CREATIVITY FROM THE NORTHERN POWERHOUSE
The Northern Powerhouse (NPH) includes the great cities of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield and boasts 12 international ports and 7 airports. The Northern Powerhouse economy is vibrant and worth over £339 billion and exports more than £90 billion worth of goods and services every year. It has a long and rich history of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship. A flourishing creative scene has existed in the North for decades and the North West is the largest advertising, marketing and design centre in the UK after London.
Leeds City Region alone, is home to a flourishing digital, design and creative sector, with 20 of the fastest-growing tech companies in the North of England, according to Northern Tech 100, and 13 of the Prolific North’s Top 50 PR Agencies. The North East with five universities and the highest proportion of students studying STEM subjects in the UK can also brag about international IT success story, Sage, the UK’s only FTSE 100 software company, has its global headquarters in the region. Investors such as IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Bede Gaming and Accenture already take advantage of the regions business opportunities.
Buttercrumble
Yorkshire-born twins Chloe and Abigail Baldwin from Buttercrumble, a creative communications studio, are one such example of excellent Northern creativity. Their personal touches and can-do attitude has enabled them to collaborate with many playful and like-minded brands globally.
Abigail said:
“At Buttercrumble, we’re excited to be influenced by the cultural combination of East and West. This mix of innovation and commerce can excite and influence our graphic design and illustration skills. Moreover, we feel that in the ever-changing and competitive creative sector, it’s important to nurture our network at home and overseas”.
Wayne Taylor, CEO and David Judge, Creative Director are from Space Zero, a Manchester based company that specialises in the design of learning environments. The company has designed more than 450 education projects worldwide. Employing 60 specialist designers, strategists, technicians, and managers, their team has specified over 6.5 million items of furniture fittings & equipment and built spaces across the world, including the UK, UAE, Thailand, Malaysia, and China.
Wayne Taylor added: “We understand that private schools are a brand experience as much as a learning experience. We have been collaborating with world-leading strategists and designers from brand and retail design to create an entirely new approach to the design of private schools. We look forward to meeting future clients and developing new business”.
