Greater Manchester has a rich tradition of innovation and creativity, dating back to the mid-19th century. Did you know Greater Manchester revolutionised leisure time? Robert Lowes campaigned for Saturday afternoons off, inventing the weekend! This achievement, celebrated through the 'We Invented the Weekend' festival in Salford.

The city has a rich history of creativity, from establishing the first public lending library in 1852 to transforming Campfield into a dynamic hub for tech and media start-ups. MediaCity, boosted by the BBC and the University of Salford, has cemented Manchester's status as a major media hub, with Dock10 leading the way in TV facilities and AI advancements. Cultural highlights include the 1857 Art Treasures exhibition, HOME's art displays, the Manchester International Festival, and hosting Chanel's Métiers d'Art show in 2023.

GM Business Growth Hub: Here to Support the Creative Sector

GM Business Growth Hub is proud to be at the heart of this dynamic field, connecting, highlighting, and supporting GM based digital, creative and tech businesses. With a team of experienced industry specialists in the creative and tech field, the hub has supported thousands of businesses from their early stages to global success.

Becki Coen, Digital, Creative and Technology Programme Manager at the Hub, says: “I think there’s a lot of reasons for businesses in the region to be optimistic. Although there’s still a lot of challenges like how to access funding, how to upskill their leadership team and overcoming general growth barriers, it feels like there is a lot more support available now more than ever in Greater Manchester, no matter what stage or size of the business. There is plenty of resources to tap into.”

Create Growth: Two-day innovative programme

Designed for creative businesses, Create Growth is an innovative programme that aims to further develop the thriving industry by helping creative businesses attract funding to grow their businesses sustainably. It includes a bespoke two-day cohort covering the essentials to support business growth and investment readiness.

GM Business Growth Hub gave participants the opportunity to apply for a fully funded place at SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, giving them a chance to promote their ideas on a global level. In March 2025, three GM creative businesses will be attending SXSW.

Spotlight on the Future and the importance of collaboration

Beyond 2024

Focusing on the future, we were proud to be a lead local partner at BEYOND 2024, taking part in the 'GM Growth: Welcome to our Creative Cities' session at dock10. Positioned alongside thinkers, makers, investors, and researchers from the creative industries to explore the interplay between creative research and business innovation, the event featured insightful talks, demos, immersive digital art, and behind-the-scenes tours, highlighting Greater Manchester's thriving creative economy and its potential for future growth.

During the event, participants learned about Dock10’s significant strides in AI advancements, particularly in virtual studio production. In collaboration with the University of York on the AI Composure project, they developed a framework that uses computer vision and generative AI to simulate realistic light interactions between physical and virtual elements in real-time, enhancing the realism and efficiency of live TV productions. Read more about the project here: 

dock10 and University of York reveal findings of AI research project for virtual studios

A takeaway from BEYOND 2024 is that media, content, and social interaction have never been more essential to businesses in all industries than they are today. 

GM CreaTech

Held at Side Street Studios, CreaTech came alive with a powerful collaboration between GMCA, Cloud Imperium and GM Business Growth Hub, all with the same goal. inspiring the future, encouraging participants to engage in collaborative discussions, share insights. The event featured live demonstrations, immersive VR experiences, career guidance, business support, and networking opportunities.

As part of GM Business Growth Hub’s sector-specific creative whitepaper that will be launched in February 2025, we heard a range of varied takes on the sector from GM creatives on industry challenges, trends, opportunities and more.

Phil Swan, Director for Digital at Greater Manchester Combined Authority, says: ‘What is required to unlock the creative tech sector is a couple of things, but one is that we need to be making more noise about it. We need to be doing more things like CreaTech to bring communities together because there’s such a strength that emerges from collaborations from businesses that are already GM based.’ 

Commitment to Creativity and Innovation

GM Business Growth Hub’s commitment to fostering creativity and innovation ensures that Greater Manchester remains a leading hub for the creative and media industries. As we look to the future, Greater Manchester's vibrant community, collaborative culture, and commitment to creative businesses ensure that it will continue to be a beacon of creativity and innovation, inspiring generations to come. 

For more information on the Create Growth programme, and to apply for our next cohort, please go to: 

 GM Business Growth Hub | Create Growth