COMPANY PHILOSOPHY
Summary
Paperclip Agency (since
1981), owned by Hilde Spille and Rob Berends, is
a European agency and a Dutch promoter, books the
Conincx Pop Festival, and does the secretarial
work for Network Europe. For Hilde and Rob, doing
business is earning an honest living, with a
strong emphasis on artist integrity, on
cooperation, and on social and ecological
sustainability.
Table of contents
What
is Paperclip Agency?
- Independent
talent agency
- Europe
as main territory
- Artists
worked for in the past
- Dutch
promoter
- Rob
Berends and Hilde Spille
- Other
activities
What
is important to Paperclip Agency?
- Ideals
and work
- People
and music
- The
artist
- Bookers
and promoters
- Social
and ecologic sustainability
- Solidair
How
does Paperclip Agency see the future?
- Continuity
- Current
developments
- An
alternative
<up>
Independent talent
agency
Paperclip Agency is an independent talent agency,
based in the Netherlands. Paperclip Agency
started in 1981, and soon became the first agency
outside of the UK that booked full European tours
for contemporary pop/rock on a regular basis.
Europe as main
territory
With Europe as its main territory, Paperclip
Agency operates internationally throughout the
world. The artists represented by Paperclip
Agency are from all over the world, and their
musical styles ranges from rock to electro, from
world to alternative, and from roots to avant-garde.
Artists worked
for in the past
Artists worked for in the past include The
Feelies, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Soul Asylum, Pere Ubu,
Jeff Mills, Fela Kuti, Dead Moon, Boxhead
Ensemble, The Walkabouts, and many more. Please
take a look at our roster for the current acts we
book.
Dutch promoter
Paperclip Agency also works as Dutch promoter,
for various international agents and bands, like
Balkan Beat Box, The BossHoss, Delinquent Habits,
Heavy Trash, and many more. As Dutch promoter,
Paperclip Agency services all clubs and festivals
throughout the Netherlands.
Rob Berends
and Hilde Spille
Rob Berends founded Paperclip Agency in 1981, and
Hilde Spille joined the company in 1995. They are
now the owners of Paperclip Agency. A trainee
accompanies them on a regular basis. Rob and
Hilde are regularly asked to share their
experience and knowledge as panelists at
international music industry seminars.
Other
activities
Though their core business is the work as
European agent and Dutch promoter, Paperclip
Agency takes care of some other activities as
well. The secretarial work for Network Europe is
done by Paperclip Agency since the start of this
European association for agents, bookers,
promoters and talent buyers in 1986. Since 2003
Paperclip Agency is the exclusive booking agency
for the boutique festival Conincx Pop. Rob and
Hilde for many years already participate in the
jury for the Dutch national band contest Grote
Prijs.
<contents>
Ideals and
work
Rob and Hilde do not want to separate their
ideals from their work. They strive for
sustainability on both a social and an ecological
level in their personal life, so it is self-evident
that this is an integral part of Paperclip Agency
too. At the social level, this means long-term
mutual relationships, with artists, bookers,
promoters, etc. The ecological level is reflected
in the way the office is managed and in travel
advice to artists.
People and
music
For Rob and Hilde people in the music business
are at least as important as the music is. Not
only do they have to like the music they book,
they are also looking for the best possible music
around. They prefer to work for artists who
express their ideals in the music, like Mark
Stewart and the Maffia or Balkan Beat Box. For
Paperclip Agency, music is a form of cultural
expression, and not only entertainment. The
relationship with the artist is just as important
as the music. The personal contacts with the
organizers and bookers of concerts on the other
side are important too, also in order to find
shows for the artists. Therefore networking with
promoters and bookers is an important part of the
work.
The artist
The artists are seen as human beings, not as
superstars. To start a long-term mutual
relationship with an artist, Paperclip Agency
provides the artist with inside information on
how the company works. Mutuality includes the
ability of the artist to make his or her own
choices. Rob and Hilde are happy to assist the
artist in this, but will not take over this
responsibility. Paperclip Agency works on forming
a team with the artist, record label, promoters
and other involved parties. With this team of
specialists, all talents of these specialists are
used in order to serve the artist and his/her
career. Some artists work for more than 15 years
already with Paperclip Agency, like Greg Sage,
Mark Stewart and The Nomads.
Bookers and promoters
The relationship with bookers and promoters can
only work long-term, if they are not forced to
overpay an artist. Therefore it is important to
negotiate a realistic fee for the artist, as high
as possible, without 'burning' the booker or
promoter. This makes it possible to continue the
relationship with every party involved in the
future.
Social and
ecologic sustainability
In their spare time, Rob and Hilde show their
commitment to social sustainability in their
engagement with various emancipation groups and
with Bataforum. Bataforum is the local social
forum and is linked to the World Social Forum and
the European Social Forum. Regarding ecologic
sustainability the link between work and spare
time is even closer. For Paperclip Agency it is
self-evident to use recycled TCF-paper and to
save energy wherever possible. Business travel is
done by bicycle, bus and train whenever possible.
For business trips with distances of more than
800 km the plane is often unavoidable. The CO2-emissions
are compensated with investments in sustainable
energy. All food/drink at the office is organic
and fair trade, just as Rob and Hilde use at home.
Once a month they host a product presentation at
a local organic food shop.
Solidair
In 2007 Paperclip Agency joined Solidair, an
association of companies and organizations with
similar ideals as Rob and Hilde have. Together
they inspire and get inspired, about
sustainability on social and ecological levels,
and about economic solidarity among each other.
Solidair is about a fair distribution of
resources, about sharing knowledge and wealth.
<contents>
Continuity
Paperclip Agency will continue the work as
European agency and Dutch promoter. Rob and Hilde
will use their experience to book shows for
artists. They will continue to improve their
knowledge and their networks in all parts of the
world. Their current knowledge of the
international live music business includes: the
role of various players, their strengths and
weaknesses, the ins and outs, the ways to deal
with cultural differences and musical diversity,
the national tax rules of various countries, how
to solve conflicts etc. The experience in all
these subjects combined with a curiosity about
other people and cultures, keeps inspiring Rob
and Hilde in their work as agents and promoters.
Current developments
Current developments in the international live
music business show, that corporate
multinationals like Live Nation and AEG have
gained control in many European countries. It
will be important to demonstrate that this is not
the only way. Paperclip Agency works totally
independent. The company stands for an open and
honest partnership with the artist, which
emphasizes long-term mutuality in the interest of
artist and audience. More and more, people will
see that this is a serious alternative to the
corporate approach. Music will always be a
cultural issue, next to the nowadays over-emphasized
entertainment aspect.
An alternative
People have to learn about this alternative. The
shift from culture to entertainment in the
international live music industry brings an
overload of advertisements in the trade magazines.
Paperclip Agency can make better use of different
ways of advertising its ideas. The company has to
aim for reaching bands and managers who are
looking for an alternative. The music business is
still about personal contact; that is also a
focus point of Paperclip Agency. Rob and Hilde
will promote their approach on the website, when
participating in panels and when being
interviewed for business magazines. Bands that
work with Paperclip Agency will talk about this
approach, word of mouth, and Paperclip Agency
will explain further in the personal contacts
with artists and managers.
Nijmegen, September 17,
2008
<contents>
|
