added value for craft craft and sustainability a european research

Craft and Sustainable Development in Europe

Added value for CraftAdvancing neeDED skills to VAlorise sUstainable Employement FOR CFRAFTsmen

Added Value For Craft Project - This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.

This website reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsibfor any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

1 This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The newsletter reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. 2013-1-IT1-LEO04-4220 1

Table of contents

Summary…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….2

Report Overview…………………………………………………………………………………………………………2

Craft and Sustainability in Croatia……………………………………………………………………………….8

Craft and Sustainability in Czech Republic…………………………………………………………………..22

Craft and Sustainability in Greece……………………………………………………………………………….33

Craft and Sustainability in Italy……………………………………………………………………………………48

Craft and Sustainability in Portugal……………………………………………………………………………..71

Craft and Sustainability in United Kingdom…………………………………………………………………81


Summary

The overall objective of the ADDED VALUE FOR CRAFT project is to improve the capacity of VET in response to

the changing requirements of the labour market. Specifically the proposal addresses the handicraft sector

which is affected - in a negative way - by technological, social developments, global markets and changing

consumer demands. In line with Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, which

improves the business environment for SMEs (including craft-type enterprises), the project investigates the

links between sustainable development and craft with a special focus on workers’ skills. The need to link

sustainable development and new skills is also highlighted in Bruges Communiqué 2010: “Transition to a green

economy is a mega trend which affects skills needs across many different jobs and sectors. […] The labour

market requires a balance between developing generic green skills and specific skills”. The partnership includes

eight organizations from different European regions: Eastern (Bulgaria and acceding country Croatia), Western

(United Kingdom), Central (Czech Republic) and Southern (Portugal, Italy and Greece). The multi-actor

consortium comprises VET providers, local development agencies, chambers of commerce and craft, research

centres and SMEs. The planned activities include four meetings and a study on main constraints faced by craft

firms, the identification of new market trends, the mapping of best practices and transferable experiences on

sustainable work, the definition of a common VET reference model and the final identification of an ECVET Unit

to advance sustainable skills and self-actualization in each partner country. Partners ensure the regular

cooperation with interested parties and their attendance to the meetings.

This report has been conceived in order to identify main constrains affecting national handicraft sectors as a

consequence of present economic and financial crisis.

Report overview

In Croatia the craft sector is organised at state level through the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Craft. An

important role is played by the Croatian Chamber of Crafts as an independent professional craftsmen

organisation. The law adopted in 1993 regulates fundamental questions about crafts, term and type,

conditions, business trades, education and training, organisation, supervision and administrative measures.

According to this law the definition of craft is an independent and permanent pursuit of economic activities by

natural persons for the purpose of achieving income or profit through production, marketing or services on the

market. An artisan is a person who performs one or more of these activities in their own name and for their

own account, and thereby can use their skills for their own work or the work of others.


The general demographic change of the entrepreneurs in this field is composed by the overall decrease of 40

years old craftsmen since 2003 against the increase of those aged above 50 years old.

In Croatia until 1990 there was a large presence of manufacturing professions, unfortunately Serbian

aggression and war devastation in Croatia had left a number of consequences and caused great damage to the

overall economy. The new law in 1994 gave a special emphasis on education for trades and crafts introducing

the master's exam, which is very important for trade.

As described by the Croatian SME Observatory, the number of crafts has decreased steadily from 95.476 units

in 2002 to 85.909 units in 2011.

Regarding sustainable development the regional policy level is contributing to the harmonious and balanced

development of Croatia ensuring the protection and preservation of the natural environment and the diversity

of cultural wealth.

In the Czech Republic craft can be divided in the following sectors:

- Craftsmen and qualified workers in building industry

- Metal workers, engineering workers and workers in related fields

- Craftsmen in art and traditional crafts and polygraphy

- Workers in the field of electronics and electrical engineering

- Food manufacturers, wood, textile and related trades workers

Crafts in general are closely perceived in the human mind and connected with traditional and historical

professions and work activities.

Training in crafts and technical fields has lost popularity since tha revolution in 1989 and, in many cases,

unfortunately, its traditional quality. It is a problem, which has for along time been discussed in all sectors, but

which remains still unsolved. This is because at a national level there is often a lack of a clear and realizable

concept that would better integrate vocational education with the business sector.

The National Institute of Technical and Vocational Education cooperated with many experts from the bussiness

sphere, VET schools and other social partners.

Unfortunatly very few craftsmen and small entrepreneurs have clear goals and plans for further development,

their biggest challanges for that can be summarized as follow:

- Excessive bureaucracy associated with doing business in the country (eg. work law,

trade legislation, etc..)

- Lack of basic technical infrastructure and poor accessibility in rural regions


- Lack of a legal framework that would insure the return of business resources invested in our own

employees education

- Small overview of the available support for entrepreneurs, offering regional, national or European

intervention programs

Regarding sustainable development we can find intiatives mostly in rural areas ( as LAGs operating under the

LEADER initiative ) aiming on sustainable and smart development of rural communities and destinations. The

main aims in such cases are about saving cultural and historical traditions and addressing financial issues, i.e.

saving energy, reducing and recycling waste, using more environmentaly friendly cleaning agents etc.

Future policies are structured for:

- simplifying business bureaucracy

- support in promotion

- support in start-ups of microbussinesses

- protection against unfair competition of global companies

The report in Greece focused mainly on the sector of silversmiths in the Ioannina Region as the most well-

known Greek craft sector around the world.

According to Greek Laws if someone wishes to be active as a liberal professional in the field of silversmithing

and to open his own workshop and store, no license is required. There is also no obligation for someone aiming

to be a craftsman in the field of silversmithing to follow a typical training and education. The most common

process is to undertake an apprenticeship alongside an experienced craftsman or silversmith's workshop or

gemmology.

According to Greek Laws all craftsmen active in the sector are obligated to be members of the Chamber of

Commerce of their region. Nowadays in Greece there is a strong discussion on the abolition of that obligation.

Ioannina is probably the centre of silver craft making in Greece with a long history of this tradition. The city also

has a long tradition on the training of silversmiths. In 1928 the Silversmiths' School of Ioannina was founded,

but during the world wars was closed. When re-opened in 1959 the school was administratively affiliated to

the Ministry of Labour and again closed in 1983.

Craftsmen in the field of silversmithing are for the majority men (95%). Within the sector the majority of

people are aged between 42-49 years old (38%), followed by people over 50 years old (32%). People within the

age range of 34-41 years old represent 20% of the total while only 10% are people who are 26-33 years old.


In Italy craft enterprises are generally considered as the ones in which the broad experience of the

entrepreneur substitutes the strength of automation and small scale production is justified against mass

production.

According to Italian legislation L.443/85 (a framework policy law policy on crafts) a craft company has as a

predominant aim the production of goods or providing services. Farming, commercial services, intermediation

in goods circulation or subsidiary services and public food and beverage administration are all excluded from

this definition.

From a numerical point of view handicraft constitute the “hard core” of the Italian production system and of

the set of SMEs. A major asset to determine the effectiveness of the firms and their medium-term and long-

term survival is ICT: the way it is used in the firm can have a significant impact on the processes and on the

productivity. The use of ICT is not consistent with geographical distribution, production sectors and enterprises

size. However, IT has been only recently been introduced in artisan enterprises.

From the legal point of view, in general, there is no specific educational requirement needed to exercise these

activities as a craftsman. This is compulsory only in the case of carrying out specific activities which require

special training.

Small enterprises and particularly small craft enterprises are considered as natural candidates to develop

productive and cultural processes allowing the strengthening of the economic, industrial and civil saving

system. These SME’s also encourage the diffusion and production of sustainable energy from renewable

sources.

The whole mentality must be changed. Policies are oriented to:

1) The reinforcement of existing measures (energy certificates, white certificates, fiscal deductions) which must

establish fully operational behaviours and procedures

2) The creation of a fund aiming to support the research and innovation of the PMI with simplified itineraries to

guarantee the introduction and the transfer of experimental researches

3) The introduction of awarding path (through easy procedures, overcome legal obstacles etc.) to favour the

production, commercialisation and use of products for life quality improvements and allowing minor energy

consumption

In Portugal craft activity is understood to be any “economic activity of recognised cultural and social value

which involves the production, restoration or repairing of goods having artistic or utilitarian value, of

traditional or contemporary origin, and the provision of services of a similar nature, together with the


production and traditional preparation of foodstuffs”. The inexistence of artisans below 30 years of age, raises

concerns about the future of traditional arts and crafts in the little municipalities.

The majority of artisans are aged between 40 to 49 years; most of them work alone. But they want to sell their

work in local or national fairs and have a few orders throughout the year.

The future challenges are:

- Creation of new production and commercialisation strategies;

- Counting on improvement and innovation in production;

- Creation of training courses in production, commercialisation and new design techniques;

- Focus on the medium-high and high class consuming public, creating distinctive, high quality products

(maintaining tradition);

- Seeking out new market outlets for local handicrafts;

- Developing a marketing plan for handicraft products;

- Developing promotional campaigns and trying to establish partnerships with well known brands;

- Supporting the participation in trade fairs for the sector;

- Creation of promotional material for local crafts;

- Putting artisans and designers into contact with each other, promoting technical support for them in

innovative areas;

- Carrying out thematic visits with artisans to more developed production centres.

Crafts In the UK are not separated from other kinds of businesses: so, for example, the same health and safety

laws apply the same access to government support for SMEs. Contemporary Crafts receive government

support through the Crafts Council.

A lot of makers consider it a huge step to hire even one employee. British makers have to follow trends in

innovation and become competitive in the creative sector. However, craftsmen indicate strong connections

with local markets as well as tourism as important sources of income. Craftsmen in the UK are predominantly

holders of first and second degrees. Moreover, the majority of craftsmen hold university degrees specialising

them in arts and crafts.

In accordance to the Craft in an Age of Change report, 50% of craftsmen did not choose craft as their first

professional occupation. It means that many people came from other professions, often not related to crafts.

In accordance to the statistics a significant part of craftsmen seek further development and that includes

technological expansion, development of new products and expansion over new markets.


Crafts Council elaborated four key messages, which aim for improvement of crafts in the UK. They form the

basis for lobbying on behalf of crafts sector and were developed in close collaboration with the sector itself.

1. Creativity and making must be a central part of education

2. Extend the Government’s Growth Voucher scheme (currently for 2 years) to provide microbusinesses with

“soft support”, which is critical for crafts aiming for further development and business innovation.

3. Increase entrepreneurship education in schools, colleges and universities.

4. More support for micro-employers to start Apprenticeships.


CRAFT AND SUSTAINABILITY

IN CROATIA


1. What “vision” of crafts

The Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Crafts perform administrative and other tasks related to small and

medium sized enterprises, crafts, cooperatives, promotion of exports and foreign investment, and improving

competitiveness in the field of small and medium-sized enterprises.

The Croatian Chamber of Crafts is an independent professional craftsmen organisation established to promote,

harmonise and represent the common interests of crafts. The Chamber represents craftsmen to government

and other bodies in the country and abroad.

The task of the Croatian Chamber is to promote trades and crafts.

National and regional policies and programs that regulate and encourage the development of crafts are the

Strategy of Entrepreneurship Development in Croatia 2013 – 2020 and the Regional Development Strategy of

the Republic of Croatian 2011 – 2013.

Law of Crafts in Croatia

The adoption of new legislation, namely The Croatian Law of Crafts, in 1993 brought with it regulation of the

fundamental questions about crafts, such as the term and type of craft, the conditions for the performance,

business trades, education and training necessary for performing crafts, organisation, supervision and

administrative measures

The Croatian Law of Crafts provides greater security for craftsmen as it brings an exemption from eviction,

security during unemployment and elimination of the lists of activities that can be performed as a home

industry and sideline and prescribing conditions for the same.

The law regulates the manner of crafts that can be undertaken, the roles of assisting members of the family

household and education and training needed to perform the related trades.

According to the law, craft is an independent and permanent pursuit of economic activities by natural persons

for the purpose of achieving income or profit through production, marketing or services on the market.

An artisan is a person who performs one or more of the activities in their own name and for their own account.

Results of scientific research in Croatia are not used for commercialisation of innovation, advanced

technologies and achieving higher production in the economy. The business sector is still a key subject in the

field of innovation and insufficiently integrated into the innovation value chain. One indicator that confirms this

is the very low number of patent applications in the period from 2000 to 2009 that Croatia has submitted to

the European Patent Office - only 6.6 million inhabitants - which is far below the EU 27 average.Total

expenditures for research and development amounted to 0.75% of the total GDP in 2011 (this showed a

significant decrease in comparison to 2004 when they amounted to 1.05% of GDP), are also significantly below

the EU 27 average, which amounts to 2% of GDP. Reducing the share of expenditure on research and


development over the past decade indicates a lack of structural changes towards the production of which is

strongly based on knowledge. Future efforts in the area of Croatian innovation policy need to focus on

increasing the tendency of companies to innovate and strengthen ties within the Croatian innovation system

and innovation value chain.

The figure shows the status of Croatian in the EU in terms of innovation in the economy. Croatia and its

contractors are among the least innovative.

Source: Regional Innovation Scoreboard 2014

There are a large number of traditional crafts, which unfortunately do not take advantage of their comparative

advantage to become more competitive in the market. This investment in research and development is

negligible. The main objectives for the period until 2020 was certainly the development of the innovation

system at the state level, strengthening innovation entrepreneurs, fostering greater collaboration between

business, scientific and public sector and strengthening human resources for innovation.

Based on our experience consumers are the main judges. They care about the services provided for them, and

then consumers spread experience about craft. The main goal for crafts is how to provide a good

product/service for customers. For this reasons crafts start to use different quality standards as ISO, FSC which

also later on influence on consumers.


2. General characteristics of the artisan entrepreneurs

The entrepreneurs

Since 2003 the number of craftsmen under 40 years of age has decreased by 29.8%. The number of craftsmen

between 40 and 50 years of age has experienced a similar downward trend of 28.4%. However, the number of

craftsmen above 50 years of age has increased by 32.7%. The general trend observed is that the craftsmen are

getting older and that the crafts sector is failing to attract new, young entrants.1

According The Croatian Law of crafts, crafts can be:

free crafts – those which are not required as a condition of professional competence or master exam related crafts – those which are requirement to conduct search competency exam or master exam privileged crafts – those by which the trader or a company may only be based on privileges

Masters exams are state recognised exams, regulated by The Croatian Law of Craft and the Rules of Procedure

and consist of taking both the masters exam and professional competence exam. The masters exam can be

taken for vocational qualifications from the list of related and privileged crafts.

The masters exam is the highest available level of education for vocational qualifications and are respected

qualifications. Professional competences, knowledge, skills which are gained from the masters exam are used

in the work of small businesses in order to enhance the business. The masters degree is a valuable document

and is essential in the establishment of a self-employed or small business.

An understanding of continuous learning is important because only by investing in knowledge and skills can

artisans keep pace with the development of modern techniques and technologies.

In the period between the 1980s and l990s there was a large presence in the craft industry of those

manufacturing metal work, wood processing, plastics and textiles. At that time, there was a significant

recruitment of workers in manufacturing workshops, so that the average employment was more than 10

workers.

Serbian aggression and war devastation in Croatia had left a number of consequences and caused great

damage to the overall economy. The market was reduced leading to increased imports and craft production

dropping. In the 90's, there was a significant tendency for the opening of mainly trade, hospitality and new

service crafts including services for the installation and repair, accounting services and computer and electrical

equipment.

The new Law on Craft passed in 1994 has returned the reputation of the craft profession and its artisans. The

special emphasis on education for trades and crafts in particular the taking the master's exam is very important

for trade, this is because the previous so-called Suvarov system is known to have destroyed the skills of entire

generations of young people who were educated for crafts.

1 The Croatian SME Observatory Report, 2012


Today's complex economic situation in the Croatian economy is reflected in the business of craftsmen.

Throughout history Croatian craftsmen have proved their economic wisdom, diligence, ability of fast-acting and

adaptability to market and other conditions.

The Croatian Chamber of Craft has adopted a budget in 2014 with revenues of HRK 11,345,658 and the same

expenditure. The Chamber has adopted a new work program but has also reduced activity in several areas. At

the same time it will be the first year that the chamber will try to accomplish part of the objectives of the

Strategy for the Development of the Croatian Chamber 2014- 2020.

The strategy includes the following objectives:

Strategic Objective 1: Representation of interests and promotion of handicrafts

Strategic Objective 2: Supporting business services and consulting

Strategic Objective 3: Professional work

Strategic Objective 4: Quality assurance

Strategic Objective 5: Efficient Chambers Network and quality human resources

Strategic Objective 6: Ethics in Business

Strategic Objective 7: Education for crafts

Strategic Objective 8: Partnership and cooperation

Strategic Objective 9: Financing projects from available sources2

The firms

Business form

Simple Limited Liability Company

- The company has three members and one member of the Board

- The minimum share capital is 10,00 HRK payable only in cash

- Founders are obligated to 25% of realised net income allocate to legal reserves

- If using legal reserves to increase the share capital, the share capital equals or is greater then 20.000,00 HRK,

Simple Limited Liability Company loses that status and becomes commonly a Limited Liability Company.

2 Croatian Chember for Craft


Limited Liability Company

A Limited Liability Company is a company in which one or more legal or natural persons invest their roles with which they participate in the pre-agreed share capital. The equities do not have to be equal. One of the founders can take more fundamental role, but not in establishing a company. Commercial interests can not be expressed in securities.

Members are not liable for company debts.

Localisalisation (at home or not)

Head office is a place where craft is performed. If the craft is performed in several places, the seat is one of the

places determined by craftsman. If for performing craft is not required space, seat craft is a place where the

artisan has permanent or temporary residence.

Sector (sectorial distribution, geographical concentration, dynamics…)

Croatia is divided into two NUTS (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics) II regions; these are the

Adriatic region and the Continental region.

Both regions fulfil the NUTS II criteria of population size, whereby the Adriatic region number 1.5 million

inhabitants, while the newly created Continental region has 2.5 million inhabitants.

These regions constitute statistical units only unlike the counties, which are NUTS III level, and are

administrative, self-governing units (there are 21 counties in Croatia, including the City of Zagreb).

Picture 1: NUTS II Regions of Croatia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nomenclature_of_Territorial_Units_for_Statistics


All available statistical data is based on previous NUTS classification before 2013.

Regions: Craft Dynamics that shows number of crafts between 2003 and 2011 in all regions in Croatia

.

Table 2: Regions: Craft Dynamics, 2003 to 2011

Source: Source: The Croatian SME Observatory Report, 2012

The total number of crafts decreased from 95.476 in 2002 to 85.909 in 2011, a reduction of 9.567 crafts in an

eight-year period. All regions were subject to similar movements in terms of start-ups and closures. In the first

two years start-ups exceeded closures; however, after 2006, in the North West and Central and Eastern Region

closures exceeded start-ups, and from 2008 on closures exceeded start-ups in all regions.

The CEC Region was, by far, the weakest economic region in terms of the results shown.

Table 3: Crafts Dynamics: Start Ups and Closures and Income Performance

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Number

of crafts

at the end

of the

year

95.476 96.796 99.037 99.663 99.325 98.836 96.324 91.550 87.654 85.909

Craft dynamics 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Total

All regions 1320 2241 626 -338 -489 -2512 -4774 -3896 -1745 -9567

Adriatic Region 1032 1680 958 277 129 -890 -1760 -1279 -500 -353

North West

Region 277 7 -271 -398 -532 -943 -1976 -1675 -844 -6355

Central and

Eastern Region 11 554 -61 -217 -86 -679 -1038 -942 -401 -2859


Start Ups - 15.426 14.682 13.878 12.734 10.949 8.649 7.064 7.538 8.027

Closures - 14.106 12.441 13.252 13.072 11.438 11.161 11.838 11.434 9.772

Source: The Croatian SME Observatory Report, 2012

The number of crafts has decreased steadily from 95.476 units in 2002 to 85.909 units in 2011. The annual

figures for start-ups and closures of crafts were following a similar path as for SMEs (legal entities), showing

growth up to the year 2005. From 2006 on, closure of craft enterprises exceeded start-ups annually. Between

2006 and 2011, the average annual reduction in the size of the crafts sector (closures minus start-ups) was

2,300 units. The tightening of the craft legislation, which was introduced in 2005, had much to do with this

situation.

Size (employment, employees, finance…)

The craft sub-sector is divided in two main groups according to size: large crafts consisted of 4.680 craft

enterprises with sales revenues above 2 million HRK per year, and smaller crafts consisted of 76.353 craft

enterprises earning less than the threshold of 230.000 HRK,.

The craft sub-sector represents 48% of the total SMEs in Croatia.

Small craft enterprises employ on average 1.8 persons while large crafts employ on average 10.6 persons.

In relation to total revenues, large crafts have an average turnover 524.668 Euro per year.

Table 4: Employment change (FINA 2002.-2011.)

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

2002. 2003. 2004. 2005. 2006. 2007. 2008. 2009. 2010. 2011.

CRAFTS 12.421 12.263 11.442 11.054 10.466 9.879 9.868 8.997 8.348 7.579


From this table we can see that the number of employees from 2002 to 2011 has decreased steadily from

12.421 employees in 2002 to 7.579 in 2011.


In 2008, the craft sub-sector employed 14.64% of total labour force, out of which 79.149 were craftsmen and

the owners of the business, and 148.401 were their employees. By 2011, total employment in the craft sector

has declined from 227.550 in 2008, to 177.049 (67.998 craftsmen and 109.051 employees), as the craft sector

was squeezed by two years of economic decline.

Table 5: Financial indicators of crafts, 2008-2010

Year Total income Total

consumption

Profit or loss

before tax Income tax

Profit or loss

for the

period

2008 19.999.279.455 19.102.575.074 896.704.381 225.480.883 671.223.494

2009 16.851.784.271 16.301.931.177 549.853.090 173.056.836 376.796.254

2010 15.500.164.207 15.147.379.046 352.785.159 145.772.486 207.012.673


Table 6: Foreign Trade in Crafts

IMPORT EXPORT

YEAR NO. OF CRAFTS AMOUNT IN HRK NO. OF CRAFTS AMOUNT IN HRK

2007 5.870 2.020.754.933 1.799 687.414.226

2008 5.642 1.887.304.523 1.746 655.891.667

2009 5.048 1.340.017.528 1.477 475.028.265

2010 4.561 1.161.509.669 1.812 560.512.534

2011 3.460 842.072.469 1.214 453.750.748


Table 6 presents foreign trade information for the craft sector gathered from customs data. On balance crafts

are net importers with imports exceeding exports by a significant amount, in some years the value of imports

in two and a half times greater than the value of exports. However, few crafts were involved in foreign trade.


According to customs figures, the value of exports produced by crafts amount to only 0,6% per cent of Croatia’s

total export value in 2010. Crafts usually serve localised markets in small scale, which makes it difficult for them

to produce the volumes necessary to benefit from economies of scale, which will help them become

competitive in foreign markets.

Market channels

Direct sales are the most common way of selling and marketing of craft products. Craftsmen also use the

internet as one of the market channel. Lot of producers of local products start to use web shops as one of the

way of selling products. SMEs also use promotion in specialised marketing campaigns (example: tourism, wood

is first etc.).

Form of promotion

In order to promote, harmonise and represent the common interests of craftsmen, a lot of craftsmen are

founding an association of craftsmen in the area of one or more units of local government. The Craftsmen

Association is a legal entity which organises fairs to promote local craftsmen.

One of the activities of the Croatian Chamber of Crafts is the organisation, financing and encouraging of

craftsmen to make appearances at trade fairs in Croatia and abroad. Attendance of members of the Croatian

Chamber of Crafts at fairs is co-financed in the amount of 30% -50%, and for local fairs. The Chamber are also

able to give grant assistance to the organisers of the fairs. In 2012 The Chamber co-financed the attendance of

253 artisans in 11 international trade fairs.


3. The "issues" of a good sounded sustainable economy

How artisan entrepreneurs address sustainable development topic (Fig.2)

Craft and sustainable development

Environmental Issues Social Issues

Energy efficiency poverty

Waste treatment high unemployment rate

Natura 2000 locations emigration

(Towards) Sustainable Economies

More public financing of sustainable development

Active role of crafts in sustainable development strategy

Education of entrepreneurs

“Political” issues Strategic issues

(Participation and governance) (Basis of Responsibility)

new regulations on state level which not inter-sector partnerships

take care about micro regional uniqueness

no bottom-up approach

Is there any law provision?

Within Croatia there are laws in regards to sustainable economy namely The Law on Sustainability and also

individual regional development. The implementation of regional development policy is systematically

monitored and evaluated in order to enhance the effectiveness, efficiency and impact on regional

development. Regional policy is contributing to the harmonious and balanced development of Croatia ensuring

the protection and preservation of the natural environment and the diversity of cultural wealth.


4 Polity and Policy

The polity of the crafts: defining identity and extensions of fields (from fine arts to handcraft)

Table 1: Craft sector by NACE Classification

Activity Description of activity Craftsmen Employees Total %

A Agriculture, forestry and fishing 3.357 5.206 8.563 4,8

B Mining and quarrying 91 150 241 0,1

C Manufacturing industry 9.629 23.825 33.454 18,9

D Electricity, gas, steam and air

conditioning 6 3 9 0,0

E Water Supply: sewerage system,

waste management 67 102 169 0,1

F Construction 9.689 14.539 24.228 13,7

G Wholesale and retail sales 12.448 17.911 30.359 17,1

H Transport and storage 6.652 6.527 13.179 7,4

I Activity of accommodation and

food 10.360 20.859 31.219 17,6

J Information and connections 881 414 1.295 0,7

K Financial Transactions and

Insurance 371 622 993 0,6

L The real estate business 374 190 564 0,3

M Professional, scientific and

technical activities

4.139 4.451 8.590 4,9

N Administration and support

services

1.561 1.711 3.272 1,8

O Public administration and defence 3 49 52 0,0

P Education 149 279 428 0,2


Q Human health and social work 56 1.848 1.904 1,1

R Art, entertainment and recreation 270 184 454 0,3

S Other services 7.588 5.844 13.865 2,2

T Activities of households as

employers 60 3.805 3.865 2,2

U Activities outside the territorial

organizations and bodies 0 0 0 0,0

Unknown category 247 0 247 0,1

Overall 67.998 109.051 177.049 100


The craftsman and his interests: organisations, powers and governance

The Croatian Chamber of Crafts is an independent professional craftsmen organisation and was established to promote, harmonise and represent the common interests of craftsmanship. The Croatian Chamber of Crafts is a legal entity and has public authorities. Members of the Croatian Chamber of Crafts are craftsmen who carry out trade in the Croatian territory and membership in the CCTC is required to undertake a craft enterprise. The tasks of the Croatian Chamber are:

The promotion of crafts and craftsmanship.

Representing the interests of craftsmen before government bodies in shaping the economic system.

Giving opinions and suggestions governmental bodies in the enactment of legislation in the field of handicrafts.

Establishment of committees for apprentice and master exams, action craftsmen, incorporation of the arbitration board.

Keeping the books craftsmen.

Record keeping agreements science.

Assisting artisans during its establishment and operations of crafts.

Performing other tasks set forth by law and statute Croatian Chamber of Trades.

Is corporate social responsibility known and protected?

Crafts in Croatia are mostly micro SMEs. At this time of financial crisis (which has been present for the last six years) crafts do not feel they have extra free resources to be spent on corporate social responsibility. Education on this field is needed between local craftsmen.


What policies for crafts? National and regional policies and programs that regulate and encourage the development of crafts are

outlined in the policy documents Strategy of Entrepreneurship Development in Croatia 2013 – 2020 and

Regional Development Strategy of the Republic of Croatian 2011 – 2013.



IN CZECH REPUBLIC


1 What „Vision“ of crafts

The Czech Statistical Office dicument “Classification of occupations CZ ISCO“, implemented from 1.1.2011,

provides information according to the International Standard Classification of Occupations.

All craft professions are included in Chapter 7 of the Classification:

7. Craftsmen & repairmen

71 Craftsmen and qualified workers in building industry

72 Metal workers, engineering workers and workers in related fields

73 Craftsmen in art and traditional crafts and polygraphy

74 Workers in the field of electronics and electrical engineering

75 Food manufacturers, wood, textile and related trades workers

At first glance it is visible that although it is a perfect and very detailed occupational classification, there are

included professions that most people do not percept as “craft“ professions - mine rescuer, aircraft engine

mechanic, builder of metal constructions, diver etc. .. Handicrafts, or artsan crafts, are perceived by the public

almost exclusively as professions that are historically associated with normal human life and its daily needs -

bricklayer, blacksmith, carpenter, potter, butcher, glazier, basket, etc. ....

All entrepreneurial activities of individual persons in the Czech Republic are regulated by the Trades Licensing

Act 455/1991 Sb. and are conditioned by the obtaining of a trade license. Czech law recognises four types of

trade licenses:

- free license

- bound license

- concessional license

- crafts license

It is interesting, if we compare the list of professional craft referred in the Trades Licensing Act with a list of

craft professions referred to “Classification of occupations CZ ISCO“, we find that our professional crafts in the

Trades Licensing Act are far more similar as crafts perceived from the public - most crafts conditioned by

required craft license belong to the “historically perceived“ crafts:


Craft trades according to Trades Licensing Act:

"A" GROUP

01.Butchery and charcuterie

02.Manufacturing of milk

03. Millery

04.Bakery and confectionery

05.Brewing and malting

06.Processing hides and skins

07.Manufacturing and repairing of shoes

08.Grinding and etching glass

09. Manufacturing rubber compounds

10. Stone manufacturing

11. Moldering

12. Blacksmithing and farriery

13. Machining metals

14. Locksmithing and toolmaking

15. Electroplating and enamelling

16. Manufacturing, installation and repair of electrical machinery and electronic and

telecommunication equipment

17. Clockmaking

18. Goldsmithing and jewelry

19. Carpentery and flooring

20. Manufacturing and repair of musical instruments

21. Repair of transport equipment and machinery

22. Blockbuilding

23. Montage, repair, inspection and testing of electrical equipment

24. Montage, repair and refurbishment of refrigeration systems and heat pumps

25. Plumbing and heating

26. Montage, repair, inspection and testing of gas equipment and filling gas containers


27. Montage, repair, inspection and testing of pressure equipment and gas vessels

28. Montage, repair, inspection and testing of lifting equipment

29. Insulating

30. Painting, lacquering, varnishing

31.Slatering and carpentry

32. Tinsmithing and automotive body repair

33. Stove making

34. Repairing road vehicles

35. Hairdressery

"B" GROUP

1. Staining and chemical treatment of textiles

2. Cleaning and washing of textiles and clothing

3. Chimney sweeping

"C" GROUP

1. Innkeeping and accommodation service

2. Cosmetics and beauty care

3. Pedicure and manicure

As was explained above, the people in Czech Republic connect the crafts mainly with traditional and historical

professions and work activities. The perception of craftsmen from the public can be dramatically different

whether they are employees of a craft company or "freelance" craftsmen, the latter of which are generally

percieved much better.

The survey “The perception of crafts in the Czech population“, carried out by the Association of Small and

Middle Enterprises and Craftsmen, shows that more than half the population (59%) have a positive attitude to

the work of Czech craftsmen and would give them priority over larger companies. The survey also shows that

82% of the population is satisfied with the availability of craftsmen.


Of course it´s necessary to understand that the word 'artisan' is perceived as a certain group of craftsmen

namely those that are more commonly needed by people - painter, bricklayer, tiler, electrician, heating

engineer, plumber etc and that traditional craftsmen producing handycrafts are not percieved as artisans.

2 General characteristics of the artisan entrepreneurs

The numbers of entrepreneurs and individual trade licenses according to age structure

Age group Entrepreneurs Trade licenses

Number % Number %

18-20 4 083 0,23 4 593 0,16

21-25 54 683 3,09 67 159 2,35

26-30 159 4889,01 223 9937,84

31-35 260 34414,70 409 19014,33

36-40 235 69413,31 392 08313,73

41-45 242 71113,71 417 00814,60

46-50 214 11212,09 366 67112,84

51-55 223 55012,63 379 40513,28

56-60 178 99010,11 299 22010,48

61-65 107 7836,09 171 4776,00

66-70 47 240 2,67 70 535 2,47

71-75 23 382 1,32 31 866 1,12

76-80 13 047 0,74 16 628 0,58

81-85 5 379 0,30 6 493 0,23

Czech Republic 1 770 486 100,00 2 856 321 100,00

Qualifications

According to collected statistic data more than 80% of craftsmen were primary educated in the field of their

craftsmanship.


On the other hand, training in crafts and technical fields, since the revolution in 1989, has decreased in

popularity and, in many cases, unfortunately, its traditional quality. It is a problem, which is a long time

discussed in all sectors, but which remains still unsolved, because of this at the national level there is still

missing a clear and realisable concept that would better integrate vocational education and the business

sector. Another very negative factor in the popularity of craft education and occupation since 1989 is

something that could be called "postsocialistic syndrome" – handwork and crafts professions were discarded

after the revolution as something that the former regime forced us to do under their rule and that the

population was able to change this This led to the creation of very unhealthy social atmosphere especially in

families where the younger generations decided to undertake craft skills training for their future profession

and where parents argued that craftsmanship was something inferior and the best career should be to work in

the office in some managerial position. The result is that according to national research only 19% of young

people decide to study craft professions.

In the year 2005, the Ministry of Education started the project “The development of the National qualifications

framework supporting links between initial and further education“ (NQF) in cooperation with the National

Institute of Technical and Vocational Education. This system project is co-financed by the state budget of the

Czech Republic and the European Social Fund.

Solving the project tasks, the National Institute of Technical and Vocational Education cooperated with many

experts from the bussiness sphere, VET schools and other social partners. National qualifications framework,

whose creation is a core activity of the project, is embedded in a law on verification and recognition of further

education outcomes.

The aim of the NQF is to create a system environment that will support:

- comparability learning outcomes achieved by various forms of learning and education enabling

recognition of real knowledge and competences independently on the way of their acquiring

- comparability of qualification levels in the CZ and in the EU

- transfer of world of work requirements into education and training

- public awareness of all national-wide recognized qualifications.

The National Qualification Framework does not replace existing systems and structures of education, but

strives to make them interconnected, covered and transparent.


The basic units of the NQF will be qualifications divided into two types:

- Entire qualification – ability to perform an occupation; as a rule, it is connected with achievement of an

appropriate level of education (e.g. a Plumber, a Confectioner, a Hairdresser, a Cook ….).

- Partial qualification – ability to perform a work activity or several work activities, which provide

opportunity to apply for a job (e.g. Installation and repair of gas equipment, Ice cream production, Men

Hairdressing).

Partial qualifications can form a part of an entire qualification. This will happen in cases, that requirements for

a partial qualification form a subset of requirements for an entire qualification. E.g. a partial qualification of Ice-

cream production is a part of the entire qualification of a Confectioner. Requirements of the world of work for

education sphere will be formulated through both entire and partial qualifications.

According to project aim, the NQF should act as a bridge between the world of labour and unformal on-the-job

education, but its use in practice shows that reaching this aim is far from reality This is due to the poor and

undervalued marketing of project results, poor communication with both target groups and the fact that only

minimal number of job seekers and employers have been encouraged to use this tool.

Professional history

According to collected statistic data more than 65% cratftsmen were previously employed in the same craft

profession. On the other side, the number of craftsmen who decided to work in their specific craftwork

because of some family tradition is extremely low and varies around 15% only.

Perspectives: growth targets (or others objectives?)

Very few craftsmen and small entrepreneurs have clear goals and plans for further development, but rather

present obstacles that prevent them from doing so. The most mentioned “plans“ for future can be formulated

as

- survival

- to find enough customers

- retain the possibility to do the work I do now

In fact only by younger craftsmen and entrepreneurs up to 40 years of age can be identified in making an effort

as to:

- expanding the business


- buying new equipment

- finding a new gap on the market

The biggest mentioned problems for the further development of business are the following:

- excessive bureaucracy associated with doing business in the country (eg. work law,

trade legislation, etc..)

- high taxes and levies

- lack of basic technical infrastructure and poor accessibility of particular in rural regions

- high pressure and unfair competetion from big companies and multinational chains and competition

from countries with cheap labor

- lack of purchasing power in rural regions

- lack of qualified employees who are trained in the relevant field of business

- lack of a legal framework that would insure return of business resources invested in own employees

education

- young people leaving for work in the cities

- small overview of the available support for entrepreneurs, offering regional, national or European

intervention programs

- skepticism about the possibility of using bank loans for further development

Business form

Craft activities can be performed, according to Trades Licensing Act, by private individual entrepreneurs

holding the necessary trade license.

Sector (sectorial distribution, geographical concentration, dynamics, ... )

There is no official statistical evidence of craft professions according to their industrial or business sectors.

Statistical data are collected and elaborated only in relation to small entrepreneurship in the whole.

Concerning to these statistics the structure of active individual etrenpreneurs according to selected sectors is

shown in the following table:

Agriculture, forestry and fishing 5,6

Manufacturing 15,5

Construction 14,0


Trade, repairs, hotels and restaurants, 28,0

Transportation 4,8

Real estate, research, development 19,5

Other 12,4

Total 100,0

Size (employment, employees, finance, ...)

In regards to employment in the craft sector no statistical evidence exists.

On the topic of finance some individual research shows that 87% of respondents have secured funding to aid

with the set up of their own businesses and 27% mentioned financial support from family and friends. Only a

very small percentage of the start-up enterprises used bank loans, which probably indicates a very unfavorable

conditions for start-ups by financial institutions.

Market channels and forms of promotion

All possible and existing channels and ways are used – from sales from their home or workplace “from the

yard“ to shops, markets, e-shops, trough retail and wholesale.

In regards to promotion and gaining new customers, both craftsmen and their customers appreciate word of

mouth. In both groups more than 55% of respondents mentioned personal recommendation as the most

valuable and most useful way to promote craftsmen services and products. Another appreciated and widely

used promotion channel are socialmedia, especially in sectors of handicrafts and services, seminars and

training targeted to marketing on social mediaare the most required from the group of small entrepreneurs

and craftsmen.

Another often used way for selling and promoting handicrafts and traditional food products are craft and

farmers markets, events and exhibitions.

3 Crafts in terms of sustainable economy

How artisan address the topic of sustainable development

Understanding and addressing sustainable topics depends fully on individual attitudes of the craftsmen. There

are some small amounts of craftsmen following sustainable topics in the frame of some widder inititatives -


researches show that only about 12% of craftsmen and small entrepreneurs cooperate in their activities with

another subjects as public administration, NGOs and another institutions. Mostly in rural areas we can find

intiatives ( as LAGs operating under the LEADER initiative ) aiming to imporove and encourage sustainable and

smart development within rural communities and destinations.

The main aims in such cases are saving cultural and historical traditions, providing the resources to put human

skills in the place and ensuring the highest understanding of sustainability is visible by the craftsmen

manufacturing agriculture products

Another case is that sustainable attitudes are connected with financial issues – saving energy, reducing and

recycling waste, using more environment friendly cleaning agents etc, but many of them are done without

knowledge of sustainable philosophy.

Law provisions of sustanability in crafts

No law provision in regards to sustainability in the crafts sector exist in the Czech Republic.

4 Polity and Policies

The polity of the crafts: defining identity and extensions of fields (from fine arts to handcraft)

„As was mentined in chapter 7 of the Czech Statistical Office document, “Classification of occupations CZ ISCO“

implemented from 1.1.2011, under the 5 subgroups there are about 600 individual crafts professions from all

sectors of handicrafts and crafts generally.

The craftsman and his interests: organizations, powers and governance

In regards to artisan crafts, individual craftsmen are associated in NGO Folk Crafts aiming to support and

protect the very traditional histrical handicrafts - www.lidovaremesla.cz ; In general the professional bodies for

entrepreneurs and craftsmen are the Chambers of Commerceces, which are in the Czech Republic not

managed centrally but operate as independent bodies under the special law on regional and subregional level.

Is Corporate social responsibility known and protected?

The topic of social responsibility is targeted in same way as the topic of sustainability - only a small percentage

of craftsmen think about it and act in this direction.

Are local communities considering that helping craft to think is better than to facilitate?


They don´t think about it in this way, at this time handicrafts are fully connected with rural development

through tourism and within this highly supported from local tourism authorities and from time to time also

from public administration.

What policies for crafts?

The main topics which have to be included into policies are:

- simplifying of business bureaucracy

- support in promotion

- support in start-ups of microbussinesses

- protection against unfair competition of global companies



IN GREECE


This report will focus mainly in the sector of silversmiths in Ioannina Region as this sector is very important one

in our region and is among the most well-known Greek craft sector around the world.

1 Vision of crafts

Who can be considers as a craftsman in Greece?

The answer to the question “which professions” are craftwork and/or silversmiths is given in Greece using the

Statistical Classification of Professions (STEP). The Statistical Classification of Professions provides a system of

classification and grouping of information relating to professions and derived either from the Censuses of

Population, other surveys or from administrative sources. This Statistical Classification of professions in Greece

is called STEP-92 and is in accordance to ISCO-88(COM).

In order to harmonise the statistics on professions in member countries the European Union (EU) established

the ISCO-88(COM), which is based on ISCO-88 with few exceptions in both number of groups of occupations,

and in some definitions categories (managers, civil servants, etc..). These changes were made in order to

reflect, as completely as possible, the structure of the labour market in the EU countries. The ISCO-88 (COM)

was then used as a template for the development or revision of national classifications of occupations in the

countries - members of the EU.

According to Greek Laws if someone wishes to be active as a liberal professional in the field of silversmithing

and wishes to open his own workshop and store, no license is required. There is also not a obligation for

someone wishing to be a craftsman in the field of silversmithing to follow a typical training or education.

If someone wishes to be active in the field he can be trained and gain knowledge and experience by

undertaking an apprenticeship alongside an experienced craftsman or silversmith's workshop or gemmology,

but also through the education provided in the respective disciplines of Technical Vocational Schools (TEE) run

by the Ministry of Education or the post-secondary vocational schools (IEK).

According to Greek Laws all craftsmen active in the sector are obligated to be member of the Chamber of

Commerce of their region. Nowadays in Greece there is a strong discussion on the abolition of that obligation.


Ioannina is probably the centre of silver craft making of Greece with a long term tradition. The art of

silversmithing (silver craft making) appears to have been prosperous since the period of the Despotate of

Epirus in the 13th century. Today silver crafts are mainly made for visiting tourists however they are not the

only tourist product of the region.. About 85% of the buyers are foreigners (not local) consumers, who prefers

mainly traditional silver jewellery.

Throughout the last decade of the 18th century Ioannina was the most important economic and cultural centre

of Northwest Greek world.

In 1812 the guild of silversmiths in the city of Ioannina was constituted of 54 members, and in the period 1812

to 1815 there were 34 silverware workshops in the area.

The latter decades of the 19th century were followed by stagnation and then the contraction of artisanal

production, as the result of market penetration of western Europe in the Greek area. During this period, the

massive importation of Italian, French and Austrian mainly artisanal products triggered a new crisis while the

fire of 1869 gave a mortal blow to the sector.

During the period of Ali Pasha of Ioannina the silversmiths founded branches in many parts of W. Europe,

mainly in Italy which was easily accessible from the ports of Epirus.

During the Greek revolution, unions lost their power and silversmiths, due to unbearable times and the overall

situation, could not produce and export quality silver items.

The figure below show the number of craftsmen in the region throughout the centuries.


Figure 1: craftsmen through centuries

Ioannina has a long tradition in the training of silversmiths. In 1928 the Silversmiths' School of Ioannina has

founded, however it closed shortly after in 1940.

In 1959 the New Silversmiths' School of Ioannina (administratively affiliated to the Ministry of Labour) was

founded which was subsequently closed in 1983.

As will be shown and explained later on this research report the training of the new silversmiths is based on the

theme person to person, with the experience and techniques passing throughout the years from the old

craftsmen to the new one.



This research report on “The sector of silversmithing in Ioannina – Greece” is based mainly on a survey

conducted in 2007. The survey was the main activity of the final years project of Mrs. Arvaniti Panoraio during

her studies at Harokopio University of Athens in the Department of The Science of Home Economics.

The survey was based on field research conducted in the Centre of Traditional Workshop of Ioannina’

(KE.PA.V.I. S.A.), in silversmith workshops and in retail stores in the city of Ioannina.The research was

undertaken between November 2006 and March 2007 with a sample size of 60 participants.

The survey was conducted through questionnaires addressed to professionals and was enriched with data from

literature sources and interviews conducted with stakeholders and professionals of silversmith industry.

During the completion of the questionnaires professional silver and goldsmiths had some reluctance towards

the researcher, however, according to the results of the survey, all the respondents who replied to the

questions, and expressed their interest to be informed about the results.

The questionnaire includes demographics and specific issues with reference to the silversmithing sector and its

prospects.

The first question of the survey was about the gender of the surveyed persons. Of the the people surveyed the

vast majority (95%) were men, the remaining 5% were women. It seems that the art of silversmithing remains

traditionally male-dominated, although the physical strength required for some of the work can now be

replaced by the use of modern machinery.

Figure 2: gender of the surveyed persons


The predominant age the survey participants was between 42-49 years old (38%), followed by people over 50

years old (32%). People with aged between 34-41 years represented 20% while only 10% percent were younger

ages, (26-33 years old).

It is clear that the majority of the people active in the field of silversmithing are old people while the young

people entering the profession are the minority.

Figure 3: Age of the surveyed persons

Regarding the place of origin of the respondents, 38% stated that they came from Ioannina and the rest, 62%,

came from other nearby areas generally the villages of Ioannina or Epirus. These areas could not be record on

the chart as it was different for everyone therefore these answers were pooled as “other” areas outside

Ioannina.

Figure 4: Place of Origin


The next question concerned the place of residence. 80% said that they stayed in Ioannina and the remaining

20% in other areas. These areas could not be record on the chart as it was different for everyone and thiswas

therefore pooled as “other” areas outside Ioannina.

Figure 5: Place of residence

The large numbers of firms are based in the city of Ioannina. 67% of those surveyed undertook their

silversmithing activities in central parts of the city. The remaining 33% of the firms were located in areas

around the town which are tourist attractions.

Figure 6: Company headquarters


The majority of those surveyed (55%) said they were graduates of the Technical School of Silversmithing. 23%

of the sample indicates that were secondary school graduates while the remaining 22% said that they only

attend primary school.

Figure 7: Educational Level

The next question referred to whether respondents worked full or part time in the sector. All respondents

(100%) stated that silversmith was their main occupation.

Figure 8: Employment status

The next two questions referred to the types of business and products made. Only 8% of the respondents

stated that they were dealing only with the trading of the products. 40% responded that they were employed


in the fields of manufacturing and sales while 52% were employed in the fields of manufacturing trading and

sales.

Figure 9: business type

The figure below shows the the results of the surveyin regards to the different products made by craftsmen.

Figure 10: products made

All respondents stated that buyers of their products are mainly foreign consumers (85% Greeks and foreigners)

who visit the area either as tourists or they buy items through exports channels, while the 15% of the buyers

are locals, meaning mostly the inhabitants of the region of Ioannina.


Figure 11: Buyers profile

The table sbelow shows the breakdown of what products are most popular to purchase.

Figure 12: most popular purchases

The majority of respondents, 90%, stated they were married, remaining 10% were single. Those identifying

themselves as single were mainly the younger people at the beginning of their career.


Figure 13: family status

The highest percentage, approximately 50%, of silversmith companies who were undertaking their business in

the region of Ioannina during the time of the survey were established between 1971 and 1980. Between 1981-

1990 35% of the silversmith companies were founded and between 1991 -2000 10.5% were founded.

Figure 14: foundation year

20% of the respondents stated that the annual turnover of their company ranged from €0- 50,000, 35% stated

that their annual turnover was €50,001-100,000 and 10% indicated their annual turnover was over €150,001.

The remaining 35% of the survey stated that their turnover ranged from €100,001-150,000. It is important to

highlight here that the research took place before the financial crisis of Greece.


Figure 15: Annual Turnover

The findings regarding the investments in the field of silversmithing are shown in figure 16 below. It is

important to highlight that these figures stand for the five years before the survey. That means that figures

could be different now as a result of the financial crisis in Greece.

Figure 16: Investments

90% of the companies were family run business, within that 40% of those that responded stated that their

children did not wish to undertake the running of the company in the future while the other 60% stated that

they did.


Figure 17: business type

Figure 18: descendant’s volition

According to respondent’s answers 77% of them have participated in a training course/period regarding

silversmithing.


Figure 19: Participation in training courses

In regards to the key question for this research on the sustainability of the business 52% of respondents were

optimistic and apparently satisfied with the situation so far, however the remaining 48% appeared frustrated

and responded negatively relative to expectations on the viability of creating more sustainable businesses. At

the same time 23% of respondents believe that their profession is not benefited from tourism, while 77%

appeared more optimistic on the matter and indicated that the silverware in the region was favoured by

tourists.

Figure 20: Expectations for the Sustainability


Figure 21: Tourism as a favourable wind for the sector



IN ITALY


1 What "vision" of crafts

The institutional context

In Italy craft is essentially identified as applying formal and quantitative law-abiding criteria either from

national laws or from regional ones.

Sizes, sectors of activity and degree of participation of the entrepreneur in the process of industrial

transformation or in the process of supply of services qualify the specificity of craft enterprises compared to

other enterprises.

Therefore craft enterprises are generally considered as the ones in which the broad experience of the

entrepreneur substitutes the strength of automation and small scale production is justified against mass

production.

The widespread opinion that craft work can only be enjoyed in the traditional and typical production of a

special place or when it includes some artistic aspects comes from there. The rest of craft work is considered as

a last-minute resource which is often regarded as quality work but which is not appreciated as much for several

reasons; the unjustified cost of the service, the unlikable place of production and often the craftsman himself.

As a sequence the Italian legislation about apprenticeships, which is very interesting for craft enterprises,

evolved with an important delay. This has resulted in the majority of youngsters tending to underestimate the

avenue of becoming a craftsman as a possible job opportunity.

Nowadays Italian craftsmen appear in two different forms: those that concentrate on the production of good-

quality items and those who are focused on getting satisfaction from their work and give little importance to

their appearance and position in society.

The laws

According to Italian legislation L.443/85, a framework policy law on crafts, a craft company has the

predominant aim of producing goods or providing services. However farming, commercial services,


intermediation in goods circulation or subsidiary services and public food and beverage administration are

excluded from this definition.

There are craft enterprises in all economic sectors and in all territorial areas. These are the prevailing types:

a) Clothing

b) Food

c) Furniture

d) Traditional artistic handicraft

e) Transportations

f) Car repairs

g) Constructions

h) Installation and maintenance

i) Engineering

j) Services to people (beauty, hairdressing etc.)

k) Textiles

Craftsmen can work as individuals, as a company or co-op, on the condition that the majority of partners (or

just one if there are only two partners) contributes to the productive process with individual and/or manual

work, and that work is predominant against capital within the enterprise. Capital companies (both joint stock

and those limited by shares) are excluded from the craft sector.

It should be noted that an individual craftsman can own only one craft company.

Therefore on the above context artisan entrepreneur is a person who as owner of the craft company assumes

the full responsibility, burdens and risks related to the company management as well as those incurred while

performing his/her professional activity and throughout the production process.

Limits to employees in the craft company

Craft companies can also use subordinate workers, conducted personally by the artisan entrepreneur or

his/her partners, provided that they do not exceed the following limitations:


a) A company which doesn’t use mass-production systems can have a maximum of 18 employees, including up

to 9 apprentices. The number of employees can be increased up to 22 provided that the additional individuals

are apprentices;

b) A company not using fully automated mass production systems can have a maximum of 9 employees,

including up to 5 apprentices. The number of employees can be increased up to 12 provided that the additional

individuals are apprentices;

c) A company operating in the field of artistic and traditional handicraft or tailor-made clothing can have a

maximum of 32 employees, including up to 16 apprentices. The number of employees can be increased up to

40 provided that the additional individuals are apprentices. Artistic and traditional handicraft and tailor-made

clothing sectors will be defined by law, in accordance with Regions and National Crafts Council, with a

legislative decree by the Republic President;

d) Transportation companies can have a maximum of 8 employees;

e) Building companies can have a maximum of 10 employees, including up to 5 apprentices. The number of

employees can be increased up to 14 provided that the additional individuals are apprentices.

General legislation

In compliance with Article 117 of the Italian Constitution, regions issue rules concerning handicrafts are issued

from the regions, within the framework provided by L. 443/85 and subsequent amendments and additions.

In particular regions the adopted measures are aimed at safeguarding and developing handicrafts and

enhancing craft production, under all its territorial, artistic and traditional expressions, using some of the

following instruments:

a) Facilities in accessing credit

b) Technical assistance

c) Vocational training

d) Applied research

e) Facilities to the activation of networks

f) Craft districts settlement

g) Facilities in exporting goods

Usually, regions exercise their administrative functions delegating them to sub-regional authorities (provinces).


A craftsman’s function in the contemporary age

From a numerical point of view handicraft constitute the “hard core” of the Italian production system and

make up the majority of SMEs. Italian SMEs are an important part of the production system and of the

contracting chains, since they provide sub-contracting services and third parties manufacturing in those fields

where very particular competences and a strong flexibility are required by client enterprises. This assures them

a lower incidence of costs, a reduction in investments and lower risks and financial needs. The same thing is

true for craft firms: these are active not only in the traditional and/or artistic sectors but also have a significant

presence in manufacturing (and as suppliers of services).

As stated in a previous report about the craft sector within Italy “the transition from industrial to post-

industrial society handicrafts emerged as a fundamental choice in order to keep and qualify one’s own social

and cultural identity: a choice of creativity in carrying out one’s own work and a choice of professional ethics in

company management, in which participation, individualisation, small groups contribution and, most of all,

entrepreneurs professional skills are appreciated”.

Research undertaken about the development of production organisations show that there are several

connections between small enterprises belonging to district networks and handicrafts activities. These

connections include historic-cultural, educational, financial and productive; however they are differently

intended and evaluated. Since flexibility costs competitiveness and small enterprises adaptability are tied to

quite strong processes of decentralisation and specialisation, where artisan enterprise usually is the last link in

the chain.

New technologies in craftwork activities

The importance of ICTs in the productive process

A major asset to determine the competitiveness of the firms and their medium-term and long-term survival is

the ICT: the way it is used in the firm can have a significant impact on the processes and on the productivity.

The level of acceptance of these tools was the topic of recent research by the Observatory ICT & PMI of the

School of Management of Engineering of Milan. The research analysed a survey of over 1000 Italian companies

employing between 10 and 500 people. The results of the study showed that 81% of those companies use an

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) management system to support their own administrative activities. A


considerable increase in the use of the Business Intelligence tools in all the dimensional classes was also

noticed. Nevertheless the use of more innovative applications such as cloud ones (also called “as a Service”)

remains marginal.

The main obstacle to the diffusion is based on the difficulties to integrate the application with the numerous

business databases which are used to implement the development of the business and generate reports or

dashboards. Moreover the situation is worsened by the high level of fragmentation and disintegration of the

data characterised by the IT structure of many Italian SMEs. The use of the Customer Relationship

Management (CRM) applications varies from 9% for small companies to 24% for companies with more than

250 employees; the highest percentages come from middle-sized companies working in the area of services

(for instance, expert advice services, media etc) and trade wholesale distribution. Researchers highlight that

one company in three uses an application of Human Resources management. Most of all the small-sized

companies use tools to manage the business and market changes and in a few cases the calculation of the

wages. Only large-sized companies start to use more complex applications to manage the selection, recruiting

and training activities.

The use of ICTs is not consistent with geographical distribution, production sectors and enterprises size.

However, IT has been only recently introduced in artisan enterprises. Production processes still have, as a

distinctive feature, a small-size (also given the small size of each enterprise) and automation is never pushed

beyond a certain limit; therefore production is still strongly characterised by hand-craft processing. Services

outsourcing (for administrative, fiscal and technical services) means that existing innovations are managed by

skilled staff external to the enterprise.

We can observe that the high level of dependence from the outsourced services is a big issue for the craft

sector: in fact craftsmen are unable to make an analysis of costs and have a clear vision of their internal

process from a managerial point of view.

The very low level of usage of ICT technologies by the small and very small-sized companies can’t be ignored

anymore a serious analysis about the digital revolution in Italy.

However some more dynamic realities appear. For instance we can observe a more positive situation in the

Piedmont Region: in the last few years in the craft enterprises a progressive adaptation to the minimum

standard required by the market has been noticed. In 2012, 85% of the companies use a PC and 82% use the

Internet; almost 40% of companies have their own website.


The computerisation of the external business relations is especially interesting with 55% taking up online

banking, 38% of the firms are using the network for supplies and 33% to interact with the customers. Only 20%

communicate online with the public authorities (a lower value than the one taken from the last survey of the

Observatory referring to enterprises with more than 10 employees), but with a rapid increase since 2006.

Considering indicators changing from 2006 to 2012 it is interesting to study how the use of the Internet within

craft enterprise has become more utilised in supply chain relations and more directly involved in the

productive activity (clients and suppliers) than in the relations with the bank institutes.

In the end it appears that the process of technological adjustment seems faster in the first few years of the

crisis (2009-2010). From this point of view we can affirm that it is the crisis itself which activated an

acceleration of the adjustment.

Tab.4 – Connection through Internet to clients, suppliers, banks and to the PA within the craft enterprises in

Piedmont Region from 2000 to 2012 (*)

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Customers 4,7 11,9 2,9 9,0 6,3 4,9 4,9 7,0 13,3 17,3 26,9 30,1 33,2

Suppliers 4,4 13,2 4,0 9,7 6,6 5,8 5,3 8,3 15,2 22,0 32,0 34,0 38,0

Banks 13,0 21,4 27,8 45,8 53,7 52,2 54,9

P.A. 0,6 2,6 6,4 14,0 15,0 14,9 19,5

Source: Observatory Craftsmanship-Sector Informative System of the Productive Activity from the Piedmont

Region

*The revelation of the data starts from 2006

Fig. 3 – Connection through the Internet to clients, suppliers, banks and to the PA within the craft enterprises in

Piedmont Region from 2000 to 2012 (*)


0,0

10,0

20,0

30,0

40,0

50,0

60,0

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Customers Suppliers Banks P.A.

Source: Observatory Craftsmanship-Sector Informative System of the Productive Activity from the Piedmont

Region

*The revelation of the data concerning Banks and PA starts from 2006

On the other hand one should consider that distance learning in Italy, while supported by several projects and

funds, is still a comparatively young tool. To introduce this kind of teaching and make it familiar to craftsmen

has to be considered a very difficult task.

To date there is not a general structure that provides e-learning training on a stable basis, least of all with

methodologies and courses especially aimed for craftsmen. However, it is possible to identify some significant

examples in distance training.


Craftwork activities within the educational system

From the legal point of view, in general, there is no specific educational requirement needed for exercise

activities as a craftsman. Such training is only required to carry out specific activities that involve taking

responsibility for the protection and security of customers, in these cases the artisan entrepreneur must

possess all technical and professional requirements set by national law.

Activities regulated by law concern the following:

a) Energy


b) Radio and TV

c) Heating, air conditioning and refrigeration

d) Plumbing and bathroom suite

e) Gas distribution and use

f) Elevators, goods lifts, escalators and similar

g) Fire protection

Also the personal care field is regulated by similar laws that require professional qualifications for its workers.

The following types of higher education public institutes are connected, in different ways, to vocational training

for craft sector:

· Professional schools (divided into a three-years starting course and a two-years additional optional period)

· Art schools

· Five-years technical schools

· Training course for subjects in compulsory education

Of particular interest, for the purposes of our project, are five-years professional schools courses, aimed at the

achievement of secondary school diplomas. The still ongoing education reform divides them in two main areas:

Professional schools in the service area:

a) Services for farming and rural development

b) Services for maintenance and technical assistance

c) Health and social services

d) Services for wine and food gastronomy and hotels

e) Commercial services

Professional schools for industry and handicrafts:

a) Artisan and industrial production

b) Services for maintenance and technical assistance

Professional school courses end with a final examination, according to the law in force about examinations for

secondary high schools. Getting through this examination is a mandatory requirement for entering University

and schools of higher education for arts, music and dance, higher technical schools and technical training.


Handicrafts and training

A short school training and an emphasis upon on-the-job training are the typical methods of the training of

entrepreneurs and workers of handicraft sectors.

Entering a craftsman’s workshop was traditionally, and still is now, considered the main option for young

people who are encountering problems concerning juvenile delinquency and school drop-outs.

Traditional tendency towards learning on the job can be emphasised in the future thanks to the opportunity to

spend the final year of compulsory education (between the age of 15 and 16) in an apprenticeship, as provided

in a recently approved government decree.

In fact, it will become possible to start working as apprentice already at the age of 15. Companies employing

teenage workers are primarily and typically those belonging to the craft sector, including less skilled ones.

Barriers and/or difficulties for accessing training

Operators from public and private training systems are unable to effectively reach craft workers.

The distance from craftsmen world is explained by the following reasons:

· Training is perceived as a cost for the enterprise (in terms of time and money).

· Widespread conservative attitude, even in younger generations, which restrains the introduction of process

and management innovations, the adoption of non-traditional technologies and the introduction of skilled

workers.

· Difficulty for enterprises in accessing information.

· Organisational difficulties, related to a very small enterprise size, to the number of workers, and to production

organisation.

· Lack of flexibility in training courses, bureaucracy, and long implementation times.

· Extreme need for training customisation.

· Difficulty in bringing into focus training needs, especially for concerns involving innovative issues.

There is a general distrust towards external training, which is opposed to a “traditionalist” trust in the chance

to transmit professional techniques and culture from father to son, from craftsman to apprentice, from

customer to sub-contractor, as it happens in the field of more traditional handicraft. In Italy the only training

common in the majority of enterprises are the mandatory ones (health and safety etc).

The shared vision of the question of "training" sees the central nodes as following:


a) It’s difficult for a firm to send workers to a training program, because that will significantly hamper the

production;

b) It’s easier when the courses are opened to more enterprises so that workers from different realities can

participate.

- Craft enterprises from 2001 to 2013

The number of enterprises in Italy at has dropped significantly from 1,399,000 in 2001 to 1,396,000 in 2013.

In the year 2008 there was a dramatic decrease within the craft enterprises which were more heavily hit by the

financial turmoil than the other types of firms.

Fig.1 – Active craft enterprises in Italy (2001-2013)

4,500

4,800

5,100

5,400

1,300

1,400

1,500

1,600

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Artisan enterprises Total enterprises

As a consequence of the different evolutions in the last years the overall quota of craft enterprise clearly

decreases. (FIG. n. 2)

Fig.2 – Quota effects expressed in percentage of active craft enterprises over the total enterprises in Italy

(2001-2013)


26,0

26,5

27,0

27,5

28,0

28,5

29,0

29,5

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

% Linear trend

The two figures highlight the difficulties the handicraft sector faced due to the economic crisis which negatively

impacted European economies, particularly the Italian one, between 2008 and 2013.

The analysis of the main flux by enterprise juridical categories makes the identification of the craft most critic

point of the: the weakness of the corporate physiognomy characterises a major part of the enterprises

belonging to this sector.

Overall enterprises and artisan enterprises by productive sector

2012

Sectors Enterprises Total Artisans enterprises

N° % * % N° % * %

A: Farming, forestry and

fishing 818.283 13,4 -2,3 10.221 0,7 -1,2

B, C, D and E: Mining,

manufacturing and

quarrying and other

industry 630.126 10,3 -1,5 342.844 23,8 -2,2

Of which: C: manufacturing 606.126 9,9 -1,9 339.455 23,6 -2,2

F: Construction 894.028 14,7 -1,4 571.336 39,7 -2,2

G, H and I: Wholesale and

retail trade, transportation 2.128.139 34,9 0,3 236.110 16,4 -1,1


and storage,

accommodation and food

service activities

J: Information and

communication 126.491 2,1 1,0 11.542 0,8 3,1

K: Financial and insurance

activities 116.335 1,9 -0,4 121 0,0 -9,0

L: Real estate activities 282.238 4,6 0,3 200 0,0 -2,4

M and N: Professional,

scientific, technical,

administration and

support service activities 357.506 5,9 2,2 68.252 4,7 2,9

O, P and Q: Public

administration, defence,

education, human health

and social work activities 61.772 1,0 2,4 3.054 0,2 -0,3

R, S, T and U: Other

services 299.504 4,9 0,6 192.849 13,4 -0,6

Activity n.e.c. 378.736 6,2 1,6 2.072 0,1 1,7

Total 6.093.158 100,0 -0,3 1.438.601 100,0 -1,5

* Total number = 100

2013

Sectors Enterprises Total Artisans enterprises

N° % * % N° % * %

A: Farming, forestry and

fishing 785.352 13,0 -4,0 10.101 0,7 -1,2

B, C, D and E: Mining,

manufacturing and

quarrying and other 621.559 10,3 -1,4 334.652 23,8 -2,4


industry

Of which: C: manufacturing 596.230 9,8 -1,6 331.344 23,5 -2,4

F: Construction 875.598 14,4 -2,1 552.460 39,2 -3,3

G, H and I: Wholesale and

retail trade, transportation

and storage,

accommodation and food

service activities 2.137.562 35,3 0,4 232.610 16,5 -1,5

J: Information and

communication 127.508 2,1 0,8 11.734 0,8 1,7

K: Financial and insurance

activities 119.086 2,0 2,4 117 0,0 -3,3

L: Real estate activities 286.594 4,7 1,5 236 0,0 18,0

M and N: Professional,

scientific, technical,

administration and

support service activities 364.031 6,0 1,8 69.844 5,0 2,3

O, P and Q: Public

administration, defence,

education, human health

and social work activities 63.346 1,0 2,5 3.048 0,2 -0,2

R, S, T and U: Other

services 301.150 5,0 0,5 191.362 13,6 -0,8

Activity n.e.c. 380.174 6,3 0,4 1.604 0,1 -22,6

Total 6.061.960 100,0 -0,5 1.407.768 100,0 -2,1

* Total number = 100

The sectors in which the craft enterprises face more difficulties than the others can be recognized in the table

n.3. They are the industrial, construction and restoration sectors.

Overall enterprises and artisan enterprises by region (absolute values, growth rate and percentages).

2012


Region Enterprises Total* Artisan enterprises* Percentage

N° (a) Growth

rate

N° (b) Growth

rate

(b/a)

Piemonte 461.564 -1,3 133.134 -1,8 28,8

Valle d'Aosta 13.896 -0,2 4.121 -2,3 29,7

Lombardia 952.013 -0,3 263.955 -1,4 27,7

Trentino A. A. 109.632 -0,4 26.758 -0,5 24,4

Veneto 500.011 -1,1 139.129 -1,9 27,8

Friuli V. G. 108.530 -1,0 29.786 -1,9 27,4

Liguria 167.225 -0,2 47.634 -0,4 28,5

Emilia Romagna 472.849 -0,6 140.305 -1,7 29,7

Toscana 416.154 -0,3 114.135 -2,4 27,4

Umbria 96.138 -0,1 23.372 -2,0 24,3

Marche 176.555 -0,6 50.065 -1,1 28,4

Lazio 615.736 1,2 102.529 -0,2 16,7

Abruzzo 150.548 -0,5 35.147 -2,9 23,3

Molise 35.237 -0,7 7.417 -1,8 21,0

Campania 561.084 0,7 74.257 -1,2 13,2

Puglia 383.592 -0,6 76.668 -1,4 20,0

Basilicata 60.935 -1,0 11.581 -2,1 19,0

Calabria 179.126 -1,0 36.122 -2,1 20,2

Sicilia 463.525 0,0 82.388 -1,3 17,8

Sardegna 168.808 -0,4 40.098 -2,6 23,8

ITALIA 6.093.158 -0,3 1.438.601 -1,5 23,6

2013:

Region EnterprisesTotal Artisan enterprises Percentage

N° (a) Growth

rate

N° (b) Growth

rate

(b/a)

Piemonte 454.613 -1,5 129.755 -2,5 28,5


Valle d'Aosta 13.544 -2,5 4.055 -1,6 29,9

Lombardia 949.631 -0,3 258.739 -2,0 27,2

Trentino A. A. 109.366 -0,2 26.546 -0,8 24,3

Veneto 493.176 -1,4 135.838 -2,4 27,5

Friuli V. G. 107.418 -1,0 29.445 -1,1 27,4

Liguria 164.901 -1,4 46.017 -3,4 27,9

Emilia Romagna 468.318 -1,0 137.108 -2,3 29,3

Toscana 414.563 -0,4 111.298 -2,5 26,8

Umbria 95.493 -0,7 22.748 -2,7 23,8

Marche 175.617 -0,5 49.081 -2,0 27,9

Lazio 622.221 1,1 101.504 -1,0 16,3

Abruzzo 149.334 -0,8 34.080 -3,0 22,8

Molise 35.019 -0,6 7.201 -2,9 20,6

Campania 561.732 0,1 74.175 -0,1 13,2

Puglia 380.243 -0,9 74.729 -2,5 19,7

Basilicata 60.260 -1,1 11.370 -1,8 18,9

Calabria 178.789 -0,2 35.161 -2,7 19,7

Sicilia 459.967 -0,8 80.115 -2,8 17,4

Sardegna 167.755 -0,6 38.803 -3,2 23,1

ITALIA 6.061.960 -0,5 1.407.768 -2,1 23,2

* Number of enterprises enrolled in the administrative registers of the Chambers of Commerce

The tables above refers to the distribution of the craft enterprises on the basis of the productive sector in

which they are inserted (table n.3).


Size (employment, employees, finance, ...)

A statistical summary (2012)

Micro-enterprises with less than 10 employees: 4,583,109 (94.6 % of total enterprises)

Enterprises with less than 20 employees: 4,745,818 (97.9% of total enterprises)

People employed in enterprises with less than 10 employees: 8,934,494 (51.0% of total

employed people)

People employed in enterprises with less than 20 employees: 11,067,483 (58.9% of total

employed people)

Total sales of enterprises with less than 20 employees (2011): 1.140 thousand millions euros

Small enterprises (up to 50 employees): 4,814,054 (99.4% of total enterprises)

People employed in small enterprises (up to 50 employees): 13,097,744 (74.8% of total

employed people)

Artisans enterprises’ incidence on the total number of enterprises: 23.8%

Social incidence of crafts enterprises: 24.7 craft companies every 1,000 inhabitants;

Artisan entrepreneurs: 1,945,731, of which 1,780,387 owners and 165,344 partners

Female artisan entrepreneurs: 375,731 (19.3% of total), of which 306,718 owners and 69,013

partners

Young artisan entrepreneurs (under 35):358,328 (18,4% of all artisan entrepreneurs), of which

69,912 women.

People employed in craft sector: 1,547,962

People working in craft enterprises: 3,210,793 (18,3% of total workers)

Average size: 2.6 employees

Artisan enterprises value added: 175.6 thousand millions euros (12.8% of national value

added)

Artisan enterprises exports (2012): 25,9 thousand millions euros (9.1% of national total

exports)

2012:

Legal form Registrations Cessation

s

Balance Stock * Growth rate

(%)


2012 2011

Enterprises total 383.883 403.923 - 20.040 6.093.158 - 0,3 -

Capital companies 76.337 55.657 20.680 1.411.747 1,9 2,5

Partnerships 40.880 55.349 - 14.469 1.133.660 - 1,5 - 1,5

One-man companies 254.194 282.367 - 28.173 3.337.587 - 0,8 - 0,4

Other 12.472 11.550 922 210.164 0,5 - 1,2

of which: artisan enterprises

Total 100.313 122.899 - 22.586 1.438.601 - 1,5 - 0,7

Capital companies 5.396 3.979 1.417 59.997 4,6 6,5

Partnerships 10.118 14.445 - 4.327 252.039 - 2,2 - 1,7

One-man companies 84.318 104.026 - 19.708 1.121.994 - 1,7 - 0,8

Other 485 449 36 4.571 0,7 0,6

2013:

Legal form Registrations Cessation

s

Balance Stock * Growth rate

(%)

2013 2012

Enterprises total 384.483 414.970 - 30.487 6.061.960 - 0,5 - 0,3

Capital companies 83.972 53.182 30.791 1.443.732 2,3 1,9

Partnerships 34.212 54.153 - 19.941 1.111.735 - 1,9 - 1,5

One-man companies 244.925 295.437 - 50.512 3.287.456 -1,5 - 0.8

Other 21.374 12.179 9.175 219.037 4,2 0,5

of which: artisan enterprises

Total 92.853 123.685 - 30.832 1.407.768 - 2,1 - 1.5

Capital companies 6.213 4.262 + 1.951 62.809 4,7 4.6

Partnerships 9.579 14.843 - 5.264 245.912 -2,4 - 2.2

One-man companies 75.616 104.100 -27.584 1.094.421 - 2,5 - 1.7

Other 545 480 65 4.626 1,2 0,7

* Number of enterprises enrolled in the administrative registers of the Chambers of Commerce


Another significant aspect deals with the diversity of the percentage quota regarded for the 20 Italian regions.

Table n.2. Shows an obvious diversity between regions like Campania where the incidence of the craft

enterprise over the total enterprise is equal at 16.3% and regions like Valle d’Aosta and Emilia Romagna where

the value of the percentage is around 30%.

3 The "issues" of a good sounded sustainable economy

Italian craft enterprises and the challenge of sustainability

Small enterprises, particularly small craft enterprises, are considered natural candidates to develop productive

and cultural processes allowing the strengthening of the economic, industrial and civil saving system and the

diffusion of the production of sustainable energy from renewable resources. Small enterprises can indeed rely

on the capillarity, the presence of high skills all over the national territory and the network of users-clients able

to shift individual savings on a very wide scale. That is why it is natural to think that characteristics such as

quality, experience, professionalism and development of the territory, which are in the DNA of the

craftsmanship, have to be fostered and supported.

These are strategic features in the sense that they are fundamental resources for a growing and well-

functioning economy and because innovation is less and less the result of isolated enterprises which have

purely contractual relations with their workers, suppliers and clients: as it is repeatedly highlighted, the

innovative process highly depends of the capacity of coordinate different subjects in the framework of projects

and shared objectives. In fact, innovation always has represented the real engine of growth and the instrument

of competitiveness between countries compared to costs, the availability of raw materials and geographical

location.

Over the last two hundred years innovation has aimed to reduce the amount of work.

Here two examples:

1) The Club of the Energy is a site developed by the CNA of Bologna, with the participation of the local

Chambers of Commerce Industry Craft and Agriculture, which provides useful information about:

- Clean energy technologies, stating potential savings, fields of application, costs and other elements of

interest.

- Various tools for economic support (financing, fiscal subsidy or others) now available to support the

diffusion of those technologies.


For the craft enterprises and for the SMEs, but also for the families, the energy cost calls into question its

development.

The craft enterprises have to face the following challenge: the economic systems that will come out reinforced

from the crisis and that will succeed to guarantee environmental development and compatibility will be the

ones that will invest for the development of clean technologies and ecologic infrastructures, renewable

energies, energy efficiency, savings and in the meantime will spread those virtuous behaviours.

That is why Italy and especially the associations which represent the craft enterprises support more and more

the creation and the development of enterprises in the sectors of environmental sustainability, energy saving,

production of renewable sources of energy, and waste recycling.

Some relevant examples are the creation of the Club of Energy in Bologna; the project highlights the amount of

energy consumption of every single unit (family or firm) with the aim to reduce energy consumption through

“auto production” technologies of the thermal, electric and/or functional energy

1) PV plants are property-sharing systems of renewable energies that even the ones who don’t have the

possibility to settle can use. Basically the project is based on the idea of sharing between various

investors (especially users who don’t have an adequate residence or who live in a historical centre) of a

photovoltaic installation in which the public authorities commit to find a useful site for the community

and adequate to the creation of the installation and in which private investors get involved into the

construction.

2) Green construction in Treviso, an experimental project supported by an agreement protocol signed in

2007 by the Province, Chamber of Commerce and District of Green construction, extended in the

following years until the establishment in June 2010 of a specific consortium for the development of

the biologic construction with the following aims:

- Adoption and diffusion of a methodology of standard certification to create an internationally relevant

scientific organisation.

- Certification of the agencies and operators providing applicable buildings/solutions in the area of sustainable

construction, and also the training of quality engineers.

- Diffusion of quality trademark to the sustainable buildings, named EDILBIOCERTO, under the guarantee of the

Territory for all the operators involved


An even more well-structured, complex and relevant example is the one of the Parco Agricolo Sud of Milano

with its two network models of organisation for the sustainable and homogeneous territorial development.

This part of Lombardy is the starting point of an agreement between craft and agricultural enterprises sharing

the idea that the collaboration between the firms of a homogeneous territory can appraise the business

activity through the inclusion of practices of territorial development in a daily operational context. It can also

have an impact on the inner processes of the involved participants and increase the amount of knowledge

referred as a “positive summary” of everyone’s contribution.

Therefore the ReteParcoSud project has started a path of optimisation of the supply of network characterised

by an intense activity of debates and exchanges between the craft enterprises of the sustainable energy and

the agricultural sectors of the Parco Agricolo Sud Milano about very relevant and critical aspects of the

collaboration and development of common and shared proposals in a logic of “territorial capital”.

The project has decided to address the Lombard craft enterprises to foster the construction of a network with

the goals of a common market, provision of services to the agricultural world of the Park (P.A.S.M or Parco

Agricolo Sud Milano) and the cration of an innovative methodology of cooperation and attention to the

territory.

Therefore the indirect recipients of the ReteParcoSud project have become the agricultural firms, already living

in the Park and more generally the territory of the park and its consumers/users.

The opportunities given by a project such as the one of the Parco were an experimentation of new

collaboration methodologies are oriented to initiate new synergies in order to activate a virtuous circuit of

mutual advantages either between craft enterprises or between craft and agricultural enterprises.

Some specific objectives were particularly pursued to make different operation for the craftsmen possible.

- Creation of a collaborative network between the craft enterprises

- Development of services and products specifically thought for the agency from the Parco Agricolo Sud

Milano

- Collaboration with the agricultural agency into new entrepreneurial, cultural and environmental

projects

- Esteem of the Parco Agricolo Sud Milano and of the important environmental, social and economic

patrimony of the Milanese territory


- Construction and purchase of the network of agricultural and craft enterprises

- Qualification of the supply of services and products

- Achievement of an online platform to support the network

- Actions of communication and marketing.

From all the firms being part of an operational network, the “Art profession” firms were the most positive

towards the possibility of collaboration and the exchange of strategic knowledge and skills. Some of them even

participated in the environment of the association Arteinfiera to the fair "Fiera Fa La Cosa giusta" and are

planning common activities for the development of innovative products. A common proposal about

agritourism and the theme of furniture and accessories of furniture has been particularly developed and has

for result a value of the territorial specificity and the creation of a unique experience.


What policies for crafts?

A careful analysis of every case mentioned in the previous section instructs that a sustainable policy concerning

craft enterprises must intend to reach an important economic or cultural impact. The cultural basis of the work

must be rebuilt, taking care of the themes of the environmental sustainability, prevention and respect of the

counsel of the territory rules.

Some measures are necessary to reach such goals:

1) The reinforcement of the existing measures (energy certificates, white certificates, fiscal deductions) which

must establish fully operational behaviours and procedures.

2) The creation of a fund aiming to support the research and innovation of the PMI with simplified itineraries to

guarantee the introduction and the transfer of experimental research.

3) The introduction of awarding path (through easy procedures, overcome legal obstacles etc.) to favour the

production, commercialisation and use of products for life quality improvements and allow minor energy

consumption.

This will help enterprises exploring integration among different sectors and areas with the aim to multiply

business opportunities and facilitate in equipping with innovative tools necessary to operate in a critique and

unfavourable market.


As has been observed “the return of territorial centrality in the production of wealth and the creation of

competitive advantages (so that sustainable during time) plays an important role in the identification of an

innovative sustainable Italian model. Is not the territory in its generic sense, but the one characterised by

specify and unicity” This territory increasingly assumes the forms of cities and productive city, within which the

craft craftsman takes on a typical and distinctive role. It is no coincidence that as always, in the workshop

production, research and education have always been closely linked. Moving the attention to sustainability, the

initiatives of craft business can undertake major changes. Firstly the research of sustainability, of an

interdependent equilibrium between enterprises, societies, finance and territory and secondly responsibility

towards others and towards their social and natural environment are ways in which you became aware of the

negative effects of markets left without adjustment and of individuals willing to pursue private interests.

The challenge is the configuration of systems capable of reproduction in space and time, systems that make

their own culture and rules of sustainability, the sense of limits, the complexity and interdependence of the

environment in which they are inserted, in a horizon of possibilities and constraints.

In this direction sustainability is not optional but the horizon of an aware and healthy economy. Sometimes we

lost this horizon but it has profound roots in our culture: 2000 years ago Marco Aurelio warned: "each action

and thought produce social bonds and the strength of this bonds and cooperation is the only strength that can

redeem mankind”. The meaning of the power that Italian craft business wants to re-conquer pointing firmly

towards the shores of sustainability, energy balance and, more generally, innovation also in the manner of

access to educational processes.



IN PORTUGAL


1 What "vision" of crafts

Traditional arts form an important element in the life of communities since they provide a clear witness to a

series of expressions, knowledge and techniques that, more often than not, are born out of and developed

through an intimate relationship with the surrounding environmental, cultural and social context. Traditional

arts materialise, therefore, as subjects of a particular area, taking on and integrating with their surrounding

environment, thereby permitting a deeper and more precise understanding of the way of life in these

communities.

This linking to a specific regional context gives arts and crafts an identifying cultural stamp that is important to

emphasise since it is this characteristic that distinguishes them from undifferentiated industrial products.

Traditional arts therefore possess an intrinsic cultural value which constitutes, precisely, their competitive

advantage in relation to mass-produced goods destined for mass-consumption.

This cultural asset is especially evident in areas where the natural environment has its greatest impact, as is the

case with the municipalities which fall within the area of intervention of ADERE – Peneda Gerês, namely Ponte

da Barca, Arcos de Valdevez, Montalegre, Melgaço and Terras do Bouro. In these areas the exploration, the use

and dynamics of the surrounding natural environment acquire a fundamental status. In fact, the very survival

of these rural communities depends on this. It is this dependence which makes arts and crafts acquire, in these

areas, an even stronger connection with the surrounding conditions and thereby have an enormous potential

that needs to be appropriately explored.

From this comes the need to have a full picture of the arts and crafts activities currently existing in the area of

intervention of ADERE – Peneda Gerês (Melgaço, Terras de Bouro, Ponte da Barca, Arcos de Valdevez and

Montalegre). Only in this way will it become possible to put forward concrete proposals for interventions

designed to stimulate the arts and crafts sector in the region, taking as the start point its competitive benefits

and turning it into a sector of socio-economic and cultural relevance.

National policies for incentives, promotion, protection and development of craft activities are relatively recent

and so as yet there has been little reflection from their application.


According to Decree-Law n.º 41/2001, of 9th February, altered and republished as Decree-Law n.º 110/2002, of

16th April, craft activity is understood to be any “economic activity of recognised cultural and social value which

involves the production, restoration or repairing of goods having artistic or utilitarian value, of traditional or

contemporary origin, and the provision of services of a similar nature, together with the production and

traditional preparation of foodstuffs”. Equally an artisan is understood to be “a worker who exercises a craft

activity, dominating a group of inherent skills and techniques, which demand a strong aesthetic sense and

manual ability”.

The craft has an inseparable relationship with the territories they come, reflecting their characteristics and

differentiating them, constituting, as a whole, an identity factor of the country that it is to preserve and

promote.

Innovation and skills of craft production and the craft sector come from the learning process with craftsmen,

graduates, designers, public bodies, local development agents, cultural promoters and transnational partners.

This long and fruitful formative inducing activity of innovation and modernity in the arts and crafts in Portugal

creates a new generation of artisans who combine ancient production processes with new techniques and new

designs, reinventing forms and creating new uses for objects.


Age

The results of the age of the artisans, by municipality are as follows:

Terras de Bouro

30 / 39 years – 3

40 / 49 years – 8

50 / 59 years – 4

60 / 69 years – 4

70 / 79 years – 1

Montalegre

30 / 39 years – 1

40 / 49 years – 3


50 / 59 years – 3

60 / 69 years – 3

70 / 79 years – 4

80 / 89 years – 4

90 / 99 years – 2

Arcos de Valdevez

30 / 39 years – 3

40 / 49 years – 5

50 / 59 years – 5

60 / 69 years – 2

Ponte da Barca

40 / 49 years – 4

50 / 59 years – 1

60 / 69 years – 1

Melgaço

50/59 years – 1

60/69 years – 2

70/79 years – 1

In total, the age distribution can be summarised as follows:

o 7 artisans between 30/39 years






o 2 artisan between 90/99 years


Thus, the majority of artisans identified to date are found in the 40 to 49 years age group. The second largest

group is that with artisans aged between 50 and 59 years and, in third place those in their 60’s. Also apparent is

the sharp decrease in numbers of artisans who are aged between 40 and 49 years compared with those aged

between 30 and 39; there are 13 less in this latter group. This fact, together with the inexistence of artisans

below 30 years of age, raises concerns about the future of traditional arts and crafts in these municipalities, at

least within the current development patterns.

Qualifications

Most of the artisans have a low qualification: they are mostly older people who started working very young.

The higher qualifications belong to the younger people.

We can see these qualifications in the graph below:


The art of the craftsmen was passed from parents to children. At least one of the children continued with the

activity of the parent. They started the activity very young and with a low qualification. The art was learned as

the graph below shows:

Few years later, younger people started to be not interested by these arts and to seek others jobs and to get a

higher qualification.

Some of the artisans had difficulty in continuing their activities because they didn’t have people interested in

learning their art. Nowadays, the lack of jobs has led people to look for employment within the craft activities

with people searching artisans or training centre to learn more about the craft.

Perspectives: growth targets (or others objectives?)

Most of ours artisans work alone; the firm is just one person, so they don’t have big strategic objectives or

higher targets to aim for. They want to sell their work in local or national fairs and have a few orders

throughout the year.

Some of the expectations of local artisans are:


- Greater promotion of the products and their producers (artisans) by the local authorities;

- Support for artisans in the areas of information access and training;

- Bringing to the attention of artisans new markets and the current product requirements;

- Support for the commercialisation of handicraft products;

- The development of training programmes for young residents in the area, helped by the artisans.

Local artisans develop their work mostly in home. They have a small workshop in their own home. In other

instances they have local craft associations or craft centres where they can work and exhibit their work.

Traditional arts can and should function as agents for community and territorial development. They generate

employment, stimulate local commerce and serve as an element of tourist attraction (increasingly, tourists

seek natural environments and endogenous products, taking ever more interest in the background stories and

the way of life of the local producer).

The majority of artisans, within their area of experience, exercise various activities and, as a consequence, the

total sum of the figures indicated for the various activities are higher than the actual number of existing

artisans.

In terms of distribution by municipality of the various craft categories the results are as follows:

Terras de Bouro

Textile arts and crafts -18

o Embroidered articles – 15

o Weaving – 8

o Lace articles -6

Manufacturing of utensils and other items in wood – 2

Montalegre

Textile arts and crafts -10

o Weaving -5



o Lace articles -1

o Linen dolls – 1

o Finished textile articles for the home – 1

o Manufacture of clothing accessories -1


Straw cape craft – 3

Stonework arts and crafts – 2

Figurine ceramics – 2

Metalwork arts and crafts -1

Arcos de Valdevez

Textile arts and crafts – 10


o Weaving – 3

o Lace articles -3


Restoring concertinas and accordions – 1

Metalwork arts and crafts – 1

Ponte da Barca


o Lace articles -5


Melgaço


Weaving – 2

Manufacture of clothing accessories -1

Clothing manufacture -1

Embroidered articles -1



These results demonstrate clearly the predominance that textile crafts (above all weaving, embroidery and

lacework) have in this region. In total there are 47 artisans who are working in this area of crafts. The second

principal activity is the manufacturing of utensils and other items in wood, occupying 9 artisans, all male.

The following are the totals by activity:


Manufacturing of utensils and other items in wood –9

Straw cape craft –3

Figurine ceramics –2

Stonework arts and crafts –2

Metalwork arts and crafts -2

Restoring concertinas and accordions –1

If we attempt to make a division based on gender by municipality the results point to a clear predominance of

females:

Terras de

Bouro

Montalegre Arcos de

Valdevez

Ponte da

Barca

Melgaço Total

Males 2 12 5 0 1 20

Females 18 8 10 6 3 45

In total there are 45 female and 20 male artisans. The predominance of females is clearly linked to the

dominance of textile crafts (weaving, embroidery and lacework). In fact, only 2 of the females identified are not

involved in textile crafts; one working in figurine ceramics and the other making straw capes.

In this country and in particular in this region, craft industries demonstrate a fragile economic structure, with

artisans generally belonging to the older age group, with apparent difficulties and inadequacies in the areas of

commercialisation of products and professional training.


Handicraft is based in familiar enterprises with just one or two workers. Sometimes it is a complement to the

familiar economy, so they don’t have any organised finances.

As familiar enterprises, some artisans don’t have a specific local to sell their work, so they use the local craft

associations to show and to sell their work the main market channels are local fairs or national craft fairs.

Local associations have a significant role in the promotion of the local craft, but are undoubted that the local

and the national fairs are the best way to promote the handicraft. Some television programs are also an

important way of promoting the local craft.

3 The "issues" of a good sounded sustainable economy

The regulatory norms relating to the process of recognition of Artisans and Craft Production Units, together

with the definition the Catalogue of Craft Activities and the National Craft Registry established in 2001, only

saw the light of day at the end of 2003 through Decree 1193/2003 of 13th October. The lack of awareness of

this process as well as the disinterest of some artisans who continue to prefer individualism to the spirit of

class, has lead to the situation where, in the 5 municipalities covered by the report, only 8 Craft Production

Units have been identified as registered in the National Craft Register (2 in Terras do Bouro, 2 in Arcos de

Valdevez, 3 in Montalegre, 1 in Melgaço and 0 in Ponte da Barca).

Other process of recognition of artisans is the recognition of merit, for the elder craftsmen who have a

remarkable work.


The artisans of our territory do not have sufficient scale to have significant dissemination and promotion. They

realised that it is important to come together to have scale, they make organisations or associations to

promote them in others markets, especially in outside markets.

It is only possible to preserve and protect that which is known. Thus, the identification of the artisans, their

production facilities, the craft activities and sales outlets existing in the area becomes fundamental. Only in this

way will it be possible to confer greater visibility on local production and products, making better use of them

and thereby contributing to their recognition, preservation and development. This factor will also contribute

towards the definition and adjustment of incentive policies for the sector and to fine tune local development


strategies based on the strengthening of identities and differentiation of areas through their endogenous

assets.

The intention is to preserve and develop local crafts, support artisans and the development of quality

handicrafts which can receive recognition further afield.

There is an urgent need to find ways to secure the economic viability of the traditional arts, together with their

preservation, thereby contributing towards the improvement of the living conditions of the artisans who carry

out their activity within the various areas of the Peneda Gerês National Park.

We can define as a basis for consideration and orientation, the need to:

- Create new production and commercialisation strategies;

- Count on the improvement of and innovation in production;

- Create training courses in production, commercialisation and new design techniques;

- Focus on the medium-high and high class consuming public, creating distinctive, high quality products

(maintaining tradition);

- Seek out new market outlets for local handicrafts;

- Develop a marketing plan for handicraft products;

- Develop promotional campaigns and try to establish partnerships with well-known brands;

- Support the participation in trade fairs for the sector;

- Create promotional material for local crafts;

- Put artisans and designers into contact with each other, promoting technical support for them in innovative

areas;

- Carry out thematic visits with artisans to more developed production centres.

Concerning the two latter points, reference should be made here to the existence of successful cases within

the area of Peneda Gerês National Park and which can serve as examples of good practice developed in the

handicraft sector:

‘Pedras Brancas’ Association: with intervention in tourism, handicrafts and services, this association has

developed a major work in the area of linen, contributing to the revitalisation of handicraft activities in the

municipality of Terras de Bouro. It promotes various cultural and craft activities and carries out training

programmes in the area of handicrafts, principally working with linen.



IN UNITED KINGDOM


1 "Vision" of crafts

Crafts in the UK are not separated from other kinds of businesses: so, for example, the same health and safety

laws apply as well as the same access to government support for all other SMEs.

Contemporary Crafts receive government support through the Crafts Council. Building Crafts are only

supported in England and receive government support through English Heritage. Conservation crafts receive

government support through English Heritage, Historic Scotland, Cadw (Wales), Northern Ireland Environment

Agency; and the Crafts Council, but traditional or historic crafts, which form the greatest part of crafts both in

terms of number of craftspeople and in contribution to GVA have no recognition or support. Grants assistance

from four governmental organisations listed above are mainly for the natural and built heritage, as well as

associated crafts.

In legal and economic terms crafts are classified as any other business. Many craft enterprises are SMEs but

more often than that they’re even smaller micro-businesses. A lot of our makers consider it a huge step to hire

even one employee. Therefore, despite the crafts sector lobbing of policy makers to ensure that crafts are

considered alongside other creative industries, there is no particular regulation or protection from the

government for this field.

In order to stay in the business British makers have to follow trends in innovation and become competitive in

the creative sector. The Crafts Council promotes a better integration of labour market and universities to make

sure that craftsman are aware and have access to appropriate education at all levels. A special emphasis is

placed on vocational training and continuous professional development.

Who judges the crafts: consumers or citizens?

Due to the fact that crafts are qualified as any other businesses in the UK the sector is subject to the same

mechanisms as a broadly understood selling market and therefore consumption and demand define the state


of crafts. However, craftsmen indicate a strong connection with local markets as well as tourism as important

sources of income.

1.3 Institutions supporting the crafts sector; the number of supportive engagements in %

Institution Percentage

Crafts Council 19.5

Arts Council England 12.5

Arts Council of Wales 5.5

Craft Scotland 3.9

Creative Scotland 6.3

Craft Northern Ireland 0.0

Arts Council of Northern Ireland 2.3

Crafts Council of Ireland 0.0

Local authority 25.8

No support received 60.2

Note: Percentages based on 128 respondents

Source: Craft in an Age of Change


Age of craftsman in the UK (Scotland in brackets)

Age band Total (%) Male (%) Female (%)

16-24 1.5 (2.5) 0.6 1.8

25-34 12.7 (19.4) 7.5 14.6

35-44 20.8 (21.1) 19.8 22.1

45-54 25.1 (22.2) 22.3 27.4

55-64 25.5 (21.6) 28.5 23.9

65 and over 13.2 (10.2) 20.0 8.8

Decline to answer 1.3 (3.0) 1.4 1.5


The dominant age band of people working in the crafts sector is 45-64 years old. Interestingly, younger (16-34

year old) artisans in the UK are mainly female this ratio changes around the 35-44 years of age band when male


artisans become the dominant group, growing steadily throughout elder age bands. In Scotland 31.6% of

craftsmen are male and 68.4% are female, which reflects the general trend in the UK.

2.2 Levels of craft education (percentage of makers)


Qualification Structure

No Qualifications Level 1 Level 2 Level 3

Level 4 and

above

Craft 11% 5% 28% 23% 25%

Total Creative and Cultural

Industries (UK) 4% 3% 14% 15% 59%

Total UK Economy 7% 5% 23% 21% 37%

Source: Creative Blueprint

Qualifications or training, including non-UK qualifications relevant to craft work (percentage)

Art/design/craft degree at college or university (BA, BSc) 56.0

Art/design/craft postgraduate degree at college or university (MA/MSc/PhD) 20.2

Foundation course in art/design/craft 16.2

A level and/or O level/GCSE in art/design/craft 16.9

Formal apprenticeship 5.5

Working with experienced makers (not as formal apprenticeship) 6.1

Part-time and short courses 8.9

Adult education classes 5.9

Other craft training 13.8

N/A – no training 15.5



Craftsmen in the UK are predominantly holders of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. Moreover, the

majority of these craftsmen hold university degrees specialising in arts and crafts. The structure of qualification

indicates that people working in crafts sector contribute a higher percentage against the total of the UK

economy in each qualification level. Interestingly, the percentage of people without qualifications and those

having level 1 is still smaller than other levels.


Training in business skills since starting crafts business

Yes 42.7

Yes – formal training 26.7

Yes – informal training 20.8

No 57.3

Total 100.0



Number of years trading

Length of time trading in years Percentage

Less than 5 20.5

5 – 9 20.6

10 – 14 14.8

15 – 19 10.2

20 – 24 8.5

25 – 29 7.2

30 – 34 7.0

35 or more 11.3

Average 16

Median 12

Source: BOP Consulting (2011)

The majority of makers started their careers in crafts in 2000s (55.9%), with 18.7% starting in 1990s.

In accordance to the Craft in an Age of Change report, 50% of craftsmen did not choose craft as their first

professional occupation. It means that many people came from other professions, often not related to crafts.

However, 12% of those people were teachers originally. It should be noted that nursery and primary school

teachers often introduce youngsters to manual work and crafts.

Perspectives on business development

Use new craft-making technologies 36.7

Use new or different materials 49.1

Develop new or different types of product 63.4

More collaborative or partnership working 39.7

Find new markets 58.5


Work more with other sectors as a consultant or practitioner 28.1

Stop craft-making 5.6

Don't expect any change 8.1

Other 13.2


Expected change in craft-related sales over the next three years

Change in craft-related sales %

Grow considerably 17.2

Grow slightly 34.9

Stay steady 21.4

Decline slightly 7.6

Decline considerably 4.6

Unknown 12.8

Not applicable 1.5


Despite the general economic downturn in the UK and Europe craftsmen are positive about the future

development of their businesses. In accordance to the statistics a significant percentage of craftsmen seek

further development including technological expansion, development of new products and expansion over new

markets. In many cases the fact that businesses are small and therefore flexible to economic fluctuations could

mean that they adapt easier than larger businesses and industries. On the other hand, those businesses may

struggle to expand due to relatively small capital available for investment. In many cases business expansion

depends on entrepreneurial skills deriving from continuous professional development, which is not highly

popular amongst craftsmen.


Business form and size

Business form Percentage

Sole trader 87.7

Partnership 5.8

Limited liability partnership 1.8

Private company limited by shares 2.9

Private company limited by guarantee 0.1

Co-operative 0.4

Other 1.3


Most craft-making businesses are classified as small and only 13 in 1,847 surveyed makers stated that employ

five or more people.

Localization (at home or not)

Location Percentage

Formal workshop on home premises 44.6 At home

Space in room(s) in own home 21.3

Individual workspace: owned 17.3

Away from home

Individual workspace: rented 3.5

Shared workspace: rented 7.7


Shared workspace: owned 0.7

Other


Sector

In the case of the UK the sector can be analysed from the perspective of the entire union or of the individual

countries which are a part of it: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. For the purpose of this report

the main emphasis is on the UK and in some cases Scotland. However, this section gives a general idea of how

each UK’s country performs in the area of craftsmanship market.

General labour/economic statistics

Wales Northern Ireland England Scotland

Population (mln) 3.1 1.8 53.9 5.3

GVA per head (££) 15,401 16.127 21,937 20,013

Share of the UK GVA (%) 3.4 2.1 84.8 7.7

Labour productivity 85.2 82.8 101.5 97.4

Employment rate (age 16-64) 70.0 67.8 72.9 73.5

Number of businesses per 10k adults 753 785 984 740

Source: Office for National Statistics

GVA of creative industries and ‘Blue Book’ sectors (%change), 2008-2012


Source: Modern Makers. An industrial strategy for the creative industries. Institute for Public Policy Research

(2014).


GVA of the creative industries (%change) in 2009-2012


(2014).

Number and income of crafts businesses

Country Income in ££ mln Number

Wales 28 1,500

Northern Ireland 20 1,050

England 339 17,150

Scotland 70 3,350



Craftsmen income in each UK’s country

Country Income in ££

UK 19,827

Wales 18,594

Northern Ireland 18,925

England 19,774

Scotland 20,920

Source: Craft in and Age of Change (2012)

Makers’ profile by country

Profile England Scotland Wales Northern Ireland

Craft careerists 38.8 38.8 33.2 38.1

Career changers 25.9 31.6 35.4 29.4

Returnees 23.8 17.5 21.2 18.1

Artisans 11.6 12.2 10.2 14.4


Type of crafts sold


Craft Percentage of retailers

Ceramics 78.9

Jewellery 75.8

Textiles 53.1

Glassware 51.6

Other 41.4

Paper, books and stationary 21.1

Furniture 18.0

Stoneware 17.2

Graphic craft 11.7

Interior and exterior fittings 8.6

Toys and automata 8.6


Market channels

Profile % of makers that

sell their work

online

% of makers that

use digital

technology on

making or

% of makers that

have change their

practice due to

environmental

% of makers

whose work has

been sold to a


designing concerns public collection

Craft careerists 39.3 42.7 34.1 37.3

Career changers 30.2 28.6 28.8 15.1

Returners 36.3 35.9 30.8 31.5

Artisans 32.6 29.6 30.2 26.7

Total 35.3 35.8 31.4 28.6



Selling channels and marketing/promotion

Channel %

Through a gallery or shop 92.2

Through your own website 32.8

Through other websites 5.5

Through social media 4.7

Through other direct mail 4.7

Through craft fairs 8.6

At events or festivals 13.3

At courses or workshops you run 2.3

Other 4.7


Online selling channels

Channel % of users

Through business’ website 29.8

Through a third party website 12.7

Through social media 3.0


3 Changes in environmental practice

Changes in environmental practice % of makers

changing


practice

Source more environmentally sensitive of sustainable materials 51.5

Use more environmentally sensitive or sustainable production processes 32.8

Choose local suppliers to reduce transport miles 20.3

Choose suppliers with more environmentally sustainable practices 11.1

Choose distributors/retailers with more environmentally sustainable practices 7.0

Recycling 4.5

Other 15.5


4. Polity and Policies

Crafts form one of the nine of creative sectors defined by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport:

• Advertising and marketing.

• Architecture.

• Crafts.

• Design: product, graphic and fashion design.

• Film, TV, video, radio and photography.

• IT, software and computer services.

• Publishing.

• Museums, galleries and libraries.

• Music, performing and visual arts.


4.1 The UK creative industries


(2014).

4.2 What policies for crafts?

The Crafts Council elaborated four key messages, which aim for improvement of crafts in the UK. They form the

basis for lobbying on behalf of crafts sector and were developed in close collaboration with the sector itself.

1. Creativity and making must be a central part of education

2. Extend the Government’s Growth Voucher scheme (currently for 2 years) to provide microbusinesses with

“soft support”, which is critical for crafts aiming for further development and business innovation.

3. Increase entrepreneurship education in schools, colleges and universities.

4. More support for micro-employers to start apprenticeships.

Appendix

The Craft and Sustainability Research in Bulgaria is not available at the moment

Local Development

Agency CROATIA

Second Chance

AssociationBULGARIA

Chamber of Commerce &

CraftsCZECH REPUBLIC

Edinburgh World HeritageUNITED KINGDOM

Unified commerce-industry & professions-craftsGREECE

ConfederazioneNazionaleAtigianatoUmbriaITALY

ConfederazoneNazionaleArtigianatoPiemonteITALY

ADERE - PGPeneda Geres

PORTUGALPr

oje

ct n

. 201

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IT1-

LEO

04-4

220

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added value for craft craft and sustainability a european research

Documents

craft project

craft firms

italy48 craft

sustainable skills

report overview2 craft

sustainable development

crafttype enterprises

european commission