Articles written by Miguel Otero, General Manager of the Leading Brands of Spain Forum, published in Expansion on 23^rd and 24^th May 2007. Under the title “Brands Make a Country (I and II)” Miguel Otero looks back over the eight-year history of FMRE: its origins and objectives, the strategic alliance with the public administration, the main achievements and projects, publications, research… In the second part, the General Manager of the Leading Brands of Spain Forum delves deeper into the institution’s present and future initiatives, main challenges and projects. Miguel Otero emphasised the Spanish Ambassador Brand Plan, an initiative set up this year by the Leading Brands of Spain Forum together with the Spanish Exporters and Investors Club, and which aims to forge a strategic alliance between leading Spanish brands and the national image through join promotion and communication with the public administration. The Plan is based on the concept of co-branding, a communication strategy which involves the industrial sectors and the Ambassador Brands and which constitutes an innovative formula that aims to renew the traditional relationships between the Public Administration and the business sector via a balanced collaboration based on mutual interest, where both sides can benefit from the synergies created, and share the investments and inherent risks of the project.