Mapping the Design Sector in Catalonia

From a strategic point of view, design is crucial and necessary for the country’s competitiveness. We see this in terms of innovation, for global industry reach (including production, services, trading, etc) and as a factor for improving the quality of life of its citizens. Catalonia and Barcelona hold international recognition for their design sector, and it is thanks to the professional talent, the educational offer, the associative network and the clout of promotion entities, all of which generate synergies and benefits across other strategic sectors in the region. In order to strengthen that sector, it is essential to gather data to gain better understanding of the actual situation. We need this specifically from companies and professionals to gauge the breadth of the sector in the Catalan economy. We require quantitative and qualitative data from the companies offering professional design services to understand their sources of income, staff costs and level of international reach. The reports published prior to this study had not taken into account the entire design sector within the creative industries. As a result, the Catalan design sector may benefit from the study outputs, i.e. all the information collected may be used to define strategies for companies support, international reach, training programmes and design research.