Carlo Montali, the Editorial Director of World Picture News, an editorial photo agency based in New York, will launch WPN in Europe this year, most likely based out of Paris. He is looking to partner with an entrepreneur with background in the news picture industry and a solid ambition for himself and the agency. Although i don’t know personnally WPN, that sounds like a good and challenging opportunity. The industry is reinventing itself and you need a good amount of passion and tenacity.
Frederic Neema whom i met several years ago is an award winning photographer now in Los Angeles. He got Carlo and I together. Frederic drives his carreer with talent combining editorial and corporate assignments as a freelance and as part Gamma / Eyedea. Carlo created Reflex News Agency in New York City in 1998 and sold the agency to World Picture Network (WPN) back in December 2006.
WpN has grown into one of the leading independent agencies in the US, employing two dozen professionals and supporting hundreds of represented and contributing photographers around the world. WPN also represents over 40 US and European newspapers, the United Nations, the Camerapix/Mohammad Amin archive, the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA), St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, Xinhua News Agency, and have created a notable civil rights archive from numerous contributors.Their website is a resource for over 3,000 registered image-buying clients and receives over 20,000 unique visitors and 500,000 page views per month. In 2006 the agency completed over 4,000 image license transactions and well over 1,000 assignment days. (Source CM)
Here is how Carlo described the mission.
The agency would have two missions at first, extending to three in the medium term.
First, act as agent on the French market and throughout Europe, selling the WPN material;
Second, act as a catalyst to attract European material to inject into the WPN network;
Last but not least, I would like WPN Europe to get an early start in captioning/keywording material downloaded from the WPN ftp site. I’d be ready to send one of our photo editors for a 2/3 months mission to Paris, in order to show the local team how to operate.
Ideally, the European agency will open in partnership with a local entrepreneur, on terms to be negotiated. WPN provides content, technical assistance, network of clients and photographers. The partner should be well versed in business operations.
If you’re interested, contact carlo.montali@worldpicturenews.com
PS. Keep me posted – i seldomly act as a headhunter!