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 the technology that it hopes will revolutionise the vinyl market.
elasticStage's mission is to make every title ever recorded available to purchase on vinyl through its on-demand platform. The tech startup is one step closer to realising this ambition, thanks to backing from an automation and engineering company. The company's production partner, which is part of Temasek Holdings Singapore, works with pioneering multinational companies including Tesla, and will be instrumental in scaling up capacity for elasticStage over the coming years.
Steve Rhodes, CEO and co-founder of elasticStage, said: “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.”
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. He will be joined by Paul Smith, ex-head of international licensing at Spotify, and Aron Priest, co-founder of online print business Solopress.
Paul Smith 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”.
Photo: Left to right – co-founders Steve Rhodes (CEO) and Werner Freistaetter (CTO).
