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T-Shirts and Suits has set up an online Creative Enterprise Network to help creative people world-wide to promote their enterprises and to network with each other across national and cultural boundaries.
It's free to join - and easy to upload photos, videos and information.
The network includes blogs, events and discussions.
There are specialist groups within the network, including:
- Creative Collaborations
- Digital Creatives
- International Connections
- LatinoAmerican Creatives
- Freelancers
- Creative Students
- Graphic Design
- Business Partnerships
- Advertising and PR
- Creative Entrepreneur's Guide to Shanghai
- UNESCO Project
You are invited to join the network and to invite friends, colleagues and contacts to join too.
The network welcomes anyone involved directly or indirectly in the creative industries, cultural industries, creative businesses, cultural organisations, cultural enterprises and creative industries support organisations. Creative industry organisations world-wide are invited to join.
www.creative-enterprise-network.com
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For many people, the words ‘business’ and ‘culture’ don’t sit comfortably side by side. Some people assume that culture has to be non-commercial to be valid, and therefore to apply commercial thinking to cultural endeavour is to pervert it. But even charities and ‘non-for-profit’ organisations in the arts and cultural sector need to be business-like, even though the traditional business motive of profit maximisation does not apply.
Many people in the arts are reluctant to use business terminology, despite being very professional and successful in achieving their aims. When I was interviewing creative enterprises for my book ‘T-Shirts and Suits’, several managers said that they had never devised a ‘business strategy’ or used ‘market research’. These terms were simply alien to them. In fact they did do these things, but didn’t use those words or document these processes conventionally. More often than not they were skilled at growing their business and excellent at listening to customers. Ironically, cultural organisations and creative businesses are often keen to shun commercial jargon whilst actually using smart ‘business thinking’ to achieve success in their own terms.
My own background is in the cultural sector and later I also studied at business school, so I’m comfortable with business jargon but at the same time I understand the sensitivities within the arts about business vocabulary. Recently, in preparing a training workshop for arts organisations I was asked not to use the term ‘customers’ but use ‘audience’ instead. It’s a matter of choosing vocabulary appropriate to the context. In my book I feature the Windows Project, a cultural enterprise which devised a ‘Development Plan’ rather than a ‘Business Plan’ because that term fitted better with their ethos. Despite its name, it’s as robust as any business plan from the commercial sector.
The cultural sector can and should learn from other sectors, but it’s a matter of sensitively adapting techniques to fit into a different context - and maybe changing the terminology too. Equally, the commercial sector can learn from the cultural sector, but need to see what’s actually happening rather than being put off by the lack of business jargon. For example, I’ve been engaged by international corporations for revealing to them management techniques which are commonplace in the arts world, but I’ve expressed them in business-speak to make them more acceptable to pin-striped clients.
So it’s the terminology that’s the issue, not the reality. Lack of business jargon doesn’t indicate an absence of smart ‘business thinking’. It’s a point worth making, for two reasons. Firstly to dispel the myth outside the arts sector that cultural organisations are somehow ‘amateur’, simply because they use different language. Secondly to challenge the belief held by some in the cultural sector itself that using business terminology to describe what they do inevitably means somehow ‘selling out’.
In the end, it doesn’t matter whether or not we choose to use the jargon of business. What really matters is being clear about our definitions of ‘success’ and then achieving it. Then we can all become even more successful by using appropriate management methods and techniques which fit the objectives and ethos of our organisations - in the cultural sector or elsewhere - whatever vocabulary we choose to use.
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This article was first published by www.08BusinessConnect.com
Copyright David Parrish 2009. Some Rights Reserved.
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I was asked to give "three top tips" to creative entrepreneurs in an interview about how to successfully blend creativity and business.
Ellie Stevenson interviewed me, along with Nick Williams of 'Inspired Entrepreneur'.
Read the full interview on the ArtsHub website.
Here's an extract:
Can you give us three top tips for running your own successful creative business, David?
1. Firstly, define what you mean by success – it could be a mixture of financial success, creative challenges, recognition, job satisfaction, quality of life, etc, and that formula will be different for everyone. Define what you mean by success, don’t let others define it for you, and know where you want to go.
2. Be clear about your market and don’t try to sell to everyone. Choose your customers. Choose customers that fit your objectives and your ethos and that deliver the financial results you want. Don’t have a scattergun approach, looking for any old customer. Choose the customers that work best for your business strategy.
3. Understand intellectual property (IP), because IP is at the core of the creative industries. It’s important to make sure you don’t get ripped off by other people, so it’s about defending and protecting intellectual property; but just as importantly, it’s also about how to commercialise that IP so you can make money from it, through sales and licensing, for example. Given that IP is so central, I think most creative businesses could do with knowing a bit more, and learning how to use it.
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Note: This is an extract from an article by Ellie Stevenson, first published on ArtsHub UK.
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Share your own Top Tips with other creative people in business on the Creative Enterprise Network
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A useful and readable 'Creative, Cultural and Digital Industries Guide' has been published by Business Link West Midlands
It is available in hardcopy from Business Link West Midlands and downloadable as a free eBook in PDF format below.
This creative business guide was written by David Parrish, author of the book 'T-Shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity'.
The 48 page publication covers a range of issues relevant to enterprises in the creative, cultural and digital sectors.
Sections include:
- Strategic Planning
- Understanding your Customers
- Profiting from your Ideas
- Organisational Structures
- People and Skills
- Promoting your Products / Services
- Financial Management
- Legal and other issues
- Links to useful organisations and resources for creative enterprises
There are also four case studies featuring creative enterprises from the West Midlands region: 383 Project, Stan's Cafe, Gas Street Works, and Capsule.
Download PDF:
Creative, Cultural and Digital Industries Guide (PDF) [3.2 MB]
Businesses in the West Midlands region of England can obtain a hard copy of the Guide.
Contact Business Link West Midlands on 0845 113 1234.
The creative industries guide was designed by iDM Design, Wolverhampton This creative business guide was written by David Parish of TShirts and Suits.
David Parish retains copyright in this material and other writing about the business of creativity, as published in the book 'T-Shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity', the publication 'Designing Your Creative Business' and a series of other articles, blogs and 'Ideas in Action' features.
Similar creative business guides can be written for other organisations in the creative, cultural and digital sectors.
Contact David Parrish to discuss options and possibilities for your own version of this creative industries guide.
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At the launch party for Creative Times Online, which was full of 'creative industries' people clustering together, I met a civil engineer.
Civil/structural engineers don't normally attend these gatherings of 'creatives' (fashion designers, musicians, writers, film-makers, advertisers, artists, website designers, broadcasters and publishers, graphic designers, performers, computer games programmers, designer-makers, etc.)
So I was intrigued. This engineer was looking for new ideas from outside the world of engineering, by learning from people in other sectors.
I consider that kind of lateral-thinking to be creative.
It reminded me of Peter Drucker's criticism of how people tend to stay within their comfort zones:
"Most [executives] think they are in touch with the outside world if they play golf with the vice-president of another company in the same industry."
- Peter Drucker. Management Guru. (Financial Times. London. 16 November 2004.)
In contrast, the most effective (and most creative) people learn from other industries and sectors. (See article on Lateral-Thinking Leadership.)
I then looked around the room and wondered how many of these 'creative' people ever go to gatherings of engineers, hoteliers or bankers in search of new ideas, business methods, or customers.
Probably very few.
We should get out more.
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Congratulations to one of my client creative businesses, Sparkle Media on their successful projects in Australia !
The visual effects and animation company has recently worked in Australia with Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett and Joseph Fiennes, producing video footage for the multimedia theatrical performance Minutes of a Separation.
Sparkle Media also worked for Reebok whilst in Australia on an 'advanced fitness' website project.
It's a pleasure to work with creative entrepreneurs like Glenn Maguire and Andy Cooper, who are the company's directors.
Over the several months I have been involved in their business growth, I have been able to advise them on matters such marketing, intellectual property and enterprise development.
Sparke Director Glenn Maguire said:
"Since attending David's workshop and then engaging him as an adviser, Sparkle Media has gone from strength to strength. The company now operates on a global level, going head to head with world wide agencies - and beating them. We've never looked back and have a lot to thank David for."
Working internationally from their base in Liverpool, Sparkle has worked closely with creative industries support agency Merseyside ACME.
A creative passion is often the driving force for creative entrepreneurs.
My advice is always to recognise this, in order to understand our own motivations in business. In other words, what 'makes us tick'.
I was asked recently by Putte Svensson from Rockparty in Hultsfred, Sweden, what would be my advice if someone said they just wanted to have fun. My answer was that fun is important and essential to any enterprise. I went on to say that I do indeed want people to have fun - and for a long time! Having fun for a short while and then going bankrupt isn't much fun at all. I help people to also look at the business issues that will help them to continue to have fun in a sustainable way, long-term. Things like marketing, finance and intellectual property also need to be taken into account to make sure the fun continues.
The philosophy of T-Shirts and Suits is about combining creativity and business acumen. It's about using rationality as well as emotion - the left side of the brain as well as the right side. I sometimes talk about 'using our heads as well as our hearts'.
Sara Lönnroth, who is the project leader for Mötesplats Mode&Design (MM&D), at the Transit Business Incubator at Konstfack in Stockholm, suggested a phrase about this, which I've adapted and translated as:
"Let your heart drive you and your head guide you".
I'm going to adopt this as one of my sayings from now on!
As the year draws to a close, I'd like to wish you Peace at Christmas and every success in 2008.
I'm privileged to have worked with some wonderful people in 2007.
Thank you to Mike Carney for the new visual identity and to Darren Ratcliffe for my new website and blog.
Thanks to Merseyside ACME and Smiling Wolf for publishing my book 'T-Shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity' as a free eBook.
The 'T-Shirts and Suits' group on Facebook has grown rapidly since the summer to become a network of more than 800 creative entrepreneurs from all over the world.
As well as working in Liverpool, Manchester, Derbyshire, London and elsewhere in England, international projects took me to Norway, Germany and Holland during the year.
Best wishes to all my consultancy clients and to everyone who attended my training workshops and seminars. I have enjoyed helping your creative enterprises to become even more successful - and I've learned a lot from you.
As well as my ongoing business advice sessions and training workshops, I will be initiating some new projects in 2008. I'm also looking forward to publishing more useful information, ideas and articles for creative businesses in the forthcoming year. Watch this space!
Have a great holiday and see you again in the new year...
David
There is now a group on the social networking site 'facebook' for creative people to share smart business ideas and make useful contacts.
Go to group on facebook: "T-Shirts and Suits (Creativity and Business)".
The more people join and network, the more useful it will be.
'T-Shirts and Suits' is all about bringing together creativity and smart business ideas and facebook provides a forum to enable creative businesses and cultural organisations to share smart business ideas, publicise what they do, and create partnerships.
It is an international group and already has over 2,000 members including James Purnell MP, the UK's top government minister for the creative industries and John Howkins, author of the acclaimed book 'The Creative Economy'.
The group is open creative entrepreneurs and to everyone directly or indirectly involved in the creative industries, arts enterprises, creative business or cultural industries world-wide. The creative industries include advertising, architecture, fine art, music, crafts, photography, film and video, fashion, computer games, performing arts, TV and radio, design and publishing.
The 'Wall' feature makes it easy for businesses to publicise their product and services and the main business themes for discussion are marketing, intellectual property, collaborations, business strategy, and other matters of interest to creative enterprises.
Anyone can join the group once a member of Facebook, which is free, quick and easy to join.
The facebook group is called "T-Shirts and Suits (Creativity and Business)"
If you're already on facebook, you can go direct to the group here:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2404983690
The more people join and network, the more useful the group will be to everyone involved.
At the last count, creative entrepreneurs and creative industry professionals have joined the group from countries as diverse as Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Estonia, Finland, France, French Polynesia, Greece, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines, Romania, Scotland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United States, Venezuela, and Wales,
Join us!
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Download the free eBook version of 'T-Shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity' by David Parrish.
The eBook of T-Shirts and Suits is the full version of the book, in interactive PDF format.
We want you to download it, distribute it to friends and associates, and add it to your website so that your readers can download it and distribute it too.
Go to website download page.
You are free to copy it, distribute it and print it - provided you do not claim it as your own work, amend it, or sell it.
Copyright David Parrish and Merseyside ACME.
Some Rights Reserved.
The eBook is made available for free distribution under a Creative Commons licence.
See full details of the copyright and licensing arrangements.
The ISBN of the eBook is 9780953825455
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