Worldwide Independent Network (WIN) has appointed Beggars Group Founder and Chairman, Martin Mills, as its first chair.
Mills set up Beggars Banquet back in 1974 first as a record shop, before expanding the business into a label and launching the careers of Gary Numan, the Charlatans and Bauhaus.
Beggars Group has grown into a confederacy of record labels including XL Recordings, Rough Trade, Matador, 4AD and Young Turks.
Mills is also on the board of IMPALA, AIM and A2IM and recently stepped down as chair at Merlin – where he remains a board member.
WIN represents the interests of the global independent music community, and works with collection societies around the world to monitor the management of independent rights.
It also commissions and publishes the annual WINTEL market report, which maps the global market share of the independent sector at copyright, rather than distribution level.
The latest WINTEL report found that independent record label made up 38.4 percent of the global recorded music market and contributed $6bn (£4.6bn) to the industry in 2016.
Alison Wenham, Chief Executive Officer of WIN said: 'Martin Mills has been a hugely respected and influential champion of the independent music community for decades and WIN is delighted to announce his chair.
'He will be a powerful advocate and will play a vital role in ensuring that we speak with one clear, collective voice while safeguarding the interests of members as we move forward in an ever more competitive commercial market.'
Martin Mills said: 'I’m honoured to be chosen as WIN’s first chair. Independents have needed a global voice in a globalised market, as they have benefited from strong local voices as local remains as important as ever.
'I am confident that Alison and her team will bring a co-ordinated, informed, strong and leading presence to worldwide issues, and ensure that independent interests are not just well represented, but also at the forefront of determining our collective futures.'
Mills set up Beggars Banquet back in 1974 first as a record shop, before expanding the business into a label and launching the careers of Gary Numan, the Charlatans and Bauhaus.
Beggars Group has grown into a confederacy of record labels including XL Recordings, Rough Trade, Matador, 4AD and Young Turks.
Mills is also on the board of IMPALA, AIM and A2IM and recently stepped down as chair at Merlin – where he remains a board member.
WIN represents the interests of the global independent music community, and works with collection societies around the world to monitor the management of independent rights.
It also commissions and publishes the annual WINTEL market report, which maps the global market share of the independent sector at copyright, rather than distribution level.
The latest WINTEL report found that independent record label made up 38.4 percent of the global recorded music market and contributed $6bn (£4.6bn) to the industry in 2016.
Alison Wenham, Chief Executive Officer of WIN said: 'Martin Mills has been a hugely respected and influential champion of the independent music community for decades and WIN is delighted to announce his chair.
'He will be a powerful advocate and will play a vital role in ensuring that we speak with one clear, collective voice while safeguarding the interests of members as we move forward in an ever more competitive commercial market.'
Martin Mills said: 'I’m honoured to be chosen as WIN’s first chair. Independents have needed a global voice in a globalised market, as they have benefited from strong local voices as local remains as important as ever.
'I am confident that Alison and her team will bring a co-ordinated, informed, strong and leading presence to worldwide issues, and ensure that independent interests are not just well represented, but also at the forefront of determining our collective futures.'
