Entrepreneurs across design, film, television, music, fashion, theatre, advertising and videogames tend to be different from entrepreneurs in other sectors. Here are our top five reasons why:
1. They're often motivated by creative ideas vs. financial reward
Many creative entrepreneurs are driven by a quest for creative excellence, to do something totally out of the box that captures their imagination and passion. They don't tend to get into their ventures because they've had a great business idea that's going to make a lot of money. And given their fields of interest, they don't tend to run across business training or advice during their education or in their networks. This can present a challenge to creative entrepreneurs starting out - and many don't realise that starting their own business is even an option.
2. Less predictable business cycles & quicker innovation
In standard industry, there is slow turnover of product, whereas creative companies often create several new products a week. The creative sector excels at managing risk and innovating in response to the massive uncertainties of today's economy.
3. Broader range of business size - becoming a Unicorn is not the goal
The sector is remarkable for having a 'triangle shape' - a handful of giants on top, almost no middle-sized companies and scores of small companies with fewer than ten employees. For many, ambition is directed towards innovating new products or improving quality rather than becoming larger.
4. Business models based on subjective factors - the race for the 'exceptional'
The creative sector is famously a 'hit business' where the proportion of hits to misses is daunting. Taste, judgment, intuition about what people want or what they will want in the future, and how it should look, feel, sound or be thought about, are the sector's lifeblood.
5. Little comprehensive support
Creative entrepreneurs often lack traditional trade associations, entrepreneurial networks and the startup support that benefit so many other sectors. So, often, they don't startup at all, or if they do, don't become as successful as they could.
As these 5 reasons show, creative entrepreneurs are not only different, they also face their own unique challenges - and therefore require their own unique support. That's why we are so excited about the launch tonight at No. 10 Downing Street of Creative Entrepreneurs, the first central gathering place for all the business tools, advice and inspiration people need to get their creative ideas off the ground.
Britain's creative industries are already our second most valuable sector, worth £80bn per year and growing three times faster than any other sector. Think of all the opportunity if we had a single focal point for everything out there a creative person needs to start their own business.
To find out more and join the conversation, go to www.creativeentrepreneurs.co and follow @creative_entrs.