Specialisation as a Driver of the Development Dynamics of Creative Cities and City Regions

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to explore how cultural and creative industries (CCIs) can contribute to an economic development of cities and city regions with a focus on the role of different types of specialisation in this process. The role of specialisation is confronted here with that of diversification, which – in turn – contributes to a long-lasting discussion on a mutual interdependence (or opposition) between Marshall-Arrow-Romer and Jacobs externalities. Such a discussion is particularly relevant in the case of viable creative cities, since of key importance for them is the presence of both inter-firm networks of producers and a flexible local labour market. Infrastructural facilities and social capital are also crucial in this process. Even though these variables can mostly be found in large-scale metropolitan areas such as London, Paris or New York, there are also many small and specialised creative cities or urban agglomerations all over the world. The continued survival of such places can in part be accounted for by the powerful economic advantages deriving from specialised agglomeration processes with growing product differentiation. The chapter offers both theoretical and conceptual considerations related to specialisation of creative cities and regions based on the overview of literature, and the results of our own research, including case studies. It consists of two basic parts. In the first part, key issues of the current debate on specialisation of creative cities and regions are presented. In the second part, a typology of the specialisation of creative cities is introduced (place-dependent, industry-dependent and diversified), illustrated by the case study analysis of the cities from Europe (Cremona in Italy, Leipzig in Germany and Prague in the Czech Republic, respectively). We conclude that specialisation can be a driver of the development dynamics not only in large metropolitan areas but also in small- and medium-sized cities.