Wales’ Design Economy grows 88% in 4 years

Nation Cymru staff

The design economy in Wales contributed £3.76 billion to the economy in 2023, according to new research from the Design Council.

Design Economy 2026, the Design Council’s flagship study into the value of design, shows the scale of design’s contribution across industries, places and jobs, and argues that strengthening design capability will be critical to delivering good growth across the UK.

Design Economy 2026 report, which is published every three years, reveals Wales has recorded the fastest growth in design Gross Value Added of any UK nation, and compared to regional hubs as well, , increasing by 88% since 2019, from £1.996 billion to £3.760 billion. This compares with growth of 40% across the UK as a whole over the same period.

Design now accounts for 4.6% of Wales’ overall GVA, demonstrating its growing importance to the Welsh economy. Since 2021, design’s share of total GVA in Wales has increased by 1.9 percentage points – the largest of any UK nation or region.

This economic growth has been accompanied by growth in the design workforce, with design employment in Wales increasing by 20% between 2020 and 2025.

Wales also shows particular strength in product and industrial design – three of its five strongest local design clusters specialise in the discipline, including Wrexham, with a location quotient of 8. Product and industrial design is the most productive design discipline identified in the report, generating £96,200 in GVA per employee.

Wales is also one of only four UK nations or regions where the number of design firms did not decline over the period analysed, further highlighting the resilience of its design economy.

GVA rose 88% while Welsh design firm numbers moved 0.8%, supported by initiatives such as. the Social Partnership and Public Procurement Act and other placed-based procurement levers, allowing contracts to stay in-country.

Wales is part of a broader shift in the geography of the UK’s design economy. Since 2019, Wales and the North East have both recorded faster growth in design GVA than London, increasing by 88%, 67% and 59% respectively. The Design Council says this growing contribution demonstrates the potential for design to support successful devolution, place-based innovation and community-led economic development, helping nations and regions translate investment into higher-value jobs and stronger local economies.

One Welsh business demonstrating the role design can play in creating wider social and environmental value is DATI Clothing, founded by sisters Sarah and Julia Valentin. The pair have spent more than 15 years working to make sustainable fashion more inclusive and have recently helped 16 to 25-year-olds develop practical skills in fashion and upcycling.

Sarah and Julia Valentin – Founders, DATI Clothing, Wales shared: “Working in sustainable fashion in Wales has given us the opportunity to be part of a close-knit community of designers who collaborate, share skills and champion one another’s work. While this collective spirit is a real strength, increasing visibility beyond Wales and into wider UK and European fashion networks remains a challenge. Sustainability and education underpin our practice, most recently through our State of Play project, where we introduced 16- 25-year-olds to upcycling, pattern cutting, sewing, styling and fashion design, equipping the next generation with the skills to help shape a more circular, responsible and inclusive fashion industry.”

Cory Hughes – Director of Strategic Design, Perago, Wales: “Wales’ design economy hasn’t grown this quickly by accident. The principles embedded in the Well-being of Future Generations Act – thinking long-term, working preventatively and involving the people we serve – are also fundamental to good design. The opportunity now is to make sure this growth translates into opportunities for Welsh designers and businesses. Much of Wales’ design capability sits within small studios and consultancies, so how organisations commission and procure design will play an important role in ensuring the value generated by design continues to benefit the Welsh economy.”

However, the report also warns that future growth cannot be taken for granted. In the UK as a whole, entries for Design and Technology GCSEs have fallen by 68% over the decade to **2024, raising concerns about the future skills pipeline at a time when businesses need design capabilities to respond to rapid technological change, including AI. Progress on workforce diversity also remains slow: women account for only 25% of designers, while Black designers make up 2% of the design workforce compared with 5% of the wider UK working population.

Mat Hunter, Chief Executive of the Design Council: “These figures should change the way we think about design. It is not a niche creative activity sitting at the edge of the economy; it is a £136.7 billion capability embedded in the way organisations effectively innovate, tackle complex problems and grow. What is particularly exciting is the opportunity for growth to reach every part of the UK. Stronger design capability can help cities and regions build on their existing strengths, create higher-value jobs and turn local investment and innovation into a long-term economic advantage. The opportunity now is to make sure that capability is available everywhere – in businesses and public services, across every region and nation – and that we invest in the skills and diversity needed to sustain it for the future.”

The Design Council says the findings demonstrate the potential for design to support regional growth, place-based innovation and higher-value jobs, and is calling for government, businesses and public bodies to strengthen design capability and invest in regional design ecosystems and the skills pipeline.

Design Economy 2026 is published by the Design Council and is available to view / download: Design Economy – Design Council.

---

Get more trusted Welsh news

Choose Nation.Cymru as a preferred source in Google News to see more of our journalism.