FUGA, the B2B distributor and a division of Downtown Music, has appointed Dorothée Imhoff as its new Chief Commercial Officer, Liz Northeast as SVP EMEA and Sven Zeevalk as Global Head of Operations.
Now based in Paris, Imhoff joins FUGA’s executive team as Chief Commercial Officer and will be responsible for the distributor’s global commercial strategy.
Imhoff joined FUGA in 2014 as a business development consultant and the distributor’s first UK hire.
Over the next eight and a half years, Imhoff was directly responsible for the reshaping of FUGA’s UK client base, greatly expanding the company’s presence from within the UK and into the whole of Europe, including the acquisition of high-performing clients such as Beggars Group and YEAR0001. In 2021, Imhoff became SVP, EMEA.
Stepping into the role of SVP EMEA is Liz Northeast, FUGA’s former General Manager, UK.
Based out of the company’s London office, Northeast’s new role will see her responsible for FUGA’s commercial strategy and business within the wider UK and EMEA markets. Northeast’s US counterpart, Sarah Landy, joined the distributor as SVP, Americas in August 2022.
Northeast joined FUGA as Client Relations Director in 2021, following senior roles at The Orchard and AWAL.
Progressing within a year to become FUGA’s General Manager, UK, Northeast, according to Downtown, has been “fundamental” in establishing various company-wide initiatives and acquiring clients, including Marathon Music Group and One Little Independent; as well as her pivotal role in FUGA’s meteoric growth of UK staff in the last 2 years, which has now tripled in size.
Also announced in his new role as Global Head of Operations is FUGA’s former Regional Head of Operations, EMEA Sven Zeevalk. Based in FUGA’s Amsterdam office, Zeevalk’s new role will see him responsible for the company’s global operations, including overseeing the regional heads of APAC, EMEA and Americas as well as all client integrations and the global support team.
In his new capacity, Zeevalk will report to FUGA’s COO, Darren Owen. Zeevalk joined FUGA in 2017 as Content Manager, progressing through to Head of Client Support and Regional Head of Operations EMEA in 2022.
Erica De Marchi will be taking on the role of Regional Head of Operations for EMEA following Zeevalk’s promotion; De Marchi will be based out of FUGA’s Milan office.
“It is a privilege to be moving into the role of CCO – working closely with our new President, Christiaan Kröner.”
Dorothée Imhoff, CCO
Dorothée Imhoff, CCO of FUGA said: “It is a privilege to be moving into the role of CCO – working closely with our new President, Christiaan Kröner – and I look forward to continuing in Dave’s footsteps, ensuring that we remain the grounded, personable, close-to-our-clients needs’ team that I have been proud to be a part of since 2014.
“I also look forward to continuing to work alongside Liz Northeast in her new role as SVP EMEA. I have no doubt she will lead EMEA’s business operations with integrity and passion.”
“I look forward to working more closely with Dorothée in her elevated role as CCO and with FUGA’s EMEA teams to develop and expand our reach across the region.”
Liz Northeast, FUGA
Liz Northeast, SVP EMEA of FUGA said: “It is an honor to be moving into the SVP, EMEA role at FUGA, an organization whose core mission to empower independent labels and music companies with forward-thinking services fully aligns with my own passion and advocacy for the independent community.
“I look forward to working more closely with Dorothée in her elevated role as CCO and with FUGA’s EMEA teams to develop and expand our reach across the region.”
“Having been a part of FUGA’s operations for almost 6 years, I feel excited to be taking on this next challenge in leading our global operations team.
Sven Zeevalk
Sven Zeevalk, Global Head of Operations said: “Having been a part of FUGA’s operations for almost 6 years, I feel excited to be taking on this next challenge in leading our global operations team.
“I look forward to working together with our regional heads and continuing to ensure FUGA delivers and maintains the first-class client support and services it is known for.”
In December 2022, FUGA announced it had formed a partnership with Polyvinyl, the US independent label, to expand its offering of distribution and marketing services.
In January 2023, FUGA inked a distribution deal with US-based independent music label as a client for its global distribution, marketing and sync services Marathon Music.
This week, Downtown Music Holdings was revealed to be launching a new round of layoffs. FUGA was not mentioned as one of the divisions where roles will be impacted.Music Business Worldwide
