Why base your business in Brighton?

There are few cities that successfully combine commercial opportunities with cultural richness and yet Brighton has it down to a fine art.

It’s no coincidence that Brighton has earned the moniker London by the Sea; in part due to the popularity of the seaside city as a mecca for day-trippers from the Capital but also because Brighton offers much of the diversity, energy and opportunities of London condensed into its smaller, seashore-lined space.

From a business perspective, the draw of Brighton has struck a chord with the many and varied organisations choosing to locate in this gem by the sea. As a poster child for digital innovation, the combination of Brighton’s reputation as a creative hub together with its transport links to London (fast trains 52 minutes) and Gatwick Airport clearly strike a chord with ambitious businesses.

Brighton’s digital economy is now worth over £1bn per annum, which puts it on par with tourism. The city’s fastest-growing sector, today it represents 15% of all employment and generates around £720m of GDP each year. Meanwhile creative industries across Greater Brighton generated more than £1.5bn in turnover last year, finds a study from the University of Sussex.

So what’s the draw for business?

Access to talent is always a major business consideration and a large pool of well-educated job candidates certainly marks Brighton out. The Cities Outlook 2019 report finds that 50.1% of residents boast high level qualifications compared with a national average of 38.4%, ranking it comfortably within the UK’s top 10. The city is home to two thriving universities – the University of Sussex and University of Brighton.

The Fuse project – a two year research project into the creative economy – sums up the city perfectly:-

“The fused nature of the Brighton creative and digital cluster – the way that the arts and humanities are integrated with digital technology – is at the heart of its success”.

With a strong reputation for progressive thinking, experimentalism, culture and arts – as well as liberalism and a dash of hedonism – Brighton is unique.