Creative businesses

The number of businesses indicates the size of the creative economy in Victoria. Net growth can indicate the sustainability of the creative economy. The number of new businesses also indicates growth but also whether there are significant barriers to entry to the sector.

Creative businesses over time 

The total number of businesses in the Victorian creative economy was 47,990 at the end of 2022-23. After a long period of growth for creative businesses this represents a slight decline, this is comparable to an overall decline in total Victorian businesses (see below).

Current share of creative businesses 

The number of creative businesses represent a 6.7% share of all Victorian businesses at the end of 2022-23.

Creative businesses snapshot 

Creative business size

The creative industry sector has a large share of non-employing, or sole trader businesses – 61.8%. This compares to the Victorian rate of 64.1%.

Share of business size by creative sub-sector

Use the drop down to select a sub-sector of the creative industries and see the percentage of small, medium, and large businesses within that sub-sector.

Technical notes

Business data is based on Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) published counts of Victorian businesses at the end of financial year, including entries and exits.

The data used to produce these counts are extracted from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Business Register (ABSBR). The ABSBR is populated using administrative data from Australian Business Number (ABN) registrations recorded in the Australian Business Register (ABR), and business data from the Australian Tax Office (ATO).

For more detailed information please refer to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

For further information please contact info@creative.vic.gov.au