Designing Demand, a new national Design Council initiative to help SMEs make more effective use of design, is now in motion in the region following the North East launch on Tuesday 23rd October at the Hilton Newcastle Gateshead Hotel.

The programme, which is being delivered regionally by the North East Business and Innovation Centre (BIC) and Entrust, and funded by One NorthEast and The European Regional Development Fund, is already underway in several regions throughout the UK. It aims to help and support businesses in using design to improve performance, with plans to reach 6,500 businesses nationwide by 2010, creating 4,120 jobs.

Tim Pain, Head of Enterprise and Business Support at One NorthEast, said: “The Regional Economic Strategy highlights the huge importance of design in helping businesses to compete in the global economy by improving their productivity and efficiency, and the region has made considerable progress in this field.  Designing Demand has already proved successful in other parts of the UK and I hope many businesses will take up this opportunity of getting expert advice on how design can help them.”

The inception of the programme was underlined by a review of Creativity in Business, commissioned by the Treasury in 2005. It concluded that businesses in the UK face increasingly tough competition from fast-growing economies such as India and China, as they look to move beyond low-cost manufacturing and up the value chain.

Pam Clark, Operations Manager at Entrust, said: “The review concluded that businesses, particularly SMEs, need help to get the most out of design. One way in which companies in the UK can act to counter the growing competition from overseas is to add extra value to existing products and services.

“Designing Demand aims to address these matters, by singling out design as a key tool in exploiting new ideas, and getting them to market in the form of better products and services.”

The regional delivery of the programme will initially consist of workshops aimed at business advisors, designers and SMEs, taking place throughout the region now and over the coming months.

Paul McEldon, Chief Executive of the North East BIC, said: “Whether your company has recently launched and is looking for investment and quick growth, or is an established business searching for a fresh burst of energy and a new strategic direction, the Designing Demand workshops will help to develop the skills required to get the most out of design.”

The series of workshops will be followed by the implementation of Business Growth Services, which will aim to help participating companies put design into action, backed by free expert one-to-one advice from specialist design associates.

To book a place on one of the workshops, contact Abi Thompson at a.thompson@entrust.co.uk or telephone 0191 240 4000. For more information visit www.designingdemand.org.uk.