Supporting growth, enhancing competitiveness:

Emerging support models for creative entrepreneurs

Gillian Easson, Development Manager, NESTA

The Perception ! The Reality !

Based in Dundee, Scotland

Founded: 1998, with £300M endowment

Mission: Bring ideas to life and help make innovation happen

How? Through policy research, programmes and investment

About NESTA…

NESTA’s 3 main areas of work:

Innovation and Economic Growth

Social and Public Sector Innovation

Creative Economy

Creative Industries: Important, fast growing and innovative

NESTA’s models of support:

Creative entrepreneur programmes/resources

Mentoring for creative business start-up and growth

Skills for creative industries

Support for cultural organisations to innovate

Focus of today

Challenges affecting creative start-up businesses

Specialist support for creative entrepreneurs

NESTA has run programmes which have support hundreds of creative entrepreneurs to set up sustainable enterprises, which:

Develop business skills and confidence of new creative entrepreneurs

Facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration through peer networks

Address gaps in start-up support market and enhance current enterprise provisions on offer

Addressing creative business start-up challenges

Starter for 6: A NESTA designed pilot programme in Scotland running 2007–2009, which provided 210 early stage science, technology and creative entrepreneurs with:

4 days of group training run in 5 cities Peer mentoring Potential of grants up to £10,000 (84 grant awards made) Business aftercare support

An accelerator programme

Programme features:

Group workshop content:

creative modelling tools

Tools to test and help build the

business case

Specialist expertise and

advice

Help to overcome barriers in particular

areas

Peer networks Someone to share experiences / like-

minded people

Coaching and mentoring Help to sustain the momentum /

critical friends

Seed funding Something to work with / accelerate

speed to market

Business sectors of S46 participants (2007-09)

Dundee

Aberdeen

Inverness

EdinburghGlasgow

Business Sector Scotland - cities

Case Studies of creative entrepreneurs

Hubdub

Premium skill games for sports fans

www.hubdub.com

Case Studies of creative entrepreneurs

Bebaroque

Designer hosiery

www.bebaroque.com

Framework tools to help build, shape, define, explain and communicate the business idea.

These creative practical planning tools are used successfully by creative entrepreneurs to build their business case.

Evidence modelling Blueprint modelling

Examples of the workshop content

Enhance Replace

Revive Flip into

Start-up programme results

2007 - 2009: Pilot programme - devised, funded and managed by NESTA in partnership with many Scottish agencies

2009: Programme gets a £1 million backing from Creative Scotland’s Innovation Fund to offer an extended service, delivered by Cultural Enterprise Office (CEO).

2010 – present: New S46 programme strands added by CEO including ‘Fast track’ and ‘S46 Network’.

2011: Longitudinal study of programme completed.

www.culturalenterpriseoffice.co.uk/starterfor6

Word cloud showing responses to the question ‘With hindsight what was the most useful part of the Starter for 6 programme?’ (SQW report, 2011)

Programme benefits for creative entrepreneurs

Economic and confidence level impacts

S46 gives return of £2.16 GVA for every £1 invested

15+ gone on to ‘high growth pipeline’ – Scottish Enterprise

S46 is seen as a bench mark of success for other funders, investors.

Increased confidence in participants

Improved knowledge and skills

Networks and collaborations

Developed business idea

Improved business and economic performance

Full impacts arising from Starter for 6

NESTA Creative Enterprise Toolkit

Encapsulates NESTA’s tried and tested approaches

Specifically tailored for creative business start-ups and those who support them

Flexible tools engage participants at an individual level to explore personal values and motivations

www.nesta.org.uk/enterprise-toolkit

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial Share Alike (3.0 Unported). Uses are thus permitted without any further permission from the copyright owner. Permissions beyond the scope of this license are administered by NESTA.

01

In it for the long haulChoosing your path

Getting off the groundArrivals and destinations

03

02

04

Who this guide is for and how it can help

Why it’s different from other business guides

What to expect to get out of the process

What kind of company to set up

Links to useful organisations

Case studies

CustomersDetermine who is buying your product and why

Marketing Mix and PlanHow to apply this mix to your business needs. The main elements you need to consider when planning marketing activities

Business FactsDo you have a good idea or a good business idea?

Intellectual PropertyHow to identify, protect and exploit IP

Your business processThe different elements that make up your business

RelationshipsThe different associations you have to recognise and develop to ensure your product or service reaches your customers

Financial ModellingIncluding the vital role of cash flow to ensure your business makes enough money to continue trading in the way you desire

ValuesIdentify your values and summarisethe impacts you want

Evidence ModellingIllustrate what success will look like

Creative enterprise toolkit

Suite of open-source products for both creatives and supporters

Case studies Tutors notes

creativesupporters.org.uk

WorksheetsTrain trainer workshops

Trainer PowerPointVideo case studiesFashion start-up

guidePeer mentoring

guide

CE Toolkit is being used nationally and internationally

Lebanon

ChinaWales

• Peer mentoring Peer mentoring involves near peers with one or two years more business experience than their mentees.

NESTA’s Peer Mentoring guide contains:

On overview of the programme structure

Practical points and case studies for those considering setting up a peer mentoring scheme

The impacts for both the mentors and mentees

www.nesta.org.uk/enterprise-toolkit

Peer Mentoring to support creative start-ups

Video Games Mentoring: Playing the Game guide

NESTA Mentoring for business growth

Creative Business Mentor Network

Hyper Island and Next Gen: the right skills for a high-tech sector

Creative industries skills agenda

Supporting cultural/arts organisations to innovate

Arts organisation

Digital innovation projects and sector-wide knowledge

Technology partner

Research team

Digital R&D Fund

Enabling arts and cultural organisations to engage audiences in new ways and create opportunities for new business models, through the use of digital technology.

Conclusions

In NESTA’s experience we believe that creative entrepreneurs thrive when given the right conditions, which include:

- Tailored skills development and confidence building

- Networks and support

- The opportunity to gain seed funding

We look forward to working with international partners to share learning from our creative entrepreneurship programmes.

Gillian Easson Development Manager

gillian.easson@nesta.org.uk@GillianEasson

www.nesta.org.uk

www.nesta.org.uk/enterprise-toolkit

Thank You!