Attwooll Associates transfers to Clare Painter

Attwooll Associates, the digital licensing agency co-founded by the late David Attwooll, has transfered to colleague and rights expert Clare Painter.

The company has become part of Painter's own company, Clare Painter Associates, alongside her existing publishing rights consultancy, on Saturday (1st April). It follows the passing of Attwooll, poet and chair of Liverpool University Press, in 2016 after an illness.

Painter joined multi-platform publisher Helicon in 1994 (which Attwooll launched in 1992) and worked with him for 22 years.

Attwooll Associates is said to be the longest-established digital licensing agency working for publishers in the UK. Since 2002, the agency has represented more than 50 publishers for digital rights, mostly in the fields of reference, educational, professional and non-fiction materials, including text, illustrations, case studies and maps.

Attwooll’s wife, Trish Attwooll, said: "David had first introduced the idea to Clare of her gradually handing over the digital licensing agency part of Attwooll Associates, and they were on track to complete this by end March 2017. It's been my pleasure to continue working towards the completion of these plans with her, and I couldn't be more delighted that someone who David held in as high professional regard should be carrying on the agency under her own banner. That leaves me to reiterate David's sentiments 'I'm sure you'll make an even bigger success of the agency business that we built up together, and I'll be proud to see it flourish.'"

Painter said: “We enjoy connecting publishers with an array of licences that work well for their individual list. Dealing with over 50 e-vendors gives us perspective on the digital licensing market, the different partnerships and business models. It helps to avoid many of the pitfalls.”

She added: “I’m hugely grateful to Trish who has made it possible for this transfer to take place, despite the terribly sad circumstances. And what a privilege for me to carry on working with our lovely friends and colleagues. Like me, they recall David’s ‘glass half full’ approach to life and publishing with warmth and affection.”

Attwooll Associates won the Independent Publishers Guild’s "GBS Award for Services to Independent Publishers" twice, in 2009 and 2011.