The West Midlands Growth Company (WMGC) – the region’s official investment promotion agency – has officially unveiled It Starts Here – a bold new destination promotion campaign designed to transform perceptions of the West Midlands on the global stage. The campaign was launched during a dedicated event at Symphony Hall, Birmingham during Birmingham Tech Week – the UK’s biggest regional tech festival.
Developed by WMGC in collaboration with organisations across the region, It Starts Here seeks to reinforce and reinvigorate the region’s brand as dynamic and confident within a fiercely competitive international marketplace. With a focus on demonstrating the region’s innovation-led strengths, the campaign narrative positions the West Midlands as the place where “disruptive minds meet” and “breakthroughs begin”, aiming to inspire a shared mantra of confidence and assertive ‘new era’ for the region.
It Starts Here will span a number of sub-campaigns focused on the region’s key growth sectors, including The Green Power Revolution Starts Here; Life-Changing Science Starts Here; Game-Changing Tech Starts Here; and Next-Generation Services Start Here, with further phases set to span broader place-making themes.
The campaign aims to drive inward investment from target markets including India, North America and Germany, to ultimately create region-wide high-value jobs. In February 2025, WMGC will also be taking the campaign to the international marketplace for the first time by way of a regional trade mission to India, led by West Midlands Mayor, Richard Parker.
According to the latest EY UK Attractiveness Survey, the West Midlands has bucked a general UK trend of FDI decline, recording a 72% rise in foreign direct investment projects in 2023 (127 projects). Birmingham was at the forefront of this growth, leading the West Midlands and outperforming all other UK cities outside of London. Securing 67 projects, it sets a record for the highest number of projects managed by any regional city in the last decade.
Neil Rami, chief executive at the West Midlands Growth Company, said:
“International competition for investment is fierce; with global investors citing access to innovation capabilities as their number one priority. In response to this, we’ve developed a campaign that asserts our past and present ingenuity in a distinct and compelling way – and that speaks to all corners of our region.
“Emerging technologies are developing rapidly in the West Midlands. It is the golden thread of our economy, with the tech sector now valued at £15.3bn and growing. We are therefore incredibly well-placed to partner with organisations worldwide to drive pioneering technologies, thanks to our talented people and cutting-edge university-led R&D.
“Inward investment is fundamentally about growth and job creation, but we must have clarity and conviction in our strengths to obtain it. And so, I’m inviting organisations from across the West Midlands to work with us, and come together to confidently convey that It Starts Here.”
As part of the campaign launch event, innovation thought leaders from across the region participated in a panel discussion on the region’s strengths in disruption, chaired by Courtney Fingar, Principal at Fingar Direct Investment. These included Joanne Roney CBE, Managing Director at Birmingham City Council; Professor Stuart Croft, Vice Chancellor of University of Warwick; Murray Paul, Public Affairs Director at JLR and Melissa Snover, Founder and Owner at Nourished. The event was opened by Mayor of the West Midlands, Richard Parker.
West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker
Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, said:
“The West Midlands has always been the home of entrepreneurs and inventors. Now we’re fast becoming a powerhouse for new sectors like clean and green industries, cyber security, and cutting-edge tech.
“There has never been a better time for businesses to invest, grow, and succeed here in the West Midlands. I want us to grasp this opportunity to become the best place in the UK to do business, creating new jobs, new opportunities, and improving thousands of lives across the region.”
The campaign’s launch coincides with the announcement that the West Midlands has been named one of Europe’s top three most innovative regions in this year’s European Capital of Innovation Awards. The region’s ranking alongside Turin, Italy and Espoo, Finland by the European Innovation Council (EIC) recognises its long-standing role at the cutting edge of new technology.
Following the campaign launch, WMGC is encouraging West Midlands organisations to proudly advocate on behalf of the region and help amplify the campaign’s message that “It Starts Here”, using the hashtag #WMItStartsHere on social media. To find out more about how to get involved, visit here.
WMGC is supported by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and its seven constituent metropolitan authorities – Birmingham; Coventry; Dudley; Sandwell; Solihull; Walsall and Wolverhampton – as well as five of the region’s universities and WMGC’s private-sector network, Partners West Midlands. Strategic campaign partners include The Invest in University R&D Midlands campaign, the NEC Group and Birmingham Airport.
