Integrated talent management company and digital marketing agency Sweetshop has launched with a line-up of music executives from a major, management, a tech start-up and music PR.
The company was founded by CEO Angus Imlach, who was previously at Crowdmix. He was the LA-based talent director at the company which had social media and streaming ambitions before going into administration in 2016.
Jamie Hole joins Sweetshop as international music director. He has spent 20 years in the music industry, including seven of those as international marketing director for Universal Music.
Hole was responsible for the international development and planning of Universal’s UK labels (including Virgin EMI, Island, Polydor, Decca and Capitol) and oversaw the global strategy for artists including Sam Smith, Emeli Sande, Robbie Williams, Iggy Azalea, Disclosure, The Vamps, John Newman, Jack Garratt and The 1975.
Hole was previously international marketing & promotions director at Universal’s US East Coast Label Groups, including Republic, Island, Def Jam and Motown Records. He worked on global launch plans for Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Kanye West, Bon Jovi and The Killers.
Ross Patel has joined as Sweetshop’s global events & operations director. As well as managing the Motion venue and Eton Messy imprint, he has experience in artist management and curation roles at festivals including Glastonbury and the Secret Garden Party.
Dave Morley has been appointed creative director. For more than a decade, he led PR campaigns at DJ Voice and Lollop for electronic music artists including Solomun, Guy Gerber, Amine Edge & Dance, Darius Syrossian, Andhim, Adana Twins and Theo Kottis.
As a fully integrated agency we have the ability to oversee all aspects of a creator's career
Angus Imlach
The agency will combine traditional music management with online creator talent.
“As a fully integrated agency we have the ability to oversee all aspects of a creator's career,” said Imlach. “From traditional management methods, public relations, marketing, content creation and storyboarding, photography and videography our role is to help facilitate and advise a creator’s on every aspect of their careers.
“One of our primary functions is to help brands and talent to collaborate effectively. Our role at Sweetshop is to help brands to tell their stories. We use creators to translate a brand's message authentically, and to engage new audiences in credible ways.”
Online influencers and artists are being invited to join the Sweetshop network.
The company is currently developing content, strategy and partnerships for Ed Sheeran parodist The Singing Dentist, social media prankster Kevin Freshwater and Goubtube, who recently teamed up with artist Donae’O on viral content.
The agency has built a music acccelerator programme to help raise an artist’s following. The subscription service is designed for music artists of all sizes who want to grow a presence on social networks.
“Cutting through the noise on social media is hard,” said Imlach. “It’s time consuming, unpredictable and often ineffective to reach fans. We believe that artists shouldn’t have to worry about creating content to raise their profile or build a following... That’s what we’re here to do.”
Sweetshop is currently preparing for a round of funding.
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