PAN EXCLUSIVE
More good news for the industry hitting the PAN news desk this morning! …
On Monday UK based celebrity photo agency Xposure announced they had completed a photo distribution share with LA based AKM-GSI – this morning Xposure and AKM-GSI together with FameFlynet USA have announced the formation of a brand new celebrity photo agency called BackGrid which launches in Australia on February 1.
They say: BackGrid is the brainchild of three of the world’s most well-respected and leading celebrity photo agencies – Xposure, AKM-GSI and FameFlynet USA. BackGrid’s first international office, based in Sydney, will provide the market a fresh perspective on the celebrity media industry.
Along with passionate customer service, focused sales staff and a state of the art, user friendly website which will be an invaluable research tool for photo editors, BackGrid will have premier exclusive local and international content as well as a vast archive of millions of images. Contributors will also benefit greatly from this ground breaking new partnership as they reap the benefit of fast reporting of sales and earning direct percentages.
The very best three agencies in the business coming together to make this a reality is sure to be a huge success, especially with the experience and talent of Gemma Toogood – who previously worked at Snapper Media – Gemma has joined the team to head up the operation Down Under.
Gemma Toogood said: “I am absolutely thrilled to take the lead with BackGrid Australia. I’ve enjoyed a strong working relationship with these agencies separately for many years and am so excited that the dream partnership has turned into reality. I’m thoroughly looking forward to providing outstanding service to both clients and contributors and taking the market by storm.”
Steve Ginsburg, of AKM-GSI, said: “2016 will be filled with surprises. This is the first of many from us. Photographers around the world are talking and we are listening. Loud and clear!”
David Taylor CEO and Dan Taylor COO of Xposure, said: “It has always been our goal to offer the very best service to the hard working contributors in this business and this is a massive milestone and realisation of something we as an agency have worked so hard towards for many years. We are so excited that our global expansion programme starts here.“
Scott Cosman & Boris Nizon, of FameFlynet USA said, “We are excited to be joining forces with Xposure and AKM-GSI to form BackGrid Australia. We are also proud to have Gemma Toogood helming the new agency, which we believe will quickly become a dominant force in the Australian photo market. This is great news for all of our contributors as we continue to increase sales by eliminating sub-agents and going direct in multiple markets.’
…and there’s more to follow – David Taylor also told PhotoArchiveNews.com this morning “This is only the beginning! …our next expansion will be announced VERY soon.’
Related:
• Xposure Photos Represents AKM-GSI Celebrity Photo/Video Feed In The UK