Hampshire Creatives' Advice Hub - Unlocking Finance for Creative Businesses
Access to finance remains one of the biggest barriers to growth for creative businesses — but the landscape is changing.
In this interactive webinar brought to you by Hampshire Creatives' Advice Hub, you’ll hear directly from Susan Elliott at the British Business Bank as we explore a range of funding options available to creative founders today — from mainstream business finance through to specialist creative-sector investment.
The session will combine practical guidance, real-world examples, and an open Q&A, ensuring the conversation is shaped by the challenges and ambitions in the room.
Co-hosted by Rich Burn from Hampshire Creatives' Advice Hub & Incuhive you'll be in relaxed online session geared towards the needs of creatives and Hampshire as a region.
What this session will cover
- An overview of business finance options
A clear, jargon-free look at funding routes open to businesses of all types and sizes.
- Finance tailored to the creative sector
A deeper dive into specialist creative funding, including debt finance provided by Creative Growth Finance.
- What investors want to see
What creative founders need to know — and prepare — to access the right type of finance for their business.
- Opening up investment opportunities
Insights into current projects designed to connect creative founders with investors, including founder–funder activity being delivered with Create South East.
- The national picture
How the Bank is working with Creative UK to raise awareness of creative-sector investment opportunities, including leadership perspectives shared at The Big Creative UK Summit.
Format
- Short introduction to the British Business Bank and its role
- Focused deep-dive into creative-sector finance
- Live Q&A and open discussion
Who should attend
This webinar is ideal for:
- Creative business founders and co-founders in the Hampshire County Council area
- Creative freelancers and studio owners looking to scale
- Creative sector advisers and support organisations
- Investors and ecosystem partners interested in the creative economy
No prior finance knowledge required.
Why attend?
By the end of the session, you’ll:
- Understand the range of finance options available to creative businesses
- Know how to position your business for the right type of funding
- Gain clarity on what investors are really looking for
- Have the opportunity to ask your own questions, directly and openly
Sign up for the Hampshire Creatives' Advice Hub: https://incuhive.co.uk/acceleration-investment/hants-creatives-advice-hub
Please note - the zoom link will be emailed to you prior to the event.
Speakers
Rich Burn is a dynamic business start-up, digital-skills consultant, bid writer and marketing mentor with over 20 years of experience helping organisations and small businesses unlock their potential. With a career spanning marketing, sales, training, public-sector innovation, business support, and hands-on consultancy, he’s known for turning complex ideas into practical, human-centred solutions that drive growth. Rich has worked in corporate life, been a co-owner of a small retail business and worked across multiple sectors including public and third sector, giving him a wide ranges of experience across many fields. Rich brings energy, empathy and humour to every project. Whether mentoring entrepreneurs, supporting public-sector partnerships or running marketing workshops, his goal remains the same: to make business growth, practical, results focussed and simple - inspiring the business owner with confidence and enthusiasm to make that next step towards success.
Rich has worked in publishing (Financial Times/Pearson), marketing of the arts/film & music (including roles at Earls Court & Olympia, Bournemouth International Centre & Lighthouse, Poole Centre for the Arts). Adding to this he has worked on publicly funded programmes as a business advisor with the creative and digital sectors in Dorset and the South East and been actively involved with creative sector communities including Your Are The Media and The Marketing Leaders Forum
Sue is an experienced commercial professional working with British Business Bank stakeholders, intermediaries and delivery partners to keep abreast of the challenges faced by founders seeking funding, and to help improve access finance for smaller businesses to start, scale and stay in the UK. Following an early career with global technology corporates, Sue’s knowledge and strong connections in the funding and business support community were gained from co-founding and running her own advisory and consulting business for 10 years, providing strategic advice for scale ups, delivering business accelerator programmes, managing public sector business support contracts and through partnerships with sources of finance for small and mid-sized businesses.