Chapter 9: Advancement and New Spatial Patterns of the Creative Sector in the Old Industrial Structure

Greater economic complexity is related not only to diversification but also to the sophistication of production and the setting of diverse and unique knowledge that drives economic development. The Economic Complexity Index assessed in 79 districts of Slovakia has confirmed the growing dominance of agglomeration and the disadvantages of more peripheral regions. A long time series of data from the last 30 years has revealed how the artificial territorial organization of job creation policies in each district, enabled by central state planning, has gradually disintegrated. The self-organization of the complex economic system has created a new spatial equilibrium with the concentration of economic complexity in the newly created capital city Bratislava and several regional centers.

The analytical framework gives a threefold view across district, industry, and time as a way of predicting future trends. Changes have occurred in the economic landscape of the country with the creation of spikes in the west of Slovakia as well as affecting urban–rural relationships. The formerly industrialized country has begun to discover a creative sector, finding its way in the midst of industrial lock-in, especially the automotive sector. Košice, Slovakia’s second largest city, subsequently serves as a micro-level study whose trajectory has shifted away from heavy industry thanks to ICT investment and the successful European Capital of Culture project. The creative industry has been brought to the forefront of the city’s social progress, significantly increasing its attractiveness for the life of the creative class. The micro-scale of the city reveals the gradual occupation of territory by the creative sector, particularly by culture and arts, ICT firms, and R&D entities.