Malcolm Dunbar, Co-Founder of direct-to-fan e-commerce platform PledgeMusic, has signed a new long-term deal with the company to continue as President, UK & Europe.
In addition, he will expand his role to include additional international duties, with the planned opening of further PledgeMusic offices across Continental Europe.
In a release, PledgeMusic said that 2016 had been its ‘most successful year ever’ in the UK and Europe, with frontline revenue growth in excess of 75% up on 2015.
It’s certainly been a transformative couple of years for the company.
2015 saw the departure of previous PledgeMusic CEO Dave Hackett and Chairman Angus Donaldson, in addition to more active involvement from board member Russell Rieger – head of the entertainment division of Magna, which leads the largest group of shareholders of PledgeMusic.
“Malcolm Dunbar has done an outstanding job of building and growing the vision for PledgeMusic in the UK and beyond,” stated Pandiscia.
“The partnerships he has developed and results delivered this year are remarkable. It’s been a privilege working with Malcolm and his team as we forge an incredible future for PledgeMusic and I look forward to continued success.”
“Malcolm Dunbar has done an outstanding job of building and growing the vision for PledgeMusic in the UK and beyond.”
Dominic Pandiscia, PledgeMusic
In September, Pledge ran UK pre-order album campaigns with artists including Passenger, The Divine Comedy, Pixies, Kaiser Chiefs, KT Tunstall and Marillion all charted in the UK top ten, with Passenger hitting the No.1 spot.
PledgeMusic was also the exclusive D2C pre-order platform for the release of Robbie Williams’ Heavy Entertainment Show, which entered the UK album chart at No.1 in early November.
Said Dunbar: “The PledgeMusic direct-to-fan model allows us to energetically contribute to the pre-order set up and marketing of chart acts, as well as enabling crowdfunding and supporting the development of new and emerging talent.
“Our community totals 3 million users and continues to grow. PledgeMusic is truly flourishing in the UK and Europe, the last 12 month period has seen double-digit growth.”
Growth has also been delivered via an increase in catalogue and box set campaigns, as well as specific industry-based initiatives.
Dunbar added: “Dominic, Russell and Magna have brought a new level ambition to PledgeMusic with their entrepreneurial approach and support, deep industry ties, experience and knowledge of the U.S. market. PledgeMusic moves onwards and upwards under their guidance.”
Russell Rieger has held senior management positions at Madonna’s Maverick Records and London Records, and has been nominated for a Grammy.Music Business Worldwide
