FROM THE TOP SARAH YULE I ORANGE
INTERVIEWED BY KATIE KAILUS
HOW DO YOU START YOUR DAY? I’d love to say I start it with a gym session, but I save that for the weekend when I do like to do a spin class or lift some weights if I get time. Most days during the week, I’m up, showered and out of the house before 6:30 a.m. I have about a 90-minute commute to the of- fice, so I usually spend the first 45–60 minutes listening to an audio book. I was quite a late adopter of audio books, as I really enjoy the physical format, but I’ve learned to really enjoy being read to while I travel now. I only read non-fiction, but I do enjoy a variety of topics from business and economics, to nature and science. I just finished “Fluke” by Dr Brian Klaas. It’s all about chance and dealing with uncertainty — it feels very apt. For the last 30–45 minutes of my journey, I enjoy listen- ing to BBC Radio6 Music. The breakfast show does a “Cloudbusting” mix every morning — something I really relate to, as one of my sayings when I see someone is feeling a little forlorn, grey and glum is, “Remember that above the clouds, the sun is always still shining.” I LOVE THAT SENTIMENT. CAN YOU GIVE READERS A BRIEF BACKGROUND ON YOU AND YOUR HISTORY IN THE MI INDUSTRY? I began my career at the age of 15, securing two weeks’ work experience at a band called ‘The Levellers’ studio in Brighton, England. I went on to study music technology and sound engineering before getting a BA in sound technology at Paul McCartney’s Liverpool Insti- tute for Performing Arts (LIPA). After university, I got a job as the first outside sales employee at Dolphin Music, an online retailer based in Liverpool. My aim was just to work there until I’d saved up enough money to buy my own recording equipment. What I discovered though, was a whole other side of the industry. The side that made the incredible tools I’d been using in the studio. In 2005, I joined TL Audio and almost immediately got into international sales. While there, I designed the award-winning “Fat Track Tube Production Suite.” I still think it’s a great little product. It’s so cool to be able to design the stuff you’d love to use yourself — as there’s a good chance someone else will love it, too. After more than five years at TL Audio, I moved to international sales manager at InMusic Brands, looking after Europe, Middle East, Africa and India. When I joined, I was focused on the three pro brands they had at the time — Akai Pro, Alesis and Numark. By the time I left four and a half years later, I was looking after 11 brands within the group.
Post InMusic, I joined East London startup Roli as head of sales, architecting the early partnerships and global go-to-market strategies for their music-creation hardware, and setting up the global distribution network for the MI channel, CE channel and Apple. While at Roli, I became aware of my lack of commercial qualifications and want - ed to fix that. I received a scholarship, and the company gave me every other Friday off to study an Exec MBA with Warwick University at the London campus. After four-and-a-half years with Roli, I was headhunted to join as sales director EMEA at Audio-Technica Europe. My main focus was on simplifying structure and helping to unify the team and the strategy, especially as the organi- zation moved towards a more digital-savvy and customer- centric approach. I began to be fascinated about how important the whole journey of sound from creation to consumption is for all companies involved in audio. So, when the opportunity arose, I happily took up the challenge with British HiFi Manufacturer KEF as commercial director. I subsequently progressed to marketing director and then general manager of the KEF Music Gallery London, leading the overall launch, functionality, partnerships and operations. I joined Orange Amplification in January, and I cur- rently lead strategic development and cross-functional collaboration to drive the brand’s next phase of growth. WOW, YOU’VE HAD QUITE THE CAREER TRAJECTORY. HOW DID YOU COME TO JOIN ORANGE? Although I’ve been aware of Cliff Cooper all my work- ing career, we were only introduced through mutual in- dustry friends a couple of years ago. In that period, my name was recommended to him by another leader in the business whom we both admire. Cliff then approached me directly to discuss his interest in me joining the team. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU TO LEAD ONE OF THE BIGGEST AMP BRANDS IN THE INDUSTRY? I feel very proud. Orange has such a unique story, and I feel like we’re one of the only remaining MI brands that is still authentically a British-owned, family run, independent business. That’s a challenge in terms of the size of businesses we compete against, but I also think it can be a huge advantage in our ability to re- main focused on who we are, why we do what we do and retain agility. These first few months have been a complete whirlwind — and I’ve loved every second if
28 I MUSIC INC. I JUNE 2025
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