The restructuring and downsizing of senior management at Warner Music continues, with the major’s recorded music operations in the Benelux region – so Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg – merging with those in the GSA region – so Germany, Switzerland and Austria – to form one super division.
That division will use the Warner Music Central Europe name that already applied in GSA, and will be headed up by Niels Walboomers, who previously ran the company’s Benelux business.
He’ll now split his time between Amsterdam, Berlin and Hamburg, and presumably quite a few planes or trains, depending on how eco-friendly he’s feeling. Doreen Schimk and Fabian Drebes, who previously headed up the GSA division, are exiting after decades working for Warner.
During that time, Schimk and Drebes say in a joint statement, “we’re privileged to have championed extraordinary artists and worked with exceptional teams and partners. Together, we moved the needle – from opening our creative hub in Berlin, to having the longest-running number one in German chart history, and leading the 2024 charts with seven out of the top ten singles”.
“The spirit of this team powered every success and Warner Music will always hold a place in our hearts”, they add. “As we hand over leadership”, they conclude, the expanded Warner Music Central Europe is “well placed for its next chapter under Niels Walboomers and the management team”.
Earlier this year Warner Music’s overall CEO Robert Kyncl announced plans to find another $300 million in annual cost savings, $170 million from job cuts. Achieving that aim has involved taking the axe to senior management by merging divisions, handing certain execs a second job, and more closely aligning the UK and Canadian labels with their US counterparts.
This latest revamp achieves cost savings in Central Europe. But it’s not just about the cost savings! I mean, it’s mainly about the cost savings, but Warner insists there is a logic to more closely aligning its labels and operations in Benelux and GSA.
After all, an official statement proclaims, “there are similarities between the recorded music markets in Benelux and the GSA territories, with export-orientated dance genres, strong domestic hip-hop scenes and audiences passionate about international pop and rock music”.
In his new role, Walboomers will report to Warner’s EMEA recorded music chief Simon Robson. He’ll also be supported by Markus Holzherr, already Chief Business Officer at the previous GSA iteration of Warner Music Central Europe.
Says Walboomers: “I’m excited to take on responsibility for our recorded music business in Warner Music Central Europe, succeeding the brilliant Doreen Schimk and Fabian Drebes who ran the company so successfully”.
“The newly combined weight of these six countries”, he adds, “make this one of the most influential territories in the Warner Music ecosystem, and by focusing that power in fresh and imaginative ways, we’ll create bigger and more dynamic possibilities for our artists”.
