About the event
The UK Arts and Culture industry is at an inflection point as questions over funding, arts and culture engagement and the role of digital continue to occupy the minds of arts executives.
FT Strategies and Substrakt have an ambition of bringing together an exclusive group of UK arts and culture leaders to discuss these vital questions and drive collective action. This is an extension of our previous work and our collective mission - to improve the financial sustainability of the sector through practical, hands-on support.
Our first event is a complimentary in-person breakfast (hopefully the first in a series), please arrive from 8:30 for a 9am start and we'll run through until 10:30am on the 7th September 2023 at the FT Office (Bracken House, London).
If you are interested in joining us you can register your interest here:
The session itself will be heavily interactive and informal - where we will aim to cover the following topics:
- How to develop a sustainable business model for organisation in the arts and culture sector, ahead of the 2026 Arts Council funding round;
- How digital can be a key strategic pillar for arts and cultural organisations with regards to investment;
- How FT Strategies and Substrakt’s work to date in the arts and media sector can provide insights and shine a spotlight on how digital can be used as a tool to drive revenues which aren’t dependent on central funding, using case studies to support this.
We look forward to meeting you at the event
FT Strategies is a consulting business that was built upon the foundations of the successful digital transformation of the Financial Times. To date, we have helped over 400 businesses build sustainable futures through profitable digital relationships with their audiences, helping clients become more resilient.
Substrakt is a digital agency specialising in the arts and culture sector. They partner with over 70 cultural organisations in Europe and North America to design and build websites and digital products that create meaningful digital experiences for their audiences. Substrakt's clients include the National Theatre, Malmö Opera and Folger Shakespeare Library. They also provide strategic consultancy across a range of digital topics, along with practical training and support services.
Interim Managing Director, FT Strategies
Aled has over eleven years’ experience in the media, overseeing strategy, product, new venture creation and editorial. Previously he was Head of Membership Strategy and Business Development at Condé Nast, where he launched their B2B subscription title Vogue Business.
Aled cut his teeth in TV news at ITN and later received his MBA from Cambridge University. Outside of the day job, his kids keep him busy and he is also a trustee and director of DeliverAid, a charity helping those suffering from food poverty started during the pandemic.
Manager & Head of Insights, FT Strategies
George has spent the last four years guiding the FT’s data strategy as it balances revenue and risk. Most recently, he founded and continues to lead a cross-departmental FT team focused on the future of marketing & advertising in the context of restrictions on online tracking.
George also holds an MBA from IE Business School and is a very proud member of Surrey County Cricket Club.
Managing Director, Substrakt
Ash is Executive Director at Substrakt, a digital agency who design and build digital products and services for cultural organisations in Europe, and North America.Over the past two decades Ash has also worked in digital roles in-house at arts, charity and higher education organisations. He is particularly interested in working with organisations to interrogate the thinking that underpins their digital activity to ensure they are delivering experiences and services that work for both their audiences and their business.
Since 2016 Ash has produced the Digital Works programme of content and events which examines and explores all of the many things that digital could and should mean for the cultural sector.
Director of Sector Strategy, Substrakt
Katie is Director of Sector Strategy at digital agency Substrakt and a Board Trustee of Abandon Normal Devices. An experienced digital strategist, consultant and trainer, specialising in the arts and not for profit sector, Katie helps organisations to use digital technologies to reach, grow and diversify their audiences. Katie is a contributing author to the Manual of Digital Museum Planning published by Rowman & Littlefield and a regular speaker at events and conferences.
Thank you for your interest in our upcoming event. If you have applied to attend, we'll be in touch shortly - In the meantime, please enjoy this selection of FT Strategies insights reccomended for you to help inspire new ideas to drive customer growth in the arts sector.