Kaufbeuren in change: City marketing is taken over directly by the city!

Kaufbeuren in change: City marketing is taken over directly by the city!

A new era begins for Kaufbeuren: The association "Kaufbeuren Tourismus and Stadtmarketing e.V." (KFTS) will be dissolved at the end of 2025. This decision was made after intensive discussions and weighed up on the basis of financial framework. Long -time chairman Ulf Jäkel describes the moment as emotional, but emphasizes that it was not a decision out of disappointment. On the contrary - the city of Kaufbeuren takes on all the tasks that were previously looked after by KFTS, such as tourism, events and the city timing. This lies a trend-setting step in the air, which is supposed to lead city marketing into a new dimension, as wirs-sind-kaufbeuren.de.

Since its foundation in 1983 as a tourist association, the KFTS has developed enormously, especially in the 1990s, to increase the attractiveness of the city. A remarkable success: The number of overnight stays in Kaufbeuren has quintupled in recent years. However, this positive development also has challenges how high security requirements and financial withdrawals from the city. Andreas Bauer, the city's economic officer, underlines the need for change and constructive exchange with the KFTS board.

restructuring of the city marketing

The city of Kaufbeuren will now integrate the tasks of the KFT directly into its department for economy, culture, personnel and digitization. The tourist information remains at the usual point and the staff will continue to be available. Jäkel will continue to work on the funding project "Living Centers" through its own consulting firm. The new structure promises continuity and a further development of the existing services, whereby the name "Kaufbeuren Tourism and City Marketing" is being transferred to the urban department "Communication, City Marketing and public transport".

This restructuring takes place in a context that is of great importance for urban development. The close cooperation between urban planning and city marketing is viewed as the key to success. As the Agency for Location and Economy illustrates, city marketing is not only responsible for the material design, but also for the needs of the population and economy. The continuous exchange with stakeholders makes it possible to make holistic decisions for urban design and to develop innovative solutions.

on sustainable development

A central aspect of the new city marketing strategy will be the focus on quality of life, sustainability and digitization. Citizen participation will also play an increasingly important role here. In order to involve different target groups at an early stage, participatory processes are to be initiated. The idea is to integrate trends and future prospects into urban development. Digital solutions such as virtual reality simulations could help to test the acceptance of the population and to respond to concerns.

With regard to press and public relations work, Kaufbeuren is also active. Among other things, it includes the organization of press talks, creation of video material and the care of social media channels. Continuity in communication will not only increase transparency, but also create trust in order to avoid misunderstandings.

The conversion of the KFT into an urban department really marks an exciting intersection for Kaufbeuren. With a clear plan for city marketing, the city will not only further increase its attractiveness, but also make sure that the voices of the citizens are heard and the focus is on their needs. It remains to be seen which positive changes are imminent.