The challenge of supporting creative industries - Scottish example

This article aims to explore the idea of the supporting system for creative industries, which plays a pivotal role in today’s economy. Creative businesses, which range from individual musicians to companies dealing with publications, demand special attention and tailor-made support services. Therefore, in this article, the analysis is carried out based on the information gained in an in-depth interview and the supporting system for creative industries, which have been functioning in Scotland and the main barriers in providing support services.

As shown by the research, a problem exists regarding a proper classification of creative industries, which causes difficulties in measuring them. Moreover, lumping creative businesses with artists to the same group results in criticism from artist communities as they feel that art is no longer being supported, only invested. This piece of research is a part of a research project, which aims at comparing the systems for supporting creative industries in Szczecin and in Glasgow. The empirical approach will be enriched by the theoretical discourse on policies shaping the environment of creative industries. This article, therefore, provides important knowledge concerning building effective system for supporting creative industries, both for scholars and practitioners (managers of business support organizations and policy makers). This knowledge and experience are especially needed in central and east European countries, where the awareness about creative industries is very low.