A frustrated Bob Theil is the first to jump ship taking the Signature record label with him:

“Signature Blossoms With Pressing Plant; Skedding Big Bands
NEW YORK, June 2. -Latest of the small record companies to try to ease into big time is Signature Records. The indie diskery, under the guidance of Bob Thiel, was formerly a very smalll outfit whose platters were pressed and released by Asch Records on a royalty basis. Expansion, which is being financed by several big business men with an eye toward tapping the disk gold mine, include alarge pressing plant already open for biz. Included in the new set-up is Signature Distributing Corporation, located. In the same building, which is geared to distrib new platters thru a chain of 16 major wholesalers.”
[Billboard, 9 June 1945, p.33]