The entrepreneurial ecosystem of cultural and creative industries in Porto: A sub-ecosystem approach

Abstract

It is still a matter of dispute whether entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) frameworks can be confined to a single industry in isolation, let alone whether such a sub-ecosystem approach can be employed in a domain that is distinct from the high-growth industries usually scrutinised in the literature. This article seeks to apply a systemic and dynamic EE perspective to the development of cultural and creative industries (CCIs) within an urban context, with a particular focus on how urban development interacts with the sub-ecosystem of this sector over time. An in-depth case study in the city of Porto (Portugal) revealed that existing EE frameworks are well-suited to research on creative sub-ecosystems. It also enabled us to flesh out associations with other entrepreneurial activities and policy domains within the city. We highlight the prominent roles of local culture and policies when the context is resource-constrained: policy led to an upward, positive spiral that moved Porto’s EE in relation to CCIs into a growth stage, during which it began to interact with, and faced resource competition from, high-tech entrepreneurship. We argue that having an integrated view of the dynamics of entrepreneurial sub-ecosystems and urban affairs can improve what is understood of productivity and causality in entrepreneurship.