Third Man Records, the Detroit-founded independent music company run by Jack White, has signed a global distribution agreement with Secretly Distribution.
Under the agreement, Secretly Distribution will handle physical and digital distribution, retail marketing, and technology infrastructure for all upcoming Third Man Records releases, the companies announced Thursday (September 18).
The first albums under the new arrangement will be records from Snõõper and The Belair Lip Bombs.
Founded by White in 2001, Third Man, now based in Nashville, has built offices, pressing facilities and retail locations in Detroit and London. The Nashville location houses a record store, label offices, distribution center, photo studio, and what the company calls “the world’s only live venue with direct-to-acetate recording capabilities.”
Detroit’s Cass Corridor facility includes a vinyl pressing plant that has operated for a decade, a record store and an in-store performance stage, while London’s The Blue Basement maintains retail and live venue operations.
“With their iconic roster and passionate team, we’re excited to amplify Third Man’s global reach across both physical retail and digital landscapes.”
Rich Thane, Secretly Distribution
The deal adds Third Man to Secretly Distribution’s expanding roster of label partners, which includes Sacred Captured Tracks, Run For Cover, Rhymesayers, Chrysalis, A24 Music, Merge Records, Joyful Noise, Father/Daughter, Big Crown, Colemine, Jazz Is Dead, Oh Boy Records and more. The distributor also works with its own affiliated labels including Dead Oceans, drink sum wtr, Ghostly International, Jagjaguwar, Secretly Canadian and the Numero Group.
Rich Thane, Associate Director of Artist & Label Strategy, Secretly Distribution, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome Third Man Records into the Secretly Distribution family of label partners.”
“As two fiercely independent, artist-first companies, our shared values and ethos make this partnership a perfect fit. With their iconic roster and passionate team, we’re excited to amplify Third Man’s global reach across both physical retail and digital landscapes.”
Ben Swank, Co-Founder, Third Man Records, added: “Third Man is very happy to be welcomed into the Secretly Distribution family. We have so much respect for their work; they lead creatively with artists’ and labels’ vision at the forefront.”
“Third Man is very happy to be welcomed into the Secretly Distribution family. We have so much respect for their work; they lead creatively with artists’ and labels’ vision at the forefront.”
Ben Swank, Third Man Records
“We’re excited about Third Man’s future working alongside the Secretly Distribution team, and proud to be included in their roster of legendary and heavyweight independent labels.”
The partnership with Third Man comes as Secretly Distribution recently announced a global deal with vinyl specialist Org Music, renewed deals with Asthmatic Kitty Records, and pursued a global deal with Geoff Barrow and Redg Weeks’ Invada Records. In September last year, Secretly and independent music company Beggars Group entered into a strategic partnership with Cargo Records in the UK to launch a distribution company called Cargo Independent Distribution.
Most recently in July, Secretly partnered with New York-headquartered EVEN, which specializes in enabling ‘superfans’ of artists to access exclusive benefits from their favorite act.
The deal between Secretly and Third Man follows a decade of vinyl sales growth, creating opportunities for labels with pressing capabilities like Third Man.
Sales of vinyl records grew for an 18th consecutive year in the US in 2024, generating $1.4 billion, which was up 7% YoY and marked the highest vinyl sales tally since 1984, according to the RIAA‘s 2024 year-end report.
However, in the first half of 2025, vinyl sales, which have been a rare bright spot for the industry over the past decade, fell 1% YoY in both units (22.1m sold in H1 2025 versus 22.3m in H1 last year), and in dollar value terms, to $456.9 million.
Total physical revenue declined 5.9% to $576.4 million in the United States in the first half of 2025.
US Customs and Border Protection recently confirmed that physical music formats like vinyl records, CDs and cassettes are exempt from new tariffs that took effect on August 29 because they are classified as “information materials” exempt from trade restrictions.
Music Business Worldwide
