T-shirts and Suits: A Guide to the Business of Creativity [Paperback]

This common sense, accessible book is a comprehensive guide to establishing, growing and leading a creative business. It hits all the right buttons in all the right ways. --Paul Smith, Arts & Business

T-Shirts and Suits demystifies the ins and outs of building a business in the creative industries by providing a practical guide for creative entrepreneurs that uses case studies to illustrate best practice. --Alexander Schischlik, UNESCO

More than just a great read, T-shirts and Suits is a valuable tool for anyone embarking on, or surviving, business in the creative sector. --Diane Earles, Chartered Institute of Marketing.

T-Shirts and Suits demystifies the ins and outs of building a business in the creative industries by providing a practical guide for creative entrepreneurs that uses case studies to illustrate best practice. --Alexander Schischlik, UNESCO

More than just a great read, T-shirts and Suits is a valuable tool for anyone embarking on, or surviving, business in the creative sector. --Diane Earles, Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Successful creative enterprises integrate creativity and business. T-Shirts and Suits offers an approach which brings together both creative passion and business best practice. Written in an engaging and jargon-free style, the book offers inspiration and appropriate advice for all those involved in running or setting up a creative business. Marketing, intellectual property, finance, competition, leadership - and more - are included in this guide. Examples of best practice are illustrated in eleven Ideas in Action sections featuring a range of creative businesses and organisations. David Parrish specialises in advising and training creative entrepreneurs using his own experience and international best practice. With a foreword by Shaun Woodward MP, UK Minister for Creative Industries and Tourism, this is an updated version of the Parrish's bestselling book, first published in 2005.

Foreword by James Purnell MP, Minister for Creative Industries and Tourism.

As Minister for the Creative Industries and Tourism, I am pleased to write a foreword to this new guide to the business of creativity.

The UK is arguably the world’s most creative nation. America may have bigger creative industries, but we punch well above our weight. But having creative people isn’t a guarantee of economic success. Arguably, the UK has been great at inventing but not so good at exploiting those inventions. The challenge is to turn that creativity into industrial success and we must find ways to turn talent into hits and hits into profits. In other words, we must become creative entrepreneurs, not just creative inventors.

Publications like T-shirts and Suits will help inform creative talent to become more successful entrepreneurs.

What David has done in this book is to enable the most creative people to also understand and use the best business practices. He has used his experience as a practitioner, consultant and trainer to present key ideas that can be used by creative entrepreneurs, both established and new. Furthermore he has used his own creativity to propose new ideas and to explain vital concepts, for example about intellectual property and marketing, in a clear and entertaining way.

I congratulate this contribution to creative entrepreneurship and I applaud Merseyside ACME’s publication of this book. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

David Parrish helps creative people make their businesses and organisations even more successful. By transferring great ideas, effective techniques and best practice across national and cultural boundaries, he helps businesses select the best ideas and adapt them intelligently to fit their objectives and values. He has both practical experience of setting up and managing creative businesses and organisations, and academic qualifications and professional accreditation. A professionally qualified management consultant, he has worked internationally, helping organisations and businesses in Britain, China, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, India, Switzerland, South Africa, Germany, Egypt, France, Turkey, Italy, Singapore, Thailand, Holland and Denmark. A director of T-Shirts and Suits Ltd, he is also a founding partner of Chittenden Horley Consulting, a director of Password Training and of Interactive Initiatives. David holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Bradford University School of Management, one of Europe's leading business schools.