This is what a producer from a London-based agency told me when I informed her that in order to book our studio for a recording session, her company would have to make full payment in advance. It may well be that every London studio automatically extends 30 days credit terms for agencies for the first booking they make, but we’re NOT in London. We’re in Singapore, a 12 hour flight away.
If an overseas client wants to book our place for a recording, they need to understand that we make the rules. No-one would show up at a Four Seasons Hotel and announce that they’ll pay a month after they’ve checked out, would they? Cos they’d swiftly be shown the door and out on the streets.
For first-time clients, we run our studio following the billing principles of hotels: a client needs to make pre-payment in full before a session, and if they cancel within 24 hours we don’t give a refund, regardless of where they’re from and how they do things there. Once we have a good working relationship, we’re open to extending credit for bookings.