MI Pro

Mel Bay is a company on a mission. Long associated with tuition, educational music books and associated material, recent years have seen it steadily growing in prominence in the UK to the extent, reveals Mel Bay Music’s UK managing director, Chris Statham, that recession or no recession, the company is experiencing a boom in sales.

Since 1947, when Mel Bay himself launched his music tuition publishing business, the company has been at the forefront of this market sector – not least because of its willingness to concentrate on the guitar and related instruments, which are consistently popular and reliable sellers for music retailers around the world.

But fashions change and publishers need to keep an eye open for new trends and developments, which is where the first UK-based artist signing by Statham comes in – the virtuoso acoustic guitarist Rodney Branigan. If you haven’t yet seen or heard him, watch this space. Branigan, a Texan now based in the UK, plays two guitars simultaneously as his party piece – a feat that has seen him also being picked-up by Yamaha as an endorser for its LL series acoustic guitars.

“It was back in 2007 at the Frankfurt Musikmesse when I was first approached to take a look at this particular artist,” says Statham. “At the time the main focus of my business was to raise awareness that the Mel Bay catalogue was now selling direct to trade throughout the UK and Europe and not being distributed any longer. While it was something I was always going to be very keen to become involved in – signing artists, developing new products and opening new markets – I couldn’t quite commit to offering Rodney Branigan a deal there and then.

SELLING THE CONCEPT
“Fast forward to the NAMM show in 2008 and I had my opportunity at selling the concept/project to Mel Bay’s then president, William Bay. Bill Bay, being a guitarist himself and head of all the editorial and artistic decisions, obviously saw something in my presentation and passion and also in meeting with the artist and his manager. We started the ball rolling in setting up a deal to sign him up and get to work on publishing his works and performances.

“For anyone in the business this is the tedious part. This is where both parties open up negotiations and fire the first shots at getting the best deal possible for both artist and publisher. I am not very patient when it comes down to the dotting of the ‘i’s and the crossing of the ‘t’s – once I have shaken hands I really want to see the product published, marketed and out there getting sold as soon as physically possible. I guess that’s the salesman in me.

“So here we are, over a year on and about to launch the first of many projects we have lined up with Rodney, which timing-wise could not have been better with the major promotion and marketing tool of the Frankfurt Musikmesse 2009 looming large. This first live performance DVD really will get my trade customers enthusiastic and from here I hope we can ramp up some educational products, which I know Rodney is very keen to do.”

Choosing your first artist (even if only in the UK) is a crucial decision and can influence perceptions of the publisher for many years after the fact, so it was important for Statham and Mel Bay to get this one absolutely spot on.

“There are so many reasons why I wanted to sign Rodney,” continues Statham. “First, he is an amazing artist that people will remember forever and he seemed so tailor-made for the Mel Bay brand. Not only is he unique in the way he plays, strums and taps two guitars at the very same time, but he comes with an unbelievable talent for singing, songwriting and live performance.”

Of course, while Rodney Branigan has been the first signing of 2009 coming from the Mel Bay Music UK offices, he joins a global brand within a publishing house that has a stable of talented guitarists and artists such as Chet Atkins, Juan Martin, Johnny Hiland, Juan Serrano and Tommy Emmanuel.

PLANNING PROMOTION
Mel Bay’s plans for promoting Branigan include helping him find a spot on a forthcoming Jools Holland programme and kicking-off his career with a live concert DVD, filmed in Bombay, which will later be followed by the first of what Statham feels could be a string of educational titles benefiting from the stir Branigan is already creating with his live performances. It’s not just the artist that is new, either. Starting with a live DVD marks something of a change in the way the company is promoting its new signings.

“It’s a slightly different direction,” Statham says. “We signed Rodney up first and foremost on the strength of his performance and other material that we can publish for him, which is why we are leading with a live performance DVD straight away. This is the first UK-based Mel Bay signing, but we believe that it’s the start, both in terms of the artist concerned, but also in terms of some other very exciting things.”

The Branigan signing and promotion comes against the background of a business which has been going from strength to strength, Statham reveals. “I really think that for sheet music and for the industry in general, we could have a great 2009 and already we have had a strong January, which doesn’t match up with such a low presence at the NAMM show of many UK and European dealers.

“This exciting launch will keep dealers talking about Mel Bay and, with my plans for a new issue programme being one of the most flexible and generous in the industry, there should be no reason why you wouldn’t want to deal with Mel Bay Music. Also, I have trimmed down our new releases to be more focused on our high-quality mix of sellers. My trade accounts have always told me that there are just too many new products each week being launched, so the books and DVDs that are being produced and released from Mel Bay in 2009 are hand-picked with volume and margins in mind for our dealers.”

With Statham admitting to fewer UK retailers at NAMM, it must be seen as something of a phenomenon that he is experiencing a surge in sales. This January would appear to have seen a shift in dealer habits, Statham thinks, judging by where he now anticipates writing orders: “I certainly felt in January that there was a sudden upsurge in people coming direct to me and I don’t want to take anything away from the wholesale business, or the jobbers or rackers out there, but I think quite a few accounts are looking to come direct for the better terms, the better discounts and better service and an immediate response to their business. I’m hoping it also had a lot to do with a certain wall-planner and advertising I did with MI Pro that raised our profile in the industry.”

MATERIAL MARGINS
Flattering though that thought may be, there is also the question of the margins to be made on printed material – something the smartest retailers have long realised and which, in these margin-strapped times, increasing numbers are starting to see the attractions of.

“I’ve been banging on for something like ten years about this – about how attractive the margins are,” Statham says. “The message is finally getting through and there are certainly a lot more accounts now that would never have touched print before and who are coming directly to us to see how they can start and develop.”

If any reader is beginning to think they would like to share in this booming sector, but is uncertain how, Statham says Mel Bay is only too happy to help retailers into the printed sector. “If you think of a print spinner, it is barely a foot in diameter. It looks attractive, it draws attention to an area where you might not even have turned a light on in the past or it can be stuck in the window and bring people through the door.

“The way we’ve managed to expand our stock and range means I think we should be taken as a third option in the market now. If a retailer doesn’t want to deal with a lot of different publishers, there is Mel Bay, which offers a very personal touch, a phenomenal service and great material. I really think we are getting there now and being seen as a major sheet music publisher.”

The emphasis may still be on paper, but publishing is, like every other aspect of the music industry, caught in a technological revolution and it’s one Statham is well aware of. Launching a new signing with a live DVD is just the tip of the iceberg, though. The company is also looking set to move into areas such as online tuition and downloading. “Yes, very much so,” he comments. “Within the next six to 12 months, we hope to be offering a fully downloadable service whereby we partner-up with our trade accounts and they can offer their customers downloadable books and products from Mel Bay. They take the money and get the discount on the product downloaded and that is definitely on the way.”  
Mel Bay Music: 020 8323 8010

Bryndon Bay takes Mel  Bay global

Chris Statham has undoubtedly made a significant impact on the sheet music market in the UK, taking on what some see as a quite parochial American catalogue and bigging it up in front of dealers, knowing that these are the people who impact upon the buying habits and decisions of the public more than anyone. His full-on marketing policies have seen, in under three years, the establishment of an enviable dealer network and Mel Bay’s titles punching their corner along with the established heavyweights in the business.

All of this, of course, costs money and needs more than one head to set the course and keep it there and Statham has been lucky in having a boss who sees exactly where the ideas are coming from  and going to. Enter Bryndon Bay (pictured, right), the grandson of Mel Bay and, since the new year, the president of the global operation.

“Chris was a major factor in us establishing an office in the UK,” explains Bay. “He was very much the right man at the right time and he has really taken the bull by the horns.”

Bryndon Bay took the day-to-day running of the publishing house in January this year from his father, William (pictured, left), with the latter now chairman of the board and continuing his work with artist relations and project development. Bryndon is in charge of the publisher’s manufacturing operation (which takes in the whole publishing process from writing and editing, through to pre-press, printing and binding) to the business development strategies that have resulted in partners in Hong Kong, India and Dubai, as well as Statham’s UK business.

“The first year, I was in the UK about 18 times,” recalls Bay. “By the second year, it was down to six times. Chris is a guy you can trust to get the job done.”

Bay describes his takeover of the company as a ‘gradual evolution’ having taken some ten months working together with his father to learn the ropes, culminating in his appointment as president. That gradual evolution is something that has been at the core of Mel Bay since the very beginning, with the eponymous founder building the catalogue based on his own Modern Guitar Method tutorials and introducing the first elements of the production operation, his son William establishing the facility in Pacific, Missouri through the ‘70s and ‘80s, to Bryndon’s own efforts in turning the company global since the turn of the century.

Talking of business development and international expansion is, of course, far easier said than done and Bryndon Bay has used the template of slow and steady growth to establish relations and partners around the world.

“When I rejoined the business five years ago, the company was still almost completely US-centric,” explains Bay. “Yes, we had been regularly at the Frankfurt show, but that was it. I started looking at the Far East and Australian markets and developing relationships and taking trips out to meet up with people. They were essentially ‘meet and greets’ and we have enjoyed slow and steady growth in those markets. It takes time.”

Having established partners in the countries mentioned and the products becoming available, there then followed a circle of feedback that resulted in adapting established Mel Bay titles for more local instruments, such as the ud. “Our partners come back with these suggestions and we work with that.

They will often provide artists and so on – they know better than us what sells in their markets.”

All of that said, the UK operation has not needed to be quite so radical, with the UK market generally accepting the Mel Bay catalogue as it is. “The past two years have seen us building our market share and a wider audience getting to know our products. Our specialist niches, such as accordion, banjo and ukulele, are proving tremendously popular.”

At this point interviews would normally focus on plans for expansion and what the future holds, but in the current recession no-one knows what the future holds. “Generally, our customers are asking for fewer new titles, so we have cut back on new releases from about 20 per month to five and we are concentrating on tried and trusted business areas, key artists and the specialist niches we have built over the years,” explains Bay. “We are also looking at where we want to go with our digital and online content.

“One of the good things about the economic situation at the moment is that, as we shore up, we become more cautious and this gives us the chance to look at what we can do better.”

Bay goes on to explain that the current crisis is the first in his company’s experience to have shown an immediate impact on sales, which, taking into account printed music’s tendency to ride out slumps with little or no impact, is news in itself, but with books sitting firmly in the ‘affordable entertainment’ and education categories, there is little sign of any alarm as yet.

“We’re moving steadily,” says Bay, “but what is happening is so different from anything we’ve seen before, we’re remaining guarded and cautious and concentrating on the titles that the dealers want to pick up.”

Rodney Branigan – the new Mel Bay signing

Originating from Amarillo, Texas, Rodney Branigan is now based in the UK and, following an extensive period spent playing in the Far East, has been busily building a following here – no doubt about to be enhanced by his signing with Mel Bay. But how had that come about? What had made him decide to approach Mel Bay in particular?

“A part of it was that it had experience with artists using some of the techniques that I use,” he says. “Its best-selling live DVD, I believe, is by Tommy Emmanuel and I use a lot of similar techniques to him. Dealing with Mel Bay was really easy – one of the easiest deals I’ve ever done, in fact.

“As for promotion, I’m also working with Yamaha, endorsing its new LL series of guitars, so between Yamaha and Mel Bay there are going to be a lot of clinics, I hope.  The schedule at the moment is that I should be touring the UK and Europe during the summertime, and then the States, from September to mid-October, and Asia from then until December.”

Catalogue Number: MB21982DVD
Title: Rodney Branigan – Live In India DVD
Release Date: April 1st 2009