Keeping investment types happier are the London based cross-sector music firm the Mama Group who have just posted profits of £1.74 million, compared to a £800,000 loss the previous year. The profit boost, and corresponding 39% increase in turnover, comes after a busy year for the Barfly network owners, who expanded their venue business greatly by acquiring most of Mean Fiddler's venue business.
In a statement to accompany their latest figures, co-chief executives Adam Driscoll and Dean James said: "We are delighted to be reporting material profits for the year and expect to deliver an even stronger set of results for the current financial year. The material growth and development of the business over the last 18 months is now being reflected strongly at the operating profit level".
In a mini-polemic about the wider music business - and public perceptions of it given the decline in CD sales - the duo continued: "The general - and mistaken - public view seems to be that the music industry is experiencing difficult trading conditions and unresolved strategic challenges. The reality is that it is only the area of physical recordings (ie CD sales) that is suffering and this is an area of the business in which we have very limited exposure. Strategically, our combination of strong live venues married to both a growing artist management roster and significant positions in ticketing, sponsorship and the digital environment is, we believe, the model for the music industry of the future. Our results are demonstrating that to be the case and we see opportunities for further aggressive growth and continued leaps in profitability. The last 18 months have seen us consolidate our position as one of the UK's leading music businesses. We have the largest number of live music venues in the UK and jointly own the largest artist management collective in the world at a time when all major music groups are re-engineering their businesses to get closer to artists".