Gillian Easson, Development Manager, NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) Joining NESTA in 2006, Gillian has managed the initiatives supporting innovative creative entrepreneurs across the UK, including projects: Starter for 6 , Peer Mentoring and Insight Out. Gillian led the development of NESTA’s successful Creative Enterprise Toolkit. This step-by-step interactive resource helps creative individuals to plan, build, communicate and launch their new creative business. The toolkit has been used by hundreds of successful creative entrepreneurs around the world, from fashion designers, to freelance artists, to technology start-ups. They have used the resources, activities and case studies to develop their good ideas; and consider their personal motivations and aspirations for enterprise. NESTA also ran train-the-trainer events for tutors from Universities and colleges; and now the toolkit is being used widely in Universities across the UK. With a background and passion for good design, Gillian believes that design is key to delivering engaging, creative and effective forms of support. Gillian has extensive experience of developing and delivering programmes in the charity and not-for-profit sectors; particularly within the areas of creative enterprise, education and employment. NESTA is the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts - an independent body with a mission to make the UK more innovative. We invest in early-stage companies, inform policy, and deliver practical programmes that inspire others to solve the big challenges of the future. We know the creative industries are critical to the UK’s cultural and economic success, contributing more than £50 billion to the economy every year. They also generate important 'spillover' benefits for other sectors that work with them to create innovative products and services. But creative businesses face their own unique barriers to growth and success. NESTA is working to understand why, and to find ways of helping creative businesses unleash their full innovative potential.

1. Supporting growth, enhancing competitiveness:
Emerging support models for creative entrepreneurs
Gillian Easson, Development Manager, NESTA

2. Based in Dundee, Scotland
The Perception ! The Reality !

3. About NESTA…
Founded: 1998, with £300M endowment
Mission: Bring ideas to life and help make innovation happen
How? Through policy research, programmes and investment
NESTA’s 3 main areas of work:
 Innovation and Economic
Growth
 Social and Public Sector
Innovation
 Creative Economy

4. Creative Industries: Important, fast growing and innovative

5. Focus of today
NESTA’s models of support:
 Creative entrepreneur programmes/resources
 Mentoring for creative business start-up and growth
 Skills for creative industries
 Support for cultural organisations to innovate

6. Challenges affecting creative start-up businesses

7. Specialist support for creative entrepreneurs
NESTA has run programmes which have support hundreds of
creative entrepreneurs to set up sustainable enterprises, which:
 Develop business skills and confidence of new creative
entrepreneurs
 Facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration through peer
networks
 Address gaps in start-up support market and enhance current
enterprise provisions on offer

8. Addressing creative business start-up challenges
Starter for 6: A NESTA designed pilot programme in Scotland
running 2007–2009, which provided 210 early stage science,
technology and creative entrepreneurs with:
 4 days of group training run in 5 cities
 Peer mentoring
 Potential of grants up to £10,000 (84 grant awards made)
 Business aftercare support

9. An accelerator programme
Programme features:
Group workshop content: Tools to test and help build the
creative modelling tools business case
Specialist expertise and Help to overcome barriers in particular
advice areas
Peer networks Someone to share experiences / like-
minded people
Coaching and mentoring Help to sustain the momentum /
critical friends
Seed funding Something to work with / accelerate
speed to market

10. Business sectors of S46 participants (2007-09)
Inverness
Aberdeen
Dundee
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Business Sector Scotland - cities

11. Case Studies of creative entrepreneurs
Hubdub
Premium skill games for sports fans
www.hubdub.com

12. Case Studies of creative entrepreneurs
Bebaroque
Designer hosiery
www.bebaroque.com

13. Examples of the workshop content
Enhance Replace
Revive Flip into
Evidence modelling Blueprint modelling
 Framework tools to help build, shape, define, explain and
communicate the business idea.
 These creative practical planning tools are used successfully by
creative entrepreneurs to build their business case.

14. Start-up programme results
2007 - 2009: Pilot programme - devised, funded and managed by NESTA
in partnership with many Scottish agencies
2009: Programme gets a £1 million backing from Creative Scotland’s
Innovation Fund to offer an extended service, delivered by Cultural
Enterprise Office (CEO).
2010 – present: New S46 programme strands added by CEO including
‘Fast track’ and ‘S46 Network’.
2011: Longitudinal study of programme completed.
www.culturalenterpriseoffice.co.uk/starterfor6

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

16. Economic and confidence level impacts
 S46 gives return of £2.16 GVA for every £1 invested
 15+ gone on to ‘high growth pipeline’ – Scottish Enterprise
 S46 is seen as a bench mark of success for other funders, investors.

17. Full impacts arising from Starter for 6
Improved business and
economic performance
Developed business idea
Networks and collaborations
Improved knowledge and skills
Increased confidence in participants

18. NESTA Creative Enterprise Toolkit
 Encapsulates NESTA’s tried and tested
approaches
 Specifically tailored for creative
business start-ups and those who
support them
 Flexible tools engage participants at
an individual level to explore personal
values and motivations
www.nesta.org.uk/enterprise-toolkit
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial Share
Alike (3.0 Unported). Uses are thus permitted without any further permission from
the copyright owner. Permissions beyond the scope of this license are administered
by NESTA.

19. Arrivals and destinations 01 Getting off the ground 02
 Who this guide is for and how it can help Business Facts
Do you have a good idea or a good business idea?
 Why it’s different from other business guides
Intellectual Property
 What to expect to get out of the process How to identify, protect and exploit IP
 What kind of company to set up Values
Identify your values and summarise
 Links to useful organisations the impacts you want
 Case studies Evidence Modelling
Illustrate what success will look like
Customers Marketing Mix and Plan
Determine who is buying your How to apply this mix to your
product and why business needs. The main elements
you need to consider when planning
Your business process marketing activities
The different elements that make up your business
Relationships Financial Modelling
The different associations you have to recognise and Including the vital role of cash flow to ensure your
develop to ensure your product or service reaches your business makes enough money to continue trading in the
customers way you desire
Choosing your path 03 In it for the long haul 04

20. Suite of open-source products for both creatives and supporters
Creative enterprise Train trainer
Case studies Worksheets Tutors notes
toolkit workshops
Peer mentoring creativesupporters. Fashion start-up
Video case studies Trainer PowerPoint
guide org.uk guide

21. CE Toolkit is being used nationally and internationally
Lebanon
Wales China

22. Peer Mentoring to support creative start-ups
Peer mentoring involves near peers with
• Peer mentoring one or two years more business
experience than their mentees.
NESTA’s Peer Mentoring guide contains:
 On overview of the programme
structure
 Practical points and case studies for
those considering setting up a peer
mentoring scheme
 The impacts for both the mentors and
mentees
www.nesta.org.uk/enterprise-toolkit

23. NESTA Mentoring for business growth
Video Games Mentoring: Creative Business Mentor
Playing the Game guide Network

24. Creative industries skills agenda
Hyper Island and Next Gen: the right skills for a high-tech sector

25. Supporting cultural/arts organisations to innovate
Enabling arts and cultural organisations to engage audiences in new ways
and create opportunities for new business models, through the use of digital
technology.
Arts Technology Research
organisation partner team
Digital R&D Fund
Digital innovation projects and sector-wide knowledge

26. Conclusions
In NESTA’s experience we believe that creative entrepreneurs
thrive when given the right conditions, which include:
- Tailored skills development and confidence building
- Networks and support
- The opportunity to gain seed funding
We look forward to working with international partners to
share learning from our creative entrepreneurship
programmes.

27. Thank You!
Gillian Easson
Development Manager
gillian.easson@nesta.org.uk
@GillianEasson
www.nesta.org.uk
www.nesta.org.uk/enterprise-toolkit