the brand architecture, compared with 13 in 2021. Major players such as Luxembourg for Finance, Luxembourg Trade & Invest and, more recently, Work in Luxembourg have integrated into it. This shows that the national brand is now perceived as a unifying framework and a lever for collective visibility, rather than as a simple institutional initiative.
As for businesses, it is important to clarify that the national brand is not intended to promote products or services for commercial purposes. However, it can be used to showcase Luxembourg, its ecosystem, its attractiveness or its international positioning.
The LISER study showed there are a number of factors that influence international talents' choice to opt for Luxembourg, as well as their motivation to stay. The national brand is obviously not the only answer when it comes to talent retention. However, it plays an important role in the discovery, consideration and attractiveness phase. It helps make visible strengths that are sometimes little known: quality of life, international openness, safety, multilingualism and professional opportunities.
More fundamentally, the national brand aims to foster a better understanding of Luxembourg by making it more concrete and relatable, through highlighting its values, its faces and the opportunities it offers. It thus helps humanise a country and move beyond the sometimes reductive perceptions or clichés associated with it.
A strong national brand creates interest and eases first contact. The narrative built around the national brand has in fact been integrated into the Work in Luxembourg portal in this context. From there, it is companies, institutions and the whole ecosystem that turn this interest into a lasting life project. It is therefore a shared responsibility.
"A recruiter does not just sell a job; they also present a country, a way of life and prospects."
Concretely, this means providing a clear and credible narrative that helps convince an international candidate. A recruiter does not just sell a job; they also present a country, a way of life and prospects. Our role is to provide arguments, content, tools and consistent messages that highlight Luxembourg's values and strengths. On the www.LMIH.lu portal, a selection of multimedia tools such as photos, videos, clips, publications and a series of benchmarks are made available to help them in their efforts to promote Luxembourg. Similar tools will also be developed progressively on the Work in Luxembourg portal, to support employers in their search for international talent.
When a candidate perceives the same story across companies, institutions and promotional initiatives, trust is established more easily. This consistency is a strong signal of credibility and stability. In a highly competitive global market, it helps talents picture themselves more easily in Luxembourg.
Luxembourg combines the advantages of a highly dynamic international economy with the quality of life of a human-scale country. Few countries offer such a multicultural environment, with more than 180 nationalities, easy access to decision-makers, an internationalised job market and a strong concentration of opportunities in innovative sectors. Add to this multilingualism, safety, its location at the heart of Europe and a growing commitment to innovation. For many young talents, Luxembourg represents a place where it is possible to have an impact quickly, while enjoying a sought-after work-life balance.
The national brand belongs to everyone who contributes to Luxembourg's influence. Every company that recruits internationally, that exports, that welcomes investors or that develops partnerships abroad benefits directly from the country's image. The question is therefore not whether one is concerned, but how to help strengthen this collective asset. The more we together carry a coherent, authentic and ambitious image of Luxembourg, the more we strengthen its attractiveness. In a context of heightened global competition, a strong national brand has become a genuine shared strategic advantage.
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