CCIs Companies and Markets
Accelerate the creation and recognition of CCIs companies in the local and global markets, with the application of relevant initiatives or services to stimulate monetization, sustainability and cross-fertilisation.
Coordinating entity
Challenges
Challenge 1
Co-creation of services
Challenge 2
Local and global markets
Challenge 3
Access to private capital investment
The final selected cases for CWF 2024 within TA3 CCIs Companies and Markets
DISCE: Developing Inclusive and Sustainable Creative Industries
Challenge 1
Co-creation of services
From
Contact person
Valeria Pica
The birth
Developing Inclusive and Sustainable Creative Economies (DISCE) was a three-year project bringing together researchers from Finland, Italy, Latvia and the UK. Funded by the European Commission, via the Horizon 2020 programme, this research made a major contribution to understanding creative economies across the EU. Combining ten regional case studies with EU-wide quantitative mapping, the project has drawn on the team’s highly interdisciplinary expertise. It investigated the relationships between higher education, skills development and creative work; emerging business models; possibilities for improved quantitative mapping; new ways to understand what the ‘growth’ of creative economies consists of – and why such growth is valuable. At the heart of the project is the question of how the creative economies of the future can be both inclusive and sustainable. Addressing this question, the research generated new empirical and conceptual insights of value to academics, policy makers and practitioners.
The journey
Most of the empirical data collection from the ten European case study ecologies took place after the outbreak of Covid-19. Given that the pandemic with lock downs hit creative economies in Europe it is understandable that Covid-19 was referred to when the research participants talked about their creative work. It goes beyond the scope of the project to discuss all the aspects mentioned which relate to Covid-19 as it definitely has impacted creative workers vastly. Hence, the pandemic has exposed the challenges which have been there earlier, but they are rather structural issues, not results of Covid-19. However, Covid-19 has pushed creative workers to find alternative ways to perform their work and make a living.
The positive impact
DISCE proposed recommendations to actors on how to react, act and decide in specific situations to promote inclusive growth and progress in sustainable development in the field of cultural and creative industries. The range of impacts achieved was mapped along two dimensions: from the individual to society; from purely economic, to socio-cultural. The research goal aimed at the understanding of barriers and enablers of new business models and growth, earning logics, and independent agents for inclusivity, sustainability and growth in CCIs. it led to contributing to business models, resilient strategies and innovative solutions including digitisation, financing models, and IPR protection for business across the different sectors.
The growth and collaboration
DISCE project did seek to better understand the specific contexts of CCIs and to promote top-down and bottom-up stakeholder collaboration in order to advance a truly European perspective on developing the CCIs. One of the main results of this approach was the creation of the first Urban Cultural Observatory in Italy based in cooperation with the Municipality of L’Aquila where close collaborations and co-creation and stakeholder participation have been considered important approaches to the launch of Urban Forum and the Summer school CHILD – Cultural Heritage, Innovation & Local Development developed with regional public bodies, third sector, and CCIs networks and sectors’ representatives.
Tartu Centre for creative industries
Challenge 1
Co-creation of services
From
Contact person
Külli Hansen
The birth
In the heart of Tartu, the European Capital of Culture 2024, where creativity and innovation mingle, Tartu Centre for Creative Industries (TCCI) stands as the regional beacon of creative industries. TCCI’s mission is to empower local creative industry companies to succeed. Whether they are budding entrepreneurs seeking to kickstart their dreams or seasoned professionals looking to solidify their presence, TCCI is ready to support.
The journey
TCCI is aiding startups in their initial endeavours, providing entrepreneurs a tailor-made incubation and development program involving personal business consultants, mentors, participation in business fairs and other events or delivering expert business consulting.
TCCI is a co-organizer of a variety of events and initiatives such as: • Estonian Fashion Festival
• The Auction of New Art
• Design shop and gallery HOPP DISAIN
• Tartu Regional Film Fund
Through the activities and various capacity building programs offered by these initiatives, TCCI works to increase the attractiveness of the city, and stimulate business development and economic diversification in the region.
The positive impact
In 15 years of operation, more than 150 companies have been established with the support of TCCI. The city of Tartu has become a breeding ground for creative economy companies, where young creative people have support both in the process of starting and developing a company. The number of companies operating in the CCI sector has increased as well as the attractiveness of the city as a creative city.
The growth and collaboration
TCCI is developing international projects on sustainable fashion and film industries. We are open to exchanging ideas and cooperating with all companies with the same interests and needs.
Stichting Theatre Artemis
Challenge 2
Local and global markets
From
Contact person
Annemiek de Goey & Klaas Tops
The birth
Theater Artemis is a pioneering theatre company for young audiences, based in Den Bosch (NL). In 2013 Jetse Batelaan became the companies’ artistic director, creating innovative forms of theatre and challenging experiences for young people.
Our re-stagements have been detected as good practice. Re-stagements stem from our overall way of producing, with feasibility as a guiding principle alongside sustainability and profitability. With a focus on innovation and collaboration, we produce theater in the broadest sense of the word. Our performances are held in various theatres, in the Netherlands, Belgium and our neighbouring countries. Producing new theatre is our core business. On the one hand, we serve theatres with our experimental, new shows. On the other hand, theatres that want to take less risk with revival tours of our successful performances. The bottom line is that with revival tours, we can significantly increase the number of performances, theatres and audiences. In addition, they allow us to play regularly abroad. And occasionally, this comes down to re-stage a reprise show. The reason can be that we are unable to meet the demand for a Jetse Batelaan direction. Or a request involves a large number of performances.
The journey
In 2014, we staged one of Jetse Batelaan’s first performances and found that it had stood the test of time. Since then, we have been drawing on his repertoire that he has been building since 2001. The added advantage of revival tours and re-stagement is an optimum return on our investment. And expand potential within the budget.
The positive impact
Performing 30 shows without travelling or setting up all the time is durable. By working on a re-stagement, you get to know and understand the place and the people you work with. Basically, you kill three birds with one stone, you produce for half time and expenses & you can rely on a guaranteed success. And on top, you can make a profit.
The growth and collaboration
Focusing on innovation and collaboration, we aim to extend and broaden national and international collaborations in a mutually reinforcing way. We hope to keep and to get in touch with programmers with specific interest in our work. Besides Jetse Batelaan that counts for all artists connected to our company. As the number of performances abroad varies every year, one goal would be to also re-stage as a fixture
The culture for development lab
Challenge 2
Local and global markets
From
Contact person
Nairy AbdElShafy
The birth
Egypt has a vibrant cultural scene, however, mass-culture is mostly unconcerned with development issues. The parallel “independent” cultural scene faces financial challenges, with quite limited outreach, mostly in Cairo and Alexandria.
Some community development NGOs provide access to arts and culture services for children and youth in marginalized spaces. Also, some independent cultural practitioners run inspiring cultural actions for development purposes. Our project idea is to see the multiplication of such creative and impactful initiatives, and an increased outreach of such work to remote areas and communities.
The journey
Our pilot project is a learning lab scheduled to launch in mid- October. It aims at bridging the gap between 15 cultural practitioners and the development field to increase the quantity and quality of cultural actions that have a developmental purpose. The lab runs 24 days over 8 months and weaves 3 processes: learning, knowledge creation, and field action.
The positive impact
- At least 80% of program participants state that they have developed a clearer vision of their purpose and the role they can play in the culture ecosystem.
- At least 80% of program participants demonstrate a deeper understanding of the link between Cultural work and Sustainable Development.
- All designed cultural actions have been reviewed by experienced professionals.
- All cultural actions demonstrate the participants’ proper understanding of the concepts and use of tools covered during the Lab’s previous phases.
- At least 500 from at least 4 different marginalized communities have benefited from the cultural actions conducted.
- At least 70% of the implemented cultural actions’ success indicators have been met.
Designed and implemented cultural actions as well as Learnings and Outcomes of the Culture Lab program have been published/produced in at least 2 different media formats
The growth and collaboration
We hope to:
- Inspire cultural practitioners beyond this initial cohort of 15, to engage with sustainable development issues.
- Establish connections between younger and more experienced cultural practitioners for support and mentorship beyond the project life-time.
- Disseminate the project reflections, lessons learned and prototypes through different local, regional and international cultural channels, particularly Arab-speaking channels.
- Support interested policy makers with documentation of the reflections and lessons learned from integrating culture into sustainable development.
Winwinner
Challenge 3
Private capital investment
From
Contact person
Van Peer Stig
The birth
Since September 2006, individuals have the opportunity to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with loans under tax-friendly conditions, with a portion guaranteed by the Flemish government. This initiative, known as the Winwin loan, was designed to help SMEs that are struggling to secure financing from traditional sources like banks, business angels, and venture capital firms. It was primarily aimed at making borrowing from friends and family more appealing. But it inspired our current CEO, Matthias Browaeys, to create a web platform where Belgian entrepreneurs and local investors could connect. And that’s how Winwinner was born!
But why Crowdlending? Well, on one hand, entrepreneurs were finding it increasingly challenging to secure their full financing needs from traditional sources. On the other hand, Belgians were sitting on a substantial pile of savings, exceeding €300 billion, without finding ideal investment opportunities. We saw the potential for entrepreneurs and investors to strike a win-win situation by aligning their growth plans. Crowdlending emerged as the ideal way to activate dormant savings and, in the process, give a boost to the local economy.
The journey
Our journey has been marked by significant milestones. In 2016, Winwinner was founded, and each year, we’ve grown in terms of team size, optimization, and financing volume. The most important moment came in 2020 when we received an official license from the FSMA as an alternative financing platform. This stamp of quality led to increasing interest from both entrepreneurs and investors, and an expansion of our offering with ordinary subordinated loans. In 2022, we successfully completed a €1 million funding round to invest in our growth plans. This effort resulted in obtaining the European license and the creation of our first Winwinner Private Debt Fund of €30 million, this year.
So, from being an administrative middle-man focused on Winwin loans, we evolved into a digital crowdlending platform that facilitates connections between entrepreneurs and investors and, ultimately, a European crowdlending platform linked to a debt fund to fulfill the larger financing needs of SMEs.
So It’s been quite a ride with lots of hurdles, ups-and-downs but also opportunities. In the beginning we created a one-off change as a financing option next to traditional options. However It’s becoming more of a systematic change where Crowdlending can become an eco-system in the financing world!
The positive impact
To provide you with a snapshot of our current impact, over 11,000 Belgians have chosen to make their savings work harder through our platform. They Invested in more than 400 SMEs for a total amount over €55 million. The average funding per campaign stands at €260,000, with an average tickets size of €2,500. Winwinner supports businesses across various sectors and we would like to increase our impact by supporting SME’s in their search for funding and growth. Because lots of SME’s have serious difficulties to grow due to financing issues relating to the decreasing interest of traditional channels as banks.
The growth and collaboration
Looking ahead, our next milestone involves the creation of a €100 million leveraged fund. This fund will enable us to assist even more businesses in their search for financing. Additionally, we’re exploring opportunities in the European market, aiming to expand our operations abroad. Connecting with local governments and parties can help increasing the impact of a European Crowdlending eco-system
INNOVATIVE STARTERS SUPPORT SCHEME - Innovatieve Starterssteun (ISS)
Challenge 3
Private capital investment
From
Contact person
Benedicte De Buck and Emily Dhaeze
The birth
Innovative Starter Support (ISS) was started as a pilot project to quickly and easily support small, innovative projects for both the applicant and VLAIO. It has been a regular support program since 2023.
The aim is to achieve sustainable economic growth in Flanders, stimulate innovation throughout the economy and society and increase the productivity and competitiveness of Flemish companies and general well-being through innovation.
ISS is a valuable program supported by good cooperation between the partners involved. The 5 assessment criteria (pioneer role, uncertainties and approach, team and network, own risk and impact) allow a good selection of innovative starters who are then supported with a combination of subsidy and guidance. In 3 years, 212 projects were supported and supervised.
The journey
After a thorough evaluation and taking into account the required capacity for the evaluation by VLAIO and the partners, ISS will become a program from 2024 with a continuous option to submit dossiers and 5 fixed evaluation moments per calendar year.
By increasing the frequency of evaluation moments, the processing time of files decreases and a larger number of starters can be reached.
The evaluation will take place from 2024 with a broad jury of theme experts, business advisors and project advisors. The jury moment with pitch is decisive for the selection of the supported projects.
The focus of the guidance of the VLAIO Business Programs Team shifts from the preparation phase to guidance of the selected starters, and especially those with high growth ambitions.
VLAIO is setting up an Alumni operation, with a first event in December 2023, to achieve continuous and broad follow-up of innovative starters. Additional support and guidance is also provided for starters with the greatest growth potential towards scaling up their activities.
The positive impact
A business economic evolution analysis is carried out every year
- Legal status
- Balance sheet total
- Equity
- Issued capital
- Employment
This is only possible for companies that have at least 2 financial years. There is currently insufficient data to make a proper analysis. Analyzes become more interesting if more financial years are available. Companies are also guided, where possible and desirable, in their further stages of life.
The growth and collaboration
The inflow of starters to Innovative starter support takes place via 12 partners (Agoria, Sirris, Imec.istart, Voka, Unizo, Netwerk Ondernemen, Start-it @ KBC, Birdhouse, Flanders’ Space, Flanders DC, Flanders’ FOOD, LRM – Limburg Startup) and via the VLAIO Business Team. The intention is to continue and, if possible, intensify this collaboration.
MOTMO.pro
Challenge 2
Local and global markets
From
Contact person
Bruno de Zabala
The birth
We have been managing music rights for more than 10 years, and we found out that there is a huge lack of official materials to learn how to play an existing song. The three founders are musicians so they love the challenge they are facing, creating a platform where you can learn how to play a song straight from the source, by the original artist that created it.
The journey
We had a lot of problems trying to find the right way to play songs inside the internet so one day we talked about solving this and thanksfully we realized that what motmo wanted to do was the best way to approach it.
We have had strong support from the Basque Governement to develop the idea and funding from Venture Capital and some music labels.
The positive impact
We are on the SDG 4 Quality Education:
- Sub-Goal 4.4:
- Skill Enhancement: motmo.pro offers courses of various levels, allowing users to increase musical skills regardless of their starting level.
- Inclusivity: It provides access to quality musical education to users globally, irrespective of their location.
- Sub-Goal 4.7:
- Education and Culture: Through interviews and additional content, users gain a deeper understanding of music, composition, and the techniques used by artists
The growth and collaboration
Our idea is to develop relationships with other music publishers and music labels around Europe. This way we can let them know about our project and turn it into a successful and innovative company.
Thematic Areas
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Organizers
Collaborators
Coordinator
