The Bristol businesses daring to disrupt

Bristol companies that are daring to disrupt, innovate and develop pioneering projects have been recognised as leaders on a national scale.

Duel and Knowle West Media Centre (KWMC) have both been named by Creative England in the top 50 brightest stars across tech, games, film and TV for their work with tech and creativity in communities.

Every year, Creative England announce their CE50, which celebrates the achievements of 50 of the best up and coming, innovative and disruptive individuals and companies across film, games and digital tech.

The organisation singled KWMC out for its “exceptional work within the local community, supporting individuals and communities to get the most out of digital technologies and the arts.”

KWMC has been involved in a pioneering scheme to address housing need within communities

Commenting on the accolade, KWMC director Carolyn Hassan said: “We’re delighted to be included in Creative England’s CE50 and recognised for our work supporting people to create positive change by harnessing the power of technology and creativity.

“We’re excited to be expanding our programme this year, enabling more people to access new manufacturing technologies, set up their own enterprises, develop new skills, and address the issues that are important to them and their communities.

“We couldn’t do it without our fantastic team, the ongoing support of our partners, and the enthusiasm and experimental thinking of the communities, artists, makers we work with”.

The centre works on projects which benefit every area of the community, from after-school groups to teaching volunteers digital skills, with work benefiting school children to the over 60s. It was founded on a belief that bringing together technology and the arts solves major problems and generate exciting and innovative ideas.

Paul Archer, co-founder and CEO of Duel.

Duel is a Customer Advocacy Marketing platform that helps brands and retailers drive sales by turning their customers into advocates. This advocacy builds emotional connection and makes every element of a company’s marketing, advertising, and eCommerce more effective.

The platform engages and rewards customers to create content and enables brands to build their own exclusive library of customer generated visual content to use across their products. It is the only platform to automate Customer Advocacy Marketing.

Welcoming the news, Paul Archer, co-founder and CEO of Duel said: “we’re excited that customer advocacy marketing is being recognised as an emerging and important trend in 2018.”

Creative England commended the company for success in growing its client base, to include WWF,  Movember, Twitter and Visit England.”

The creative industries provide 15,900 jobs in the Bristol and Bath area with the region’s creatives estimated to be 50 per cent more productive than the UK average, according to Creative Industries. 

Dozens of smaller branding digital and tech companies make up an estimated 10 per cent of the local economy, with a combined workforce of approximately 16,000 people, the industry plays a significant part in the region.

With a base of successful businesses, advanced infrastructure and support from the city leaders, Bristol is poised to be at the forefront of the UK’s creative industries growth.

Speaking of his experience of starting a business in Bristol, Archer said: “Bristol is an amazing place to start a business.  It’s a hive of creativity and innovation, and as we grow, it will always be our home.”

Read more: ‘This is why creative industries thrive in Bristol’