The Orchard is a distribution and services company that partners with independent labels and artists.
A subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment, The Orchard is led by CEO Brad Navin.
The Orchard’s clients include / have included the likes of Ozuna, Kelsea Ballerini, Jorja Smith, T-Pain, BTS, 21 Savage and Flipp Dinero.
The company is headquartered in New York, and operates across more than 40 countries worldwide.
The Orchard was founded as a digital entertainment distribution company in 1997 by Scott Cohen and Richard Gottehrer.
Sony Music acquisition of The Orchard
Sony Music acquired a 51% stake in The Orchard in 2012, in a deal that is reported to have cost between $50 and $55 million in a combination of cash and equity.
The equity part of the deal saw Sony merge rival independent distribution company IODA into The Orchard.
In March 2015, it was confirmed that Sony Music had fully acquired the Orchard, buying the half of the company it didn’t already own in a $200 million deal.
According to an SEC filing, Sony entered into an agreement to acquire all the remaining shares in the business in a $200m (€136m) deal with current stakeholder Orchard Asset Holdings, LLC.Music Business Worldwide