Most labels start because someone has records they want out and nowhere obvious to put them. That is a good enough reason. What sinks them in year two is never the music, it is the admin nobody set up in year one.
This is the order we have seen work, from labels we have built sites for and from the ones that quietly stopped after four releases.
Pick a name you can still own in five years
Before anything else, check the name is free on Bandcamp, on Instagram, as a domain, and in Discogs. A label that has to rename after its third release loses every link and every mention it earned.
Search the name with the word "records" attached and see what already exists. Two labels with near-identical names is a permanent tax on both of them.
Set the catalogue numbering on day one
Three or four letters plus a number, zero padded, is the convention for a reason. It sorts correctly, it reads unambiguously on a sleeve, and distributors and Discogs both expect it.
Decide now whether digital-only releases share the sequence with vinyl or get their own prefix. Changing your mind at release twelve means a catalogue that no longer sorts.
- Pick a prefix of 3 to 4 characters that is not already in use on Discogs.
- Zero pad the number so 001 through 999 sort correctly.
- Assign the number when the release is confirmed, not when it comes out.
- Never reuse a number, even for a cancelled release.
Agree the splits in writing before the first record
The conversation nobody wants is much cheaper before there is money than after. Who owns the master. What percentage the artist gets and of what, gross or net of distribution. Who pays for mastering and artwork. What happens if the artist wants the track back in three years.
This does not need a lawyer for a digital single, but it does need to be written down and agreed by email at minimum. Almost every label falling apart that we have watched fell apart here.
Choose distribution, and read the exclusivity clause
A digital distributor gets your releases onto Spotify, Beatport, Apple Music and the rest, and takes a percentage or a flat fee. The two things to check before signing are the term length and whether it is exclusive, because an exclusive multi-year deal on your first release limits everything after it.
Bandcamp needs no distributor and pays fastest. Many labels run Bandcamp themselves and use a distributor only for the streaming platforms.
Do not press vinyl for the first release
Plants take months, minimums are typically 300 copies, and the money is gone before anyone has heard the record. Release digitally, find out whether anyone wants it, then press the one that sells.
If you press, budget for storage and shipping, which are the costs first-time labels forget entirely.
Open demos deliberately, not by accident
A public email address on a Linktree becomes an unmanageable folder within about two months. Decide whether you are open permanently, open in windows, or closed, and say so plainly. Producers respect a clear no far more than silence.
Whatever you choose, submissions need to land somewhere with a status attached, so the same track is not listened to three times and a yes is not lost.
What to spend nothing on in year one
- Merch, before you know if anyone wants the records.
- Paid promotion, before you have a mailing list of any size.
- A custom shop, when Bandcamp already handles tax, delivery and payouts.
- A logo redesign, when you have released two records.
Common questions
- Do I need to register a company to start a label?
- Not to release music. You will need one to open a business bank account, sign a distribution deal in a company name and handle tax properly, and most labels do it around the point money starts moving. Take local advice rather than copying another country’s answer.
- How many releases before it looks like a real label?
- Four or five with a consistent visual identity and a clear point of view. Consistency reads as intent far more than volume does.
- Should the label have a website or just Bandcamp?
- Bandcamp sells. A website is where a promoter finds your roster, press finds images, and a producer finds the demo form. They do different jobs, and the site is the one you control.