The Competitive Inner City

Inner cities areas are all too often written off as places of crime, unemployment and decay. But this report shows that they are in fact fertile ground for entrepreneurship and innovation.

Enterprise is thriving in the inner cities. The Inner City 100 are one hundred of the highest-growth companies in the country’s most deprived areas.They have demonstrated sustained strong growth in sales and employment, debunking the myth that the inner cities are doomed to unemployment and decay that can only be tackled by direct
public financial support.

Policy reactions to inner city problems were preoccupied first with social pathology, then physical redevelopment and prestige projects. Until very recently little attention has been paid to the economics of the inner city and the potential for local enterprise to contribute to regeneration.

The purpose of this research is to highlight this entrepreneurial potential, through identifying 100 of the country’s top inner city businesses.