| In the world of 360 deals, should Music Labels also be | | | | disappeared. Secondly their focus has moved away |
| offering the bands they are signing retail as well as all | | | | from Music to Games DVD, BluRay T-Shirts and |
| their other services. | | | | everything else they can think of. There is some |
| I have worked in the Music Industry for over 20 | | | | hope though, the rise of Amazon and in the UK |
| years, that's right I remember when Vinyl was our | | | | offers the opportunity to make just about every |
| key format and we sold up to 25% of albums on | | | | physical product available, any shape, size, price and |
| Cassette, or as they were referred to in Spain, K7 | | | | quantity. But even these mega online stores have |
| (Ka Siete). | | | | their limits. |
| In all that time our key partner, or adversary in many | | | | I believe firmly the time has come for Music Labels |
| cases, was Retail with a capital R. We had to work | | | | to create their own retail route to market, the |
| hard to get our releases racked out in sufficient | | | | advantages to this are numerous, they all have |
| numbers to be seen in store, we have to give | | | | expensive distribution warehouses or deals with |
| discounts to get any kind of help from them to get | | | | same, most of these distribution operations are willing |
| our catalogue out there, all sorts of campaigns had | | | | and able to do customer fulfilment. The all important |
| and have to be cobbled together to maximise sales. | | | | margins can be increased by taking out the retailer |
| Our only route to market was bricks and mortar | | | | from the price equation, and the extra work involved |
| retail, and also at the time the only way consumers | | | | and cost of distribution can be easily be recovered |
| could buy our product was through these same | | | | from the more efficient stock control and lack of |
| retailers. | | | | returns. |
| As we all know, things have changed. Firstly a huge | | | | The process has in fact begun, Universal has Hippo |
| amount of physical sales go through what are known | | | | and Warner Music Rhino in the US, in the UK Universal |
| as multiples, stores such as Carrefour, Tescos, | | | | have created a fantastic digital store called Lost |
| Walmart. These retailers quite rightly want to provide | | | | Tunes ( and Warners have Rhino UK ( These are |
| their shoppers with the most popular products at the | | | | just some examples. What these retail operations are |
| most competitive prices. This has led to a lack of in | | | | not doing is taking advantage of the real strength of |
| store space for less commercially viable catalogue | | | | the internet and for this reason Commercial Directors |
| and new artists, both of which are fundamental to | | | | sitting in the Major Record companies are not yet |
| the survival of the Music Labels. | | | | convinced they should be in this business. |
| But what about the specialist stores I hear you ask, | | | | What can be done? How can sales be improved, I will |
| Fnac, HMV etc... well first of all they are going out of | | | | cover in my next article. |
| business, Virgin, Zavvi,Tower Records have all | | | | |