South West - Cornwall

About the region

As a small region, Cornwall can provide a very bespoke offer and get to know businesses personally. This has allowed them to build great connections with other regional programmes, and offer a very well- coordinated ecosystem of support.

Cornwall already has lots of open access activity for creative businesses, and the team are looking forward to offering more networking opportunities via the programme. Working closely with the West of England, South East and North East, they’ll be able deliver some of their sessions collectively, sharing contacts and ideas.

Cornwall’s first cohort contains a rich variety of businesses, something the team are very excited about. They’ve got everything from the screen industry through to marketing, software development, fashion and product design, as well as specialists in the creative technology scene and creative venues.

Suzie West, Cornwall Programme Manager for Creative UK says, “One of the joys of this programme is that it’s not restricted to particular subsectors, so we’ve really enjoyed meeting a wide range of businesses.”

There’s growing visibility of the creative industries and Creative UK in Cornwall, which enables the team to deliver more value and support. Suzie says that existing relationships have been vital in giving them a head start:

“We’ve been really lucky in Cornwall that we’ve got great relationships with so many other service providers, agencies and organisations. We’re standing on the backs of giants and we’ve got an advantage of having such a good legacy of great creative support.”

“These businesses are doing such brilliant work, but they don’t give themselves time to step back and refine plans or consider their options. The programme is about giving them some time and space to do that.”

Suzie West, Cornwall Programme Manager for Creative UK

Objectives and delivery

The team in Cornwall are taking a very bespoke approach, and are focused on finding the right growth journey for each individual business.

One of the region’s top priorities is helping businesses to develop partnerships, finding other businesses or innovative people to build ideas or solve problems with. The team encourage dialogue and connection amongst the cohort and with other creative professionals and investors, helping businesses to build a support network that extends beyond the completion of the programme.

Most businesses are also keen to develop as sustainably as possible, with a passion for developing B-Corp companies and finding innovative ways to tell stories and enhance people’s lives.

They also want to close the language gap between investors and the creative industries, tackling misconceptions and demystifying what growth and business looks like. This includes helping creatives to better understand the world of investment, as well as sharing creative business language with investors.

Impact and response

The region has 12 businesses who will take part in the first cohort of the Create Growth Programme. But for those businesses who weren’t eligible, the team plan to develop an additional smaller programme to support them. They’re already making an impact with their open access activity, reaching about 80 businesses.

The initial response from investors and mentors has been encouraging, as Suzie explains:
“They’re really fascinated by the ideas and the innovation that’s happening in the creative industry. That’s great, because if they’re excited and optimistic about it, then they’ll signpost other people.”

Cross-regional collaboration and knowledge sharing has helped the team to find more contacts, enabling founders to spend time with experts who have worked elsewhere in the UK or abroad, bringing an entirely new range of experiences.