The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Elevator programme set to lift creative sector entrepreneurs
COURSE: Founders learn essential skills to help growth
Two entrepreneurs who completed Elevator’s Perth-based creative accelerator programme have highlighted the impact it had on their ventures.
The Famous Grouse Ideas Centre (FGIC) Creative Accelerator programme, which supports and encourages creative businesses, welcomes its next cohort next week.
Launched three years ago, the programme delivers a 12-week programme for businesses within Dundee and Perth operating in one of Scotland’s fastest growing sectors.
Each programme covers a range of business subjects including employing staff, moving into new business premises and making confident choices to drive their business forward.
Programme participants, known as founders, are linked to individuals who help them work on their business practices, making for a more robust, resilient and sustainable creative economy in the area.
In the Tay Cities Region, there are more than 1,500 creative industry businesses, employing around 8,000 people.
Two of the first cohort founders have since moved their studios into the same Perth venue.
Photographers Cat Burton and Ian Potter said that while the industry experts made an impact on each of their businesses, it was their fellow founders who made the biggest influence.
Mr Potter said: “As a sole trader it can get a bit daunting having nobody to bounce ideas off or even just check that you’re doing the right thing.
“The accelerator became a place where I could get honest feedback on the business and what could be good for it moving forward.
“I received plenty of advice and direction, but the biggest gain for me was friendship.”
Fellow participant Ms Burton said the opportunity to meet locally-based like-minded entrepreneurs was the biggest factor.
She added: “I learned that while advice and external perspectives are good to get you thinking about the big picture, it is you who knows your business better than anyone, so trust your gut instinct.”