Just for the record. fiddlefax.co.za is in the final phase of its initial construction.
This article is a view of fiddlefax's intent and initiative dealing with Future Enterprise Development, Company Partnership and Education in the arts and music industries.
a Guideline of the project's scope & direction.
1. Fiddlefax.co.za is an individual company for promoting and networking music’all.’ A faceted promotions & individual business facilitator aimed at individual growth potential.
Giving free access to a peer guidance portal designed with informed trade facilities for the music and performing arts industries to shop for services, spares and marketing tools.
2. Funded privately by way of incomes generated by Svend’s violin over the last 3 years of development (over shooting the annual gross turnover by approximately 30% in the last tax year end 2008). In the last 7 months additional cash flow has been generated through the initiation of ‘manual’ fiddlefax music sales and in-training services while stabilising the web end and setting up e-Commerce trade facilities.
3. The partnerships that have already been formed with a range of people and institutions, in appendix1, are instrumental for the ongoing development, sustainability and future vision of fiddlefax’s intent to grow an entrepreneurial environment for (the arts,) music and musicians.
The structure of fiddlefax is based on the ideas and methods described in Richardo Semler’s book Maverick and are being adapted to suit the South African environment.
4. The project’s concepts & ideas were first drafted during March 2005 and on 23 November 2006 the site was officially registered.
5. Fiddlefax.co.za and its related projects started after continuous requests resulted in us identifying a need for better qualified services, availability of individual self marketing and management tools in the music industry.
After conceptualizing the website we started creating tools and a web space where musicians can interact and learn from each other.
After expanding on the idea of a website we started to canvass for partnerships and with their input to try and get the project going. We interviewed musicians, luthiers, students, teachers and everybody involved in the musical field - listening to their experiences and problems.
Ending up with a list of what was needed to realize their potential for being entrepreneurs. Focusing on how we could create a website that would generate enough revenue to give free marketing and exposure to services. Music is a viable thing; it is possible to make money with music.
6. So far fiddlefax has fostered music’all relationships with many people to be able to get thus far in exploring endless possibilities. We just added sound.
Concept, Creative and Management roles
Male: Svend Christensen, Lasse Manson, Rob Brislin and Roux Wessels. Female: Libbie du Toit, Charlotte Gulle.
Support partnerships for the different instrument departments
Male: Svend Christensen, Paul Herson. Female: Micka Clayton.
Trainees and data capturers
Male: Thokozani Zwane. Female: Thembisile Buthelezi, Senzi Morajane, Onica Herimbi
7. As a young and developing company we have as yet not entirely identified all of the possibilities for our future funding criteria.
For further development of the support areas that the web side depends on we will be looking at various areas for support from third parties and development agencies:
a. For a combined instrument maker’s training studio.
b. For training of different areas of service rendering in the music field.
c. Design and further web development – rapidly becoming a division of its own.
d. For facilities that will further the serviceable scope of fiddlefax.
e. Marketing and promoting what fiddlefax is intended for to our audience and participants.
8. It was decided that funding would be generated within the means of services and subscriptions available through the website and with support from entrepreneurs for encouragement of musical entrepreneurs.
Descriptions of the functions being developed by fiddlefax.
1. The nature of fiddlefax is based on promoting the music and arts industries. We intend on sustaining its further development and functional growth through:
a. Directory subscriptions for venues, agents and contact ability for service providers
... keeping all musician and artist profile subscription free.
b. Commissions derived from third party sales and service facilitation.
c. Sales from the web sites musical shopping mall (more than one sales department is being created and operated by different category providers and sales on behalf of any musician).
d. Linked web sale commissions.
e. Musicians’ booking commission.
f. Design and publishing for needed music media.
g. Web design and development for musicians with related services.
h. Services rendered by the fiddlefax and Johannesburg Youth Orchestra company instrument making and training studio partnership. Offering South African Music schools, and all musicians, the ability to have their entire music instrument inventory serviced and maintained at lower service costs and with greater expertise.
i. Start Production of viable high end musical products for local markets and export for increased capital generation.
j. Offer internationally reputable valuations, insurance and asset financing.
k. Perhaps later on: Advertising revenue once the site grows its user mass.
At this point we are unable to evaluate its full sustainability and load areas because many of the functions and systems in the project are still being setup and defined.
Although we have not yet advertised or actively marketed the site we have already derived income from sales of musical instruments (manually), received orders for instrument repairs and have received bookings for musicians.
The founders of fiddlefax believe that they have identified a niche in an ever expanding music market, one which competitors have not filled in the form of adding qualified services to all sales.
2. The effect on reducing poverty and creating jobs can be measured and seen via the website’s user and activity statistics. And of course revenue. Allowing every new artistic and musical entrant to find a simple way of promoting and selling their services and/or products effectively.
3. The organization is the driving force behind all of the current development and exploration of new partnerships that will sustainably grow the arts and music industries.
4. The impact of this project and its combined efforts is currently undefined by numbers but the excitement that we have observed and received when approaching new partners, artists and musicians has been enough encouragement for us to continue with this exercise despite its current cost implications.
Nominal revenue is beginning to trickle in as we close in on the finishing of the development side of the site’s commercial functions and window dressing.
5. By attaching and augmenting services through skills transfers that are needed in the music industry we hereby have proactively begun drawing in most of the different participants needed to uplift the quality of music and art in South Africa.
The project is holistic from an arts and musical perspective. Everyone is welcome. Everyone is able to sell their desired function or product. Everyone is free to ask for their special needs to be viably effective. Discouraging limitation within our space.
The world, seen through our view, is still a harmonious place.
We have also initiated a Music Schools Administrative System for added benefit. See: partnership with the Johannesburg Youth Orchestra.
6. Innovation is created by the synergies between everything on this musical ship. Fully rigged and ready for exploration we have set our scopes on realising a new com’musical world.
Everything that we have created, are busy creating and are requested to create for the support and sustainability of music is thus defined as best we know how in the latter answers and detailed (in organic construction) on the web site.
A free portal for all music to wave to. Fearing not the song of mermaids; instead fiddling to their tune.
