www.TIMWAINE.com

HI, I’M TIM AND I’M LOOKING FOR A JOB

I’ve worked in the world of entertainment and brand partnerships for 14 years. Before that I thought I was a DJ but I wasn’t actually very good and realised I needed to make some money elsewhere… 

So what have I done since this realisation? I’ve delivered best in class brand marketing through the power of culture. I’ve worked with some of the biggest global brands and some of the biggest global stars, right through to those who will inevitably one day take their place.

I’ve worked in organisations that have offices all around the world, to setting up my own company in a small flat in Streatham, single-handedly delivering brand partnerships in four continents.

I’ve fought some monstrous battles over the years. Some I’ve won. Some I’ve lost.

I’m always learning. I’m always curious. I’m increasingly resilient.

Due to being recently laid off, I’m now on the hunt for something new.

Read my story below.

Defected records

I joined Defected Records in my early 20s way back in 2011, doing all things licensing and publishing. This was a global role for a global business.

I brokered their first major sync deal with Tesco (I know, weird one but it actually worked really well), whilst generating £’0000s of licensing revenue year on year. I secured exclusive and non-exclusive deals with majors and independents from N. America, to Europe and Asia, networking as I went and began the journey of building up my black book of contacts.

I’d have liked to have done more A&R but if I had got near to that then the label probably would have folded long ago. Instead it’s gone from strength to strength.

I got a couple of licensing credits in Ministry of Sound compliations and that made my parents really proud.

For the most part, I loved my 5 years there. I was young. I was working in dance music and that was all I had loved (and still do love) for so many years. I got to go to loads of cool parties. I got to go to Ibiza every year to party. I could turn up hungover or sleep deprived and know many others would be in the same boat. But we worked hard because we were passionate about what we did and I made the best of friends.

👉 That’s me in Ibiza. Bit sunburnt.

👇👇👇 Networking with Iddy + the events we networked at…

BENLabs

I got headhunted by BENLabs (previously BEN Group and before that Greenlight and before that, Corbis Entertainment - all these name changes happened in my 5 years of working there). I worked with global brands, major A-list talent and world-renowned IP. I went to Florida with Buzz Aldrin for a Quaker Oats ad (the moon was too expensive), and finally felt close to being James Bond on a Vodafone and Daniel Craig campaign. I recreated The Wizard of Oz and Ghostbusters with Halifax and also delivered the largest global sync deal the company had ever had with Jackie Wilson ‘Higher & Higher’ and Colgate-Palmolive, which wasn’t even a re-record. That’s how mega it was.

With a brilliant team (in fact everyone I worked with closely were incredible people), I worked across a seismic global product placement deal with Pernod Ricard and 20+ of their brands. That deal was doubled in value at renewal. We were really proud of that.  

I worked with music talent from J-Lo to Headie One with brands from Chivas Regal to Durex (one thing can lead to another, right?). And whilst all of these were amazing experiences and I am so proud of the work I did and the teams I did it with, I’d had an idea. I wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone and decided to take the plunge of setting up my own shop.

👉 Me in Hollywood

👇 Florida with Buzz

👇👇👇 Probably the best work trip ever + excellent Xmas party secret Santa t-shirt

INDEPENDENT CULTURE

I started Independent Culture, a music and brand partnership agency, to shine a spotlight on the relatively untapped world of independent music and the value that can bring to brands. It felt like no one else had thought about what independent music could do for a brand. I knew I’d spotted a real gap in the market. Every past client I had worked with just focused on the majors, with the same talent being pitched over and over again. So I thought I would try something different and help join those dots.

I started completely from scratch and secured business with approaching 20 brands across a multitude of sectors including Highsnobiety, Jameson, Luno, and Champion, delivering experiential activations, music videos, social content and events, in London, Paris, LA, Mexico and Lagos and most importantly, I got to work with some seriously smart, genuine, creative and talented musicians. But the best part? I gave a proportion of the company’s profits to up and coming musicians to go out and be creative. I helped Jianbo deliver ‘Mongkok Madness’, Qazi and Qazi tour Europe and Charo Galura deliver an audio-visual EP that addressed all the hate she and the Asian community recieved as a result of the pandemic.

Then 2023 came, the financial crisis hit hard and it was a massive struggle. A huge amount of promise became unfulfilled. It could have been a gamechanger of a year. I had deals worth in excess of £1M+ all but signed and yet one by one, each deal fell apart due to reasons outside of my control. I then personally struggled. My confidence had been really knocked. After much effort to make it work, I decided to close the business in the autumn of 2023, became heavily depressed and didn’t really get out of bed for a few months. I felt catastrophically low and useless.

Independent Culture is hands down my proudest career moment to date. I loved it but when the going isn’t good, it’s brutal running a business solo. If you’re thinking of starting something, my advice would be to get a co-founder.

👉 Infamousizak x Chivas

👉 👉 Independent Culture Sizzle

👇 On set with Giggs, Rimzee and Tiggs da Author

👇👇 Highsnobiety x Paris Fashion Week X D33J

👇👇👇 Luno x Jianbo

CRUSH

Having got myself back on track and seeing the light again, I was so pleased that in March 2024 I joined Crush as their Business Director. My focus was predominately on scaling the company within the Unilever portfolio of brands, driving incremental revenue with key and current clients, whilst also generating new business with other brands in the FMCG world.

I got to work on the great new Lynx Fine Fragrance campaign and delivered some amazing content with the Beta Squad guys.

And whilst I loved working there, it didn’t work out. I worked incredibly hard but for anyone that has kept an eye on what’s happening at Unilever, you’ll recognise how tough this gig could be. Right job, wrong time. I was let go after 5 months. There’s no bad blood. Crush is a great organisation with a great culture but business is business.

that is my story so far.

If you’ve read all of this, thank you. Sincerely, I mean that. You might just be bored at your desk and if I’ve removed that boredom for a couple of minutes, then great.

If you want to see my CV and put all of what you’ve read into something hopefully more professional, please click on the contact tab above.

👉 Lynx x Beta Squad

👇 Me and my dog Jasper, looking for a new job