Purpose – This paper aims to analyze first the notion of creative business models in cultural organizations and then to set the scene to understand the state-of-the art and the adoption of innovative creative business models by investigating a sample of European independent cultural centers. Specifically, this paper aims to provide insights of an ongoing research project in order to support the benchmarking and the adoption of business models for driving the improvement of the value creation mechanisms of European independent cultural centers. Design/methodology/approach – Using a sample of the 46 independent cultural centers operating in 27 European Countries, the paper provides first information and insights – derived from a qualitative survey administration – about the business, governance and organizational profiles of the sample of the independent cultural centers, as well as their perception and orientation to elaborating, identifying, adopting and managing innovative creative business models and to qualitatively identify a feasible set of resources, assets and behaviors potentially driving market-orientation, performance improvement, competitiveness and sustainability. Originality/value – This paper represents one of the first attempts to investigate at practical level the perception and orientation to elaborating, identifying, adopting and managing innovative business models in cultural centers. Practical implications – Since the approaches, the techniques and the tools for elaborating, implementing and managing specific and tailor-made business models in creative and cultural industries are still crude and often inadequate, great attention is called to analyze and decline specifically the various dimensions of the business model of the cultural organizations according to the theoretical modelling elaborated by academia and practice.