Absolute to help clients set up their own record labels

Absolute Marketing and Distribution is launching a consultancy service to help brands wishing to follow in the footsteps of Starbucks by setting up their own rec-ord label.

The label-management specialist, which manages record labels for the likes of Melanie C and Ocean Colour Scene, has created the Absolute Label Management consultancy to offer advice to clients on releasing albums or singles on their own label as part of their above-the-line advertising campaigns.

Absolute managing director Henry Semmence will oversee the division, which will manage key aspects of getting the music releases of a brand into high street and online music stores. These will include label administration, manufacturing, sales, marketing and media promotion. It will also provide advice on creative concepts and the selection and licensing of artists.

Absolute has previously handled one-off branded singles for Pipex Broadband with David Hasselhoff’s “Jump in my Car” single as a spin-off of his appearance in Pipex’s “King of the Internet” campaign. It also managed the release of singles from Specsavers and Halifax ads featuring Howard.

The company claims that artists appearing on a brand-owned record label can help generate high-profile media exposure that might not otherwise be available to the brand, such as radio and TV airplay and coverage in lifestyle and entertain-ment media.

Semmence says the cost of marketing a record is small compared with the overall marketing budget that most major brands have at their disposal.

Semmence possesses 20 years of music marketing experience and has held key positions in retail and consumer marketing at Bullet Promotions and Phonogram (now Universal Music). The former managing director of sales and distribution company Total Records set up Absolute in 1998 as Europe’s first “one-stop” label specialist for record labels.

Its client label list includes Dame Shirley Bassey, Editors and Boy George.