Rough Trade

The 1970s;
How did rough trade start?
Rough Trade started in the 1976, founded by Geoff Travis. Geoff Travis was a Cambridge graduate who travel to America finding old records and bringing them back to London where he could start  hes own shop/business.


Which music trends where popular?
In the 1970s most of the music created was the same for the fact that they were produced made and created by faceless co-operations that never really gave experimental and different kind of music a chance. At this time Rock 'n' Roll and Punk were the popular trends/genres.


What was the ethos of Rough Trade at this time? 
The ethos for Rough Trade at this current time was that 'Anyone can make a record' implying that everyone has a chance and that not everything we listen to has to be polluted and manufactured into what co-operations what us to like, in other words, originality and diversity.


 How was Rough Trade different to other co-operations?
Rough Trade was different to other co-operations because they didn't just offer music and force music on to people, they gave undiscovered artists a chance to spread their different variation of music, also Rough Trade sold magazines and gave people a place to hang and listen to records.


What techniques were used to expand the Independent music scene?
 Rough Trade created a new trend/genre merging punk and reggae, thus creating something different and new to the scene.


How did this lead to Rough Trade's expansion?
This lead to the expansion because it let people know that Rough Trade doesnt look for the typical mainstream sounding artists but that they accept anyone thats willing and has a passion for music and the desire to bring something different.


 What type of business structure existed in the 1970's?
The type of structure that existed in the 1970s was a 'Do it yourself' in which only released music mainstream co-operations didnt.  


Explain the successes of the distribution department and record label ?
Because record distribution was controlled by big companies, Rough Trade started to distribute records to other companies via mail orders.




The 1980's;
How did contracts effect the development of Rough Trade?
Contracts effected the development of Rough Trade, because they never enforced a contract that said the artist/s had to stay with them for a certain amount of time after their record made a hit, meaning they lost alot of artists to mainstream co-operations. 


What issues occurred between the record label and the distribution?
 Because the cashflow was adding up, Rough Trade had to hire outside help, which led them to break down and became close to the closing/end of Rough Trade.
They had no business minds.


What changes did this lead to within the business structure of Rough Trade?
This led to Rough Trade moving locations to Kings also leading to the break down of management and the start of business effecting arguments. 


What has been Rough Trades ideology and how was this effected by the change in structure?
At the beginning everything was about music, bringing new and different genres and making them successful, but after a while everything started to become money centered thus causing the Rough Trade to start using contracts in order to keep their artists. 


Which artists led to success for Rough Trade?
The Stiff Little Fingers and The Smiths were the two main artists/bands that brought success to Rough Trade. The Smiths also starting the new trend/genre of Indie music. 
What music trend emerged at the end of the 1980s?
At the end of the 1980s Indie music emerged and became mainstream. 


What differences were there at this time between Rough Trade and other Independent music labels?




The 1990s;
What problems did Rough Trade incur at the start of the 1990s?
The Rough Trade name had been sold off, Jeannette Lee became Geoff Travis' new partner and about 2 members of the original staff where fired and They still had cashflow problems which caused their assets to freeze.


What effect did this have on the Record label and distribution ?
 They split up, both Record and distribution did their own thing when it came to managing because they couldn't agree on how both parts should be managed or because they disagreed on how it was managed.


How did major record labels branch out into the independent music scene?
   Major record labels branched out into the independent music by signing new and different artists.


What actions were taken to revive Rough Trade?
Geoff Travis set up a new office with Jeannette Lee in 1993, signing on a new american band 'The Pulp'
What new music industry areas did Rough Trade begin to work in and with which artists?




21st Century;
How has Rough trade evolved in the 21st century?
Rough trade has evolved in the sense that now, it has a supported and stable structure which still has freedom and stability.


How are their working practice different to the music produced through programs such as X Factor?
Rough Trades working practice is different from programs such as X Factor because they don't force and image and type of singing style on the artist instead they give that artist time to find themselves and experiment with different genres in order to find the one which could sell and be comfortable for them.


What successes have they had at this time?
At this time they had the success of Duffy who after 30 years of down fall for Rough Trade actually bought them their first ever hit 1st single.


How has Rough Trade's ideology developed for the company in the present day?
Rough Trades ideology is still the same as in being based around music and more music focused but now in takes into consideration the need of actually making records that could keep them on the map and also the importance of keeping artists.