09.12.2025: As part of UK Music’s This Is Music report into the economic health of the sector, Bristol-based independent record label Black Acre Records shared a unique case study illustrating the running of an indie record company, from the challenges they face to the opportunities open to them in today’s market.

This Is Music revealed that the UK music industry contributed a record £8 billion to the economy in 2024, with exports revenue hitting a new high of £4.8 billion.  

However, while the £8 billion contribution made last year marked a record high, the rate of growth was down by more than half on 2023, meaning urgent action needs to be taken to address this significant drop. You can read more about the report here. 

You can read the Black Acre Records case study in full, in their own words below.  

“Black Acre Records was founded in Bristol in 2007 amidst the explosion of the new electronic genre of dubstep in the city. With a focus on discovering new artists and not being constrained by genres,  

“Black Acre Artist Management (founded in 2017) naturally evolved from years of developing talent. The management wing is now the centre of our music services, and we pride ourselves on being a genuinely artist-centered music company with fair and futuristic development deals to reflect the industry’s perpetually changing times. 

“Both companies are run equally by Ian Merchant (founder of the label) and Eva Greene (who joined in 2012 and co-founded the management company). In 2018 we won ‘Best Small Label’ at the AIM Independent Music Awards, and following this, Eva was elected to the Board of Directors of AIM (sitting for years from 2019-2022). This provided us with an enforced network of leading independent music companies and an insight into the shared needs of the independent sector. 

“We have an office in Bristol at St Anne’s House, a creative and community hub in an up-and-coming area, run by a local non-profit Arts Organisation in an ex-Council Building. Our company structure is based on two directors and two local members of staff who are employed by the Artist Management Company. 

“In 2025 we are proud to have released the second album by Bristol-based band SCALER, an act known for their explosive live shows and with a strong local following.  

“With PR/Radio campaigns in the UK, Europe & USA, they head out on a headline UK/EU tour in November. The Bristol album launch (in partnership with Rough Trade) sold out in three minutes, and we also arranged a London launch at legendary record shop Phonica Records. 

“In 2021 we ran the ‘Black Acre Pathways’ programme funded by Youth Music, in which we gave two people from Bristol & Somerset a paid opportunity to run their own music project with our support and network. This also enabled us to partner with and pay local music businesses to help run the project, and we also took Inclusive Recruitment Training from Rising Talent, a Bristol-based creative agency led by young, underrepresented creatives. This training was invaluable and led us to reach a large pool of underrepresented groups. Black Acre Pathways is a programme we would like to run again when we have the capacity and funding to do so. 

“Black Acre Records’ income is spread across digital streaming & downloads, the sale of vinyl in record shops & D2C websites, and sync licensing. A growing part of our D2C revenue is from the platform Bandcamp, which has a loyal user base of fans who want to support independent music by buying directly from artists/labels, and often pay over the asking price. 

“We reinvest most of our revenue in the production & marketing of new releases. As a business, this means that we are constantly contributing to the music/creative industry not only by providing resources for artists releasing on our label but by paying for the costs of production, press, radio promotion, photography, video/visuals, marketing & advertising. The majority of this spend is within the UK. 

“A current challenge of our label business is that profit margins are being squeezed by increased production & shipping costs of vinyl, higher wages & freelancer rates, post-Brexit customs charges when shipping to the EU, and new US tariffs on shipping merchandise (not applicable to vinyl). 

“In an uncertain economy, we are still wanting to find new opportunities to grow the business, while finding it more difficult to plan for the future. We will always endeavour to be an independent company whose ethos is to support & nurture new talent.”