Oregon Creative Services Alliance Partners with Graphic Artists Guild to Replicate Creative Services Business Model in Other Metropolitan Cities

PORTLAND, Ore. – February 12, 2002 – The Oregon Creative Services Alliance (OCSA), founded to support and grow Oregon’s creative services industry, announced that it has entered into a partnership with the Graphic Artists Guild. This alliance represents the OCSA’s first national partnership since its inception in February 2000. The Guilld, is a national union comprised of illustrators, designers, web creators, production artists, surface designers and other creatives, will seek to implement OCSA’s strategic business model across its 13 chapters nationwide beginning with Seattle and New York.

The success resulting from Portland’s creative services business model has garnered nationwide attention. Portland is recognized for its innovative and collaborative efforts within the creative categories and for designing an alliance model that contributes to the city’s economic and workforce development. The model focuses on pooling the strengths and resources of a variety of creative services leading to increased business opportunities and revenue for the community. The Guild has chosen to adopt the alliance model for implementation from a national level and in partnership with the OCSA will seek to implement the model to other national organizations to further strengthen and grow the creative services industry.

"The Guild is dedicated to equipping artists with the tools they need to be successful," said the Guild’s Executive Director, Steven Schubert. "By implementing a cooperative infrastructure for creatives within our chapter cities we will afford our members more opportunity to broaden their current network, strengthen their skills, and succeed in business."