SEEN CITY
MANCHESTER
53.4808° N, 2.2426° W
CREATIVITY LIVES ON THE STREET
NOT IN THE STUDIO.
THAT’S WHERE WE WANT TO BE.
SEEN CITY
Seen City is an insight and content series exploring grassroots communities globally, facilitated by Seen Studios
As researchers, strategists, and storytellers, we’re using this platform to surface honest, on-the-ground perspectives. Challenging assumptions and showcasing culture as it ’s really lived.
EDITORIAL AND RESEARCH BY GURSHARAN PANESAR PARTNERSHIP CURATION BY BILLIE SKUSEDENLEY
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CONTENT BY FHUAD BRAIMOH DESIGN BY BEX BEAUMONT
WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?
We believe in challenging the biases that come from our own lived experiences of the cities we create for. By pushing ourselves to dig deeper, to move beyond surface-level insights, we are able to ensure the work we create holds meaning.
Through collaborations with local creators, we want to tell the stories of cities from those who shape them. Seen City exists as an interconnected ecosystem of creators who are forging a new idea of what it means to be "local" talent. These creators prove that belonging isn't just about where you're from, but what you build and who you build it for.
With each volume, we hope you'll experience cities you know, and cities you don't, in ways that feel both new and deeply familiar.
WELCOME TO MANCHESTER.
IT’S NOT ALL PUBS, CHIPS & GRAVY.
MEDIA INVESTMENT
The BRIT Awards relocate to Manchester's Co-op Live arena in February 2026, marking the first time in 45 years the ceremony leaves London. The move reflects shifting industry priorities toward regional creative markets.
WHY MANCHESTER?
HOMETOWN HEROS
Manchester's homegrown brands, Junior ’s Clint, Drama Call, Refy, Represent, Adanola born from the city.
03 04
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT
“Manchester is a cultural icon and has increasingly become a desirable place for people to live and work. Last summer ’s Oasis reunion has shown the impact Mancunian culture has had on British society. When Manchester hosted Chanel’s Metiers d’Art show in 2023, people were forced to sit up and take notice of our city.”
Bev
Craig, leader of Manchester City Council (via Vogue Business)
BRAND INVESTMENT
Puma relocated UK headquarters to Manchester, citing authentic grassroots communities and creative density as strategic assets.
OUR MANCHESTER VOICES
OUR MANCHESTER VOICES
Gone Norf is a platform founded by Rosie Callaghan, Tadiwa Dzimwasha and George Groucott, rooted in the overlooked places of the North and carving out space for young people and emerging creatives. They champion Manchester talent through free events, a print magazine that put their community first.
AK is a self-taught designer, creative consultant, DJ and co-founder of Habitat, one of the most in-demand nights in Manchester. As a creative consultant and director, AK has partnered with global sportswear and fashion brands, building his reputation in the city through creative work with impact.
Baka Bah is a filmmaker and producer passionate about cinematography, community storytelling and social justice. His first feature-length documentary 'The Success of Moss Side' premiered at Factory International's 1,200 seat venue with a sold-out red carpet screening.
An in-depth interview per creator to learn more about their craft and relationship to their city. Followed by an in-situ ethnographic observation per creator, spending time with them in their space for the content capture.
GONE NORF AK GRAMM
BAKA BAH METHODOLOGY
A CITY NOT SEEKING APPROVAL
FINDING 01
Manchester's creative identity is built from within. Self-validation replaced the need for external approval.
“LONDON'S COOL, BUT WE'RE MANCHESTER. THAT COMPARISON IS ON A CORPORATE LEVEL. WE DON'T SEE OURSELVES SIMILAR TO LONDON. I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY TENSION. WE JUST DON'T CARE.” AK
“MANCHESTER DOESN'T TRY TO BE SOMETHING IT ISN'T. IT'S MADE BY PEOPLE DOING THEIR OWN THING WITH LIMITED RESOURCES. THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT SO AUTHENTIC. IT'S GRIT.”
George, Gone Norf
Manchester ’s creative identity is built from within. Its culture is constructed through self-started platforms, local networks, and people who create what they need without waiting for permission.
The creative scene has developed independently of London's infrastructure and validation systems. There is genuine indifference to London rather than aspiration toward it or resentment of it.
Manchester ’s creative strength comes from its refusal to dilute itself for outside approval. References from outsiders to it ’s untapped potential, fall flat. Its not untapped, you were just unaware.
“
A LOT OF PEOPLE ORIGINALLY FROM MANCHESTER DON'T EVEN SAY MANNY. THERE'S JUST LITTLE NUANCES OR LITTLE WORDS THAT ARE JUST SO PLAYED OUT, AND WE'RE JUST NOT THAT. THERE'S SO MUCH MORE IN THE CITY THAT IS HAPPENING.”
HIGH RISES, LIMITED ACCESS
FINDING 02
Physical infrastructure is being converted to capital, not creativity.
“ALL MY CREATIVE FRIENDS ARE HAVING TO JUGGLE A MILLION THINGS JUST TO STAY AFLOAT. THEY’RE WORKING OVERTIME JUST TO PURSUE THEIR PASSIONS BUT THEN ALSO LIVE A LIFE THAT ALLOWS THEM TO KEEP BREATHING AND LIVING.”
“WE NEED MORE SPACES TO GO AND CREATE. WE HAD A FEW BACK IN THE DAY BECAUSE WE HAD SO MANY MILLS FROM THE INDUSTRIAL TIMES. BUT THEY'VE ALL BEEN BOUGHT, AND THEY'RE ALL BEING TURNED INTO APARTMENTS AND FLATS.”
Shaped by structural and spatial realities: studios and mills converted to residential units, rising rents, uneven institutional support, and inhabitants face limited access to specialist resources. These constraints have produced ingenuity, resourcefulness, and a strong ethic of collective problem-solving.
Manchester is at a tipping point: commercial opportunities are increasing, but so is the pressure to flatten the city into something more standardised, more profitable, and less itself.
The question emerging is not whether the city should grow, but what kind of growth preserves the integrity of the culture that built it.
Baka
WE DON'T WANT TO SELL OURSELVES OUT AND WE DON'T WANT TO BECOME POLISHED. THAT'S NOT THE ROUTE WE WANT TO GO DOWN. WE ADVOCATE FOR WORKING CLASS BACKGROUNDS.”
George, Gone Norf
SEEING SO MANY DIFFERENT CULTURES ALL IN THIS ONE LITTLE HUB MOSS SIDE OF A COMMUNITY, EVERY SINGLE INTERACTION YOU HAVE WITH SOMEBODY IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO TAP INTO A DIFFERENT CULTURE.”
Baka
SPACES THAT MATTER
Y2 STUDIOS STAGE & RADIO
CAFE
PARK
LET THE NORTH BLESS YOUR SOUL
FINDING 03
Platforms exist to show people what they might be capable of, not what they're excluded from.
“PEOPLE SHY AWAY FROM THE CREATIVE SIDE, ESPECIALLY PEOPLE IN SMALLER TOWNS. I WANT PEOPLE TO LOOK AT GONE NORF AND BE LIKE 'WOW, I'M FROM HERE, BUT I COULD DO THIS.’”
Tadiwe, Gone Norf
“IF I GO OUT AND EXPERIENCE SOMETHING, OR I GO TO A NEW PLACE AND EXPERIENCE SOMETHING, THAT'S REALLY GOOD. I WISH OTHER PEOPLE COULD EXPERIENCE THAT. LET ME GO AND BUILD THAT OUT MY OWN WAY.
Manchester is geographically compact, and that scale shapes everything. Proximity accelerates relationships, collapses distance between disciplines, and creates an ecosystem where people repeatedly cross paths as collaborators, organisers, audiences, and friends.
A recurring sentiment was rejecting the industry tendency to treat creativity as a credential, a title, or a hierarchy. Instead, creativity is understood as a mode of expression that belongs to anyone who chooses to make something, a mentality rather than a job description.
Community platforms here exist to show people what they might be capable of. Creativity becomes a medium for belonging and self-determination rather than a badge of status or industry acceptance. Manchester produces creativity through invitation, encouragement and shared effort. That generosity is what gives the city its cultural character.
“
AS A CITY, IT NEEDS TO STILL HOLD ON TO THE THINGS THAT GAVE IT ITS CHARACTER. MANCHESTER GOT PUT ON THE MAP BY EMPOWERING GRASSROOT CREATIVE SCENES. THE MUSIC SCENE AND VENUES LIKE THE HAÇIENDA PLATFORMED SMALLER
ARTISTS. THE CITY DIDN'T SELL ITSELF OUT TO BE WHAT PEOPLE WANTED IT TO BE."
Rosie, Gone Norf
RECOMMENDATIONS
HOW CAN WE DO BETTER?
UNDERSTAND THE NUANCES OF MANCHESTER AND THE PEOPLE IN IT.
Retire the cliché and use locally held knowledge to shape strategy
Recognise the difference between Deansgate, NQ, Moss Side, Withington & the communities they hold
Understand that “creative Manchester ” is not one scene but many interconnected micro-scenes
Identify the gaps people are already filling themselves, and learn why they exist
HOW CAN WE DO BETTER?
CONTRIBUTE TO THE WAY MANCHESTER ALREADY WORKS
Create accessible entry points for people who “don’ t realise what they can create”
Design partnerships that reduce emotional and logistical labour, not add to it
Invest in programming that reflects how people actually gather here: socially first, creatively second
HELP REBUILD WHAT THE CITY IS LOSING SPACE, SUPPORT AND SUSTAINABLE PATHWAYS.
Fund long-term creative spaces to counter the loss of mills and studios
Support Moss Side and other neighbourhoods where community storytelling is already thriving
Invest in paid apprenticeships, training pipelines, and mentorship that doesn’ t require industry literacy
Create projects that stay in place long after the brand leaves
