I'D RATHER BE WORKING WITH PASSION DISTRIBUTION
June 2008: Following the launch of Passion Distribution Limited the independent distributor has confirmed two key hires. Emma Simpkins joins as Director of Sales and will be a key member of the senior management team responsible for generating revenue across Passion Distribution’s portfolio of content and overseeing the sales team. Reporting to Simpkins will be Claudia Zell as European Sales & Acquisitions Manager and Carolyn Ozkoseoglu as Pac Rim Sales & Acquisitions Manager whose appointment was announced 2 weeks ago. Simpkins and Zell will join Passion Distribution ahead of MIPCOM 2008. Emma Simpkins first partnered with Miles in Autumn 2005 as iD Distribution’s Sales Director, moving from Beyond Distribution where she had been VP, International Sales. An accomplished Sales Director who was paramount in driving iD’s business in the UK and European territories, Simpkins soon joined the senior management team as Head of Sales and worked closely with Miles for two years as they built a highly regarded sales team and strong relationships with broadcasters and producers worldwide. Miles and Simpkins will be aiming to create their previous success at Passion Distribution joined by a team with over 30 years combined distribution experience. BBC Worldwide alumni Claudia Zell joined Simpkins at iD last year from Parthenon Entertainment where she had successfully expanded their business into Central Europe. At iD, multilingual Zell became a key team member, establishing fruitful new business relationships in Europe and Latin America and brought the company’s first German format deal into production. At Passion Distribution she will also concentrate on the acquisition of European programming. "In the past there has been a constant one way flow of strong US and UK content selling well into Europe. But there is also so much great international programming that never finds its way to a wider audience. At Passion Distribution we will source and evaluate European programming and test its viability for the international market." Miles says: "I am going to be working with a very talented and highly regarded sales team. Together we have delivered tremendous results in the past and I cannot believe I am fortunate enough to be able to work with them again. We have so much new energy and passion and to have the luxury to already know and respect each other and to choose to work with each other again says a huge amount. We all have the passion needed to take this company much further!” Simpkins says: “Passion Distribution may be new, yet the team’s stellar reputation in the global marketplace is already well established. Sally, with her strong producer relationships particularly in the US, is assembling an exciting portfolio with vast international appeal and I look forward to furthering the success of these independent producers and building their value in the international marketplace along with my experienced sales team.” Zell says: “I enjoy a challenge, that's why I originally joined iD and Sally. With her amazing relationships in the US and the UK she brought thousands of programming hours to iD. I'm convinced she can do the same and better with Passion Distribution. And she has also put together a winning team of highly specialised sales people that share her passion for TV Distribution.”
