Sarah Novotny, Digital Creative and Tech Sector Lead at GC Business Growth Hub, on how creative and digital businesses are embracing a new era of innovation in the aftermath of Covid-19.
You’ll know the famous quote, “This is Manchester, we do things differently here”, often credited to the late and great Anthony H Wilson. In fact, the source goes back to comedian Steve Coogan’s depiction of him in the cult film 24 Hour Party People.
He says the iconic line just before introducing the next chapter – the ‘Second Act’ – of Manchester’s story: the famous ‘Madchester’ era that put the city ‘back’ on the world map as a cultural and musical powerhouse.
Fast forward to today and many of the businesses that make-up our city-region’s £4.1bn digital, creative and technology (DCT) sector – just a fledgling industry in the days of Madchester – are preparing for their own second act.
This time it will be about how Manchester’s swathe of DCT companies embrace a new era of innovation to deliver products and services differently in the aftermath of Covid-19. Many have seen their client bases heavily hit by the challenges, with services that were dependent on face-to-face meetings (such as workshops and events) having to adapt to survive.
