Starting off as a small PR boutique, and then going on to creating campaigns for international companies and organizing Narrative Summit, Egypt’s first ever locally managed Public Relations Summit, CC Plus has attained substantial growth throughout the last few years. Lamia Kamel, CEO of CC Plus, a full-fledged multi-disciplinary communications consulting agency, started Narrative Summit in 2016 to shed light on the role of PR in the Egyptian market.
“The idea was not just to have an event and stop there, our speakers came up with insights and recommendations to send to the authorities to highlight deeper messages,” she explains. We had to sit with the brilliant mind behind all of this, to discuss further the idea of nation branding in Egypt and get the latest news on Narrative Summit 2018.
What is the importance of Nation Branding and are we close to achieving it in Egypt?
When you create a brand, you are enhancing its value. It doesn’t become a product anymore, it becomes a concept that stands for something. People relate to concepts, that trigger them to invest. I started Narrative Summit because we don’t have the digital platforms to communicate our stories, there is no mix of narrators to speak out and reflect what the country represents.
Egypt has great human and natural resources, in your opinion what is holding us back?
I must say we have a gap in managing these resources. This gap is usually filled by education, which unfortunately fell behind in the past 30-40 years. We need education to top the priority list of the authorities and decision makers.
“Women in Egypt are very progressive, they are capable of doing so much”
You are working towards re-branding Egypt, what were the most challenges you faced and expect to face?
My expected challenge is the ability of the authorities to understand last year’s recommendations and find the correct methodology to implement them. However, two of the recommendations we sent in 2016 are being implemented right now, which are basically creating a crisis management unit for the country and enhancing the capacity of the Egyptian media.
What do you think of the the lineup of female entrepreneurs reinforcing the Egyptian brand?
I think it is fantastic. Women in Egypt are very progressive, they are capable of doing so much.
“We need education to top the priority list of the authorities and decision makers”
Do you think there are enough females holding senior positions in Egypt?
There are some, but not enough, there has to be more. We need to achieve that through collaboration. It’s not a feminist move, it’s a societal understanding between men and women. We are not trying to occupy anybody’s space, we are just trying to make society better. We need to embed more the idea of teamwork in our society both on the business and personal level.
What topics you think you should tackle?
“Women” are going to be a huge part of Narrative 2018,that will take place towards the end of October. We are going to be discussing women in entrepreneurship and leadership, and how this is such an important part of the Egyptian story.