Hilary Duff pacts with former Olsen managers

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From Olsen-Twins.org:

Hilary Duff pacts with former Olsen managers

LOS ANGELES: Teen screen and music sensation Hilary Duff has signed a management pact with the executives who helped turn twin pop icons Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen into household names.

Robert Thorne, former CEO of the Olsen sisters' Dualstar Entertainment venture, has launched a new management firm, the Beverly Hills-based Robert Thorne Co, with Duff as his first major signing.

Thorne's company also is partnered with lawyer Greg Redlitz, who worked alongside Thorne for years as executive vice president at Dualstar.

Duff's recruitment of Thorne as part of her management team comes at a time when the 17-year-old star is beginning the transition from her "'tween" persona as "Lizzie McGuire" – the Disney Channel series that made her a celebrity – into more adult-oriented acting roles.

Duff also has a promising musical career with two successful albums under her belt and another one due this summer.

"Robert is just the person to help me write the next chapter as an entertainer and a businesswoman," Duff said in a statement.

Thorne and Redlitz also bring to Duff's team an expertise in the world of retailing and licensed merchandise, having spearheaded numerous deals that turned Olsen-branded merchandise into a $1 billion-plus Juggernaut for Dualstar.

Duff already has her own line of apparel, health and beauty products, among other licensed products, but there is ample opportunity to expand Duff's business ventures with top retailers and manufacturers, Thorne said.

"The first thing that we have to do is ensure that everything Hilary does is the highest quality that it can be," Thorne said. "And she has a wonderful opportunity to maintain high visibility through all of the major media companies that want to work with her."

Among Duff's upcoming feature projects are Universal's "Perfect Man," set for release in July, and "Material Girls," co-starring her younger sister, Haylie Duff.

Duff's management entourage will continue to include her mother, Susan Duff, Susan and Cami Curtis of Curtis Talent Management and Andre Recke of Boo Management on the music and touring side and attorney Kevin Kelly of Gendler & Kelly.

Thorne and Redlitz were understood to have received a multimillion-dollar buyout from the Olsen sisters as part of their exit from Dualstar earlier this year.

As the two began scouting new management opportunities a few weeks ago, Duff was at the top of their list, in part because Susan Duff had contacted them a few years ago about becoming involved in Hilary Duff's career, Thorne said.