Emerging initiative seeks branding

North Staffordshire Partnership is looking to appoint a consultancy to help it develop and brand a design initiative that aims to boost creative industries across the county.

The partnership has secured funding of £100 000 from regional development agency Advantage West Midland for initial phases of the project. It expects the total budget to become a ‘multi million pound’ one over the next ten years, says North Staffordshire Partnership design consultant Mo Trudel.

‘The first phase is visioning and branding. Future plans include a design and conference centre, which will be a state-of-the-art building for the region,’ she says.

The partnership is looking for a consultancy with branding experience across public and private sector projects and with strategic capabilities.

‘We’re looking for a group to work with our partners and build and brand the design initiative. What we need at this stage is the upfront thinking that comes before implementation,’ says Trudel.

Initial priorities include establishing a new product development group similar to the Glasgow Collection, which brought together designers and manufacturers to deliver new product ideas to market, and introducing a creative industries network.