Room for Everyone is a campaign that promotes “Where to Start” as a tool that matches Polish and Ukrainian businesses based on a complementarity data model.

It transforms a narrative of foreign competition from one of scarcity and fear to abundance and opportunity for all with the help of B2B solution.

We used the power of data to bring new Ukrainian and local Polish businesses closer together by creating opportunities for shared success.

In 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine forcing a sudden and mass exodus into neighboring countries. Two years after Russia's invasion, Ukrainians now comprise of the majority of foreign population in Poland:

Approximately 1.5 million Ukrainians remain in Poland

755,000+ Ukraininans work in Poland

There are now approximately 180,000 children from Ukraine

Such a huge influx of refugees from Ukraine created a shock through the Polish system and public support for Ukrainian refugees dropped significantly. Today only 52% of Poles consent to accepting refugees from Ukraine - a sharp drop from 72% less than 24 months ago.

Not only were Poles less welcoming to the idea of more newcomers, Polish involvement in helping Ukrainians has also decreased. The percentage of Poles stating that they did not intend to support Ukrainians doubled between 2022 and 2023 from 17% to 34%. Moreover, 41% of people stated they no longer intend to get involved in aid initiatives related to supporting Ukrainians. (Openfield Study, 2022-2024).

Situation:

Today 1 in 10 newly opened business in Poland is Ukrainian. Poles started fearing competition and the positive sentiment has dropped across the country towards Ukrainian immigrants.

Brief:

With tensions growing, Mastercard saw they could change the conversation from one of Ukrainian newcomers coming and taking scarce resources from Poles to one that centered on opportunity and prosperity for all. Building from the foundation of our WheretoSettle - a revolutionary app that guided Ukrainian refugees on the most promising places in Poland for them to settle - we pushed our data to go bigger: from helping individual refugees to helping entire businesses and business communities.

Objectives

Our objective went beyond creating a utility for Ukrainian refugees that could guide them on where to best start new businesses in Poland. We wanted to reverse negative perceptions of Ukrainian refugees by showing the positive economic contributions of Ukrainian-owned businesses

Our creative idea had two parts:

Where to start: An innovation platform that leveraged aggregated and anonymized transactional data, foot traffic, air quality and business insights to direct Ukrainian businesses to optimal locations where they could open next to Polish businesses to the mutual benefit of both.

Communications to generate awareness and shift public perceptions of Ukrainian immigration into Poland for the better. We wanted to promote the mindset of thriving together so built a campaign around our new innovation platform that demonstrated and promoted beneficial relationships and showing Ukrainians as valuable economic partners.

We based our insights on data from different studies about Poles' perception of Ukrainians (data from the Statistical Office and the Central Register of Business Activity, but also from the Openfield study conducted in 2022-2024). We also conducted our study that measured the impact of the tool on the perception of Ukrainian entrepreneurs by Polish entrepreneurs (before and after using the tool).

The target audiences were Ukrainian entrepreneurs and Polish business owners who could benefit from being near each other, promoting mutual economic growth.

The strategy was simple: show how pairing businesses, like barber shops next to restaurants, could be more successful together. This approach not only provided practical solutions but also aimed to change public perception, encouraging locals to see Ukrainian businesses as valuable contributors to the local economy rather than competitors.

The “WheretoStart” tool was developed in partnership with Gratka - a leading Polish real estate portal - to help Ukrainian entrepreneurs find the best spots to open businesses near complementary Polish businesses. Using Mastercard's aggregated and anonymized data, the platform suggests locations where new Ukrainian businesses are most likely to succeed alongside existing Polish ones.

When using the platform, business owners input specific details about their type of business and location preferences. It identifies areas with high commercial potential and pinpoints locations where new businesses could complement existing businesses. For instance, the platform might suggest opening a bookstore near a jewelry store.

To spark widespread conversation and awareness, Mastercard promoted it with a digital and social media campaign featuring testimonials from Polish business owners inviting Ukrainian entrepreneurs to open business near them. We created storefront posters, digital and social media campaign, PR support and OOH.

Where to Start positively impacted the lives of Ukrainian and Polish entrepreneurs:

Around 28,000 businesses open in Poland every month. Of the 347,000 new businesses that opened in Poland last year, 10% were location-based businesses. The tool attracted 12,000 users it’s first month. Up to 40% of new business owners used this platform.

It also fueled shifting perceptions of Ukranians for the better:

After using our platform, 55% of Polish entrepreneurs claim that Ukrainian entrepreneurs opening companies in Poland have a positive impact on the economy (a 10% lift from before).

Best of all, it not only helped thousands, it also helped Mastercard:

Among people who used the Where to Start tool, the perception of the Mastercard brand as one that supports entrepreneurs increased significantly (an increase of 21 percentage points, from 34% among people who had no contact with the tool, to 55% among people using the tool).

Mastercard as a company believes in “doing well by doing good” and pays that off by putting financial inclusion at the heart of their initiatives. As the company behind Priceless, they believe that the only way to deliver on that promise is to ensure everyone can access it. That's why we first built the “Where to Settle” platform - a revolutionary app that guided Ukrainians on where to best settle in Poland.

As Ukrainians settled a new tension emerged: the need to integrate not just them as people but also their businesses. Mastercard built “Where to Start” to show that there is room for everyone to thrive together. The project both showcases Mastercard's commitment to using its resources to help societies adapt to change and also underlines its role in propelling economic inclusion. Mastercard effectively transformed data into a powerful tool that bridges cultural gaps and fosters mutual economic benefit.