Inspired in Barcelona®
About this good practice
The Inspired in Barcelona® program (Community Trademark registered by the Barcelona Design Centre) started in 2014, with the aim of commercial promotion of companies, talent and the creative production of Barcelona/Catalonia in the international markets, with face-to-face actions at fairs and creative festivals and digital promotional actions. Under the Inspired in Barcelona® brand, we have organised different international actions to enhance the image of Barcelona-inspired design and to highlight the brands and entrepreneurs in this sector.
The Digital Platform was launched in Nov 2020 and is currently a virtual space designed to bring us closer to the main prescribers and potential buyers and consumers of design and creativity inspired in Barcelona; to international events, face-to-face or digital; and in general to all audiences likely to consume local creativity.
The platform is aimed to promote creative production from brands and professionals as well as inspiring emerging projects, and to disseminate content about the potential of the local creative industries in the global scene. The platform aims to be a loudspeaker for the dissemination of products/services of companies and professionals, conceptual and emerging projects of young talents, creative initiatives and spaces, entrepreneurs and start-ups linked to creative industries, building reputation in the international arena, and allowing them to open up to new audiences and markets.
Resources needed
To promote the platform and ensure its long-term viability, a private sponsorship plan is currently being drawn up. But previously it is necessary to optimise its positioning, provide constantly with new content, and increase number of followers and website visitors.
Grant needed: 30K €
Evidence of success
The platform is a pioneer in terms of the digitization of the international promotion of the creative sector and the use of new technologies, due to its multiplier effect, and in line with the transformation objectives technology to improve the productivity and competitiveness of SMEs and entrepreneurs in the creative sectors.
In figures: 8.000 visitors in 2021, 19.000 pages viewed. Top visiting countries: US, China, UK, Germany, Holland, Italy and Canada.
Potential for learning or transfer
During the pandemic, creative festivals and the main fairs in the sector were cancelled or converted into digital events. SMEs and entrepreneurs in the creative sectors suffered a paralization of their foreign promotion actions, but at the same time new opportunities for participation in remote digital events were opening up. The platform took advantage of this opportunity, converting some of its own face-to-face international promotion initiatives into digital actions, and currently represents an additional way to promote the internationalisation of creatives and companies in the field of creativity, providing greater visibility to creative industries, and positioning Barcelona/Catalonia as a creative tourist destination.
In the medium term, the platform plans to include a marketplace, facilitating internationalisation, opening up to new audiences and markets, and new functionalities like virtual fairs and/or showrooms with immersive and interactive experiences to virtual visitors.