ABSTRACT
Introduction The chapter aims to shed light on the modalities by which creative outputs in the design sector are organized. Special attention has been dedicated to the interwoven effect of territorial embeddedness, social ties and business networks and how it shapes creative projects within a community of practice (CoP). As Richard Florida (2002) pointed out, the relationships between design professionals are based on ‘weak ties’ and are motivated by the search for novelty and diversity more than for identity and shared views. Creative people easily switch teams and leave one project behind to embrace another (Grabher and Ibert 2006) as they pursue new visions and ideas. The advent of digital technologies has fuelled relational proximity without spatial proximity (the ‘buzz without being there’ (Gertler 2008)) and extended the geographical boundaries of situated practices and learning systems (Amin and Roberts 2008). That activity can be facilitated by appropriate ‘socio-technical devices’ (Callon et al. 2002) and communication bridges, such as trade fairs or virtual platforms (as in the case of the most wellknown industrial cluster of apparel companies in Hong Kong; see Ho et al. 2003).
