British on-demand vinyl platform, elasticStage, reveals its London HQ - a new hub for production and R&D

19 October 2022 - Press release

 

• elasticStage opens its new 10,000 sq. ft. facility in north west London

• Industry pros and investors join advisory board to help kick-start the on-demand vinyl revolution

• New manufacturing process offers drastically shorter lead times, with the ability to meet commercial demand instantly and offering a world-class D2C web store

 

London, UK, October 2022: On-demand vinyl platform, elasticStage, has announced the opening of its new North-West London production and R&D facility. The 10,000 square foot facility will house its revolutionary, patent-pending technology that is set to change the vinyl market as we know it. The British tech startup has garnered interest and support from across the music, tech, engineering, automation and printing industries, and is also revealing the first names of industry veterans proudly joining its advisory board - Paul Smith, Aron Priest and Charles Grimsdale. 

100,000 songs are released onto streaming services every single day and elasticStage is on a mission to make every title ever recorded available to purchase on vinyl through its revolutionary on-demand platform. The tech startup is now one step closer to realising this ambition with backing from a world-leading automation and engineering company. elasticStage’s exclusive production partner - which is part of Temasek Holdings Singaporewith a portfolio of over $280 billion - works with pioneering multinational companies including Tesla, and will be instrumental in scaling up capacity for elasticStage over the coming years, with a view to satisfy and expand global demand for vinyl. 

Steve Rhodes, CEO and co-founder of elasticStage, commented: “We have chosen London for our first facility because it is a hub for key sector talents that a company such as ours needs - tech, music and finance. It will serve as a showcase for the upcoming funding round and will go live next year with our first partners. Creators are the fastest growing sector in music and elasticStage will open up access to vinyl with no up-front cost, by producing hundreds of millions of units annually - a goal that is absolutely achievable with our advanced technology, highly skilled team and expert advisory board.”

elasticStage recently secured funding across various industries and specialisms. Some of the investors are so confident about the future of vinyl and the revolution that elasticStage promises that they have also become a part of elasticStage’s advisory board.

Charles Grimsdale, founder (together with Peter Gabriel) of OD2, Europe’s first digital music download platform, and Eden Ventures, a London-based VC, has taken on the role of Non-Executive Chairman. Charles will provide leadership advice and strategic support to the board. He will be joined by Paul Smith, Ex-Head of International Licensing at Spotify, who brings a wealth of knowledge across the music and tech industry and Aron Priest, Co-Founder of leading online print business Solopress, who will be providing manufacturing advice and support. Wider focus areas of the advisory board will include; development of the product and platform, revenue and growth, innovation, partnerships and networking, as well as servicing a music creator community. 

Paul Smith, Ex-Head of International Licensing at Spotify, commented: “When I first met Steve and Werner in 2018, I was captivated by their infectious passion, enthusiasm, experience and vision for elasticStage. The ability to take an established practice and format, improve it, create new B2C paths and solve fundamental and existential B2B problems, bringing it into the 21st century, encapsulates Steve and Werner's philosophy - they are true visionaries. Building a creator economy for the future has never been so important and relevant. elasticStage will unlock new opportunities for artists to connect with their fans via a 21st century, fully-scaled, on-demand vinyl business. I am more than excited to help them along their journey, leveraging the knowledge and experience I've built with more than 25 years within the music and tech industries.”

Aron Priest, Co-founder of Solopress, added: “Having set up and run one of the first online printing businesses in 2003, I could immediately see the value of elasticStage’s idea. I am excited to offer elasticStage my advice, expertise and support in building its mass production manufacturing facilities. With my existing industry connections, I hope my involvement brings sector confidence that elasticStage can scale their revolution for the vinyl market”.

After six years of development, and raising £3.5m in funding so far, elasticStage has created an ingenious way to manufacture and distribute vinyl on-demand for the music industry, and the ever growing creator community, which is both sustainable and ethical. Fully packaged vinyl products can be dispatched immediately from the point of creation, offering incredibly short lead times, enabling commercial demand to be met instantaneously. For fans, pricing for elasticStage vinyl will be comparable to existing vinyl. For creators and labels, there will be no up-front cost and minimum runs are a thing of the past.

With this new frontier of vinyl on-demand, elasticStage is set to become the one-stop solution for artists ranging from bedroom novices to emerging to established global stars. elasticStage will be launching a Series A funding round imminently to execute the next phase of growth. For more information, go to elasticstage.com.