In order to look at what defines a cultural entrepreneur we need to first take a look at what we might consider are the attributes of entrepreneurs in the business world.  

It is difficult to be definitive of the particular characteristics that mark out an entrepreneur. Obvious examples of entrepreneurs will spring to mind; Richard Branson, James Dyson, Anita Roddick. They have a well-defined PR and self-promotion skills that make them very visible. But what makes them, and other less well-known individuals, achieve the high levels of success and wealth. We will see that they do have certain traits and all entrepreneurs will possess some of these to a greater or lesser degree. One of their traits is that they recognise their strengths and have considerable self-confidence but also are aware of the skills that they may be short of and ensure that they acquire those skills from elsewhere. They are driven people, having clear goals and the ability to plan to achieve. They may have a brilliant idea themselves, find one or have one presented to them. Their talent is then to act as the catalyst in turning the idea into a successful venture.  

Entrepreneurs can see the bigger picture. Not ones to be hindered by the hum-drum tasks they are the ones to have the vision and create a strategic plan. They have a greater capacity for coping with failure and negative situations. By always having their eyes fixed on the winning post anything else is a step along the way to be dealt with by them or one of the team they have assembled to get the job done. These people are driven, often described as having ‘FIRE IN THE BELLY’ meaning a burning desire to win and succeed. 

So, how does the ‘cultural’ entrepreneur differ? They certainly need many of the characteristics already mentioned for an entrepreneur but what distinguishes them is the sector in which they operate. Cultural entrepreneurs can be seen to bridge the gap between creativity and the business world. ‘T-shirts and suits – A guide to the Business of Creativity’ (Parrish 2005) identifies some of these individuals. People like Gettman and Macann who, back in 1995, spotted the potential of online books. When big businesses were desperate to try and protect their products from being copied and shared without commercial gain, Online Originals took a different view and in doing so became a pioneer of internet e-book publishing. They were not confined by the costs associated with traditional publishing methods, such as printing, warehousing and distribution; instead they developed PDF files as the standard format, issued ISBN numbers and did e-book reviews. The authors were able to retain copyright and a generous 50% of net sales income. The organisation has been able to grow using technology to automate systems and exists in cyberspace; it has no need for physical storage or retail outlets. Its assets, though considerable, are very different from a business entrepreneur’s tangible empire. 

An individual who is purely an artist will be concerned with cultural production; their motivation will be the quality of the end result. A cultural entrepreneur will be interested in cultural distribution. They may well be an artist who has entrepreneurial traits and has developed a business style to ensure the sustainability of their practise. 

Cultural entrepreneurs take a creative approach to the way that artistic output can be shared and enjoyed by many. The music industry is an example of this. When bands first started to offer their music online at no charge is was considered commercial suicide, how might they possibly be successful if they gave their product away? What they did was very astute; they gained a huge amount of free publicity and became significantly popular in a relatively short space of time. They were able to by-pass the need to rely on the big record companies to get reach a mass audience. The customers of the culture market were able to choose what music they wanted to support and could influence the whole music scene by ‘finding’ new bands and promoting them through social networks. 

All entrepreneurs take advantage of the value chain. They generate wealth by exploiting their position on the chain and adding to it. In a business value chain it is crucial to know where you sit and know who poses a threat above or below. Value chains in the cultural sector may work in a horizontal and vertical way at the same time. An entrepreneurial approach is the ability to be flexible and respond quickly to the market by moving along the chain in order to exploit an opportunity. Cultural consumers are becoming more selective and individual in their choices, particularly in the music industry. Small creative business that can respond to this niche activity will serve the market better than the larger companies than have a more fixed model of working.  

Studies of management styles and organisation that exist in the creative sector (Bilton 2006 ; Howkins 2001) find that cultural production was driven by networks of self-employed individuals and micro-enterprises. The sector developed its own entrepreneurial style of self management (Leadbeater, Oakley 1999) in which managerial and operational tasks were seen to overlap. Coming partly from necessity but also from a reluctance to delegate the process and lose the ability to control the end result. An individual who is purely an artist will be concerned with cultural production; their motivation will be the quality of the end result. A cultural entrepreneur will be interested in cultural distribution and will measure success accordingly. However, such an individual well be an artist who has entrepreneurial traits and has developed a business style to ensure the sustainability of their practise.  

http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/geographyAndEnvironment/research/Bilton-june28.doc                                             

Parrish, D. (2005) t-shirts and suits – A guide to the business of creativity   

Howkins, J. (2001) The Creative Economy, How people make money from ideas  

Leadbeater, C., Oakley, K. (Demos 1999) The Independents