- Sony Music Entertainment Launches New Global Merchandising Venture Through Strategic Investment in Leading Boutique Company Ceremony of Roses
- Jan 19, 2022
Brad Scoffern, Ceremony of Roses Founder, to Lead Enhanced Global Merchandising and Brand Management Operations
Agreement Combines Ceremony of Roses Roster, Including Adele, Olivia Rodrigo, A$AP Rocky, Baby Keem, Rex Orange County, Dominic Fike, and Cordae with Existing SME Merchandising Roster Including The Beatles, Camila Cabello, Jimi Hendrix, Maluma, Led Zeppelin, Lil Nas X, P!nk, Rosalia
NEW YORK — Sony Music Entertainment (SME) today announced the launch of a new global media, branding, design and events company through a strategic investment in Ceremony of Roses (CoR), a leading boutique merchandising company founded by music and fashion entrepreneur Brad Scoffern.
The new company will maintain the Ceremony of Roses brand and work with artists across the music and entertainment industry. The merchandise and branding company is already home to leading superstars including Adele, Olivia Rodrigo, A$AP Rocky, Baby Keem, Rex Orange County, Dominic Fike, Cordae, AG Club and more and will represent SME’s new flagship global merchandising arm, led by Scoffern and partner/Chief Business Officer Mary Healy.
Sony Music’s merch businesses around the globe will become part of the new Ceremony of Roses worldwide team. SME’s New York-based Thread Shop division, which represents artists including The Beatles, Camila Cabello, Jimi Hendrix, Maluma, Led Zeppelin, Lil Nas X, P!nk, Rosalia and more, will remain as a brand under the Ceremony of Roses banner.
In making the announcement, Rob Stringer, Chairman, Sony Music Group, said, “Brad and his team at Ceremony of Roses have proven to be an incredibly creative force in developing futuristic branding and merchandising services for artists. We’ve been huge fans of his work with Golf Wang and what Ceremony of Roses has developed for its cutting edge roster of front-line talent. I look forward to joining forces to bring innovative ideas and concepts to our artists as extensions of their music talent.”
Said Scoffern, “I’m beyond excited and truly honored to be working with Rob Stringer and the entire Sony Music Team. I’m delighted to be working with a team that shares our artist-first approach in supporting creative talent. By joining Ceremony of Roses’ expertise in merchandising with SME’s global reach, roster and resources, we are set up for an exciting new chapter of growth. CoR was founded with the goal of enabling and expanding authentic fan/artist connections beyond a tour tee, and through working with incredible artists and mentors, especially Tyler, the Creator & Christian Clancy, I have learned the value of fan engagement and the unique role merchandise and branding plays in this relationship. I look forward to helping the artists we work with build on the amazing advancements happening in the space today to deliver incredible experiences and products across all touchpoints with their fan base, regardless of where they are or how they buy.”
This new partnership further builds on Sony Music’s successful in-house merchandising business, and expands the scope and capabilities of its operations globally as part of the services and solutions it offers to the artist community. Together, the Ceremony of Roses and Thread Shop teams will jointly leverage their capabilities to drive new business opportunities around the world. The new company will focus on a broad range of artist merch and manufacturing efforts including the management and development of artist-backed brands such as Macklemore’s Bogey Boys and Kehlani’s TSNMI. Ceremony of Roses will also continue to support leading festival partners Golden Voice & Live Nation and maintain a roster of management clients.
Founded in 2016 by Scoffern, Ceremony of Roses is a creative service agency built to solve the evolving commercial challenges of the world’s largest artists and live event producers. The firm specializes in developing cutting edge creative solutions and incubating talent-backed brands. The addition of Mary Healy in 2021 accelerated CoR’s commercial success and external partnerships, including a doubling of its staff and roster over the last 12 months.
Prior to founding Ceremony of Roses, Scoffern was General Manager at 4Strikes management working under Christian and Kelly Clancy as part of their management team for Odd Future, Tyler, the Creator, and Mac Miller. In addition, while at 4Strikes he operated as one of the Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival Directors and General Manager of Tyler’s Golf Wang apparel brand, a position he still holds.
Before joining CoR, Healy served as the Senior Vice President of Strategy & Growth at Scooter Braun Projects (SBP) where she led SBP’s Consumer Ventures team; a group responsible for developing talent-backed brands, including Justin Bieber’s Drewhouse. Prior to SBP, Healy spent 10 years at Google & YouTube across a range of functions in the media and branded content space.