BarnesandNoble.com, which has been operating without a chief executive since Marie Toulantis left the position of ceo in August, is getting a new leader. Still with the lesser title of president, William J. Lynch, Jr. will take over on February 2. He was evp of marketing and general manager of HSN.com, and from 2004 to 2008, he was ceo and co-founder of gifts.com. Barnes & Noble ceo Steve Riggio says, “He has
experience in product development, brand marketing, relationship
marketing and direct marketing; he has managed both a technology
start-up company and run large e-commerce organizations.” Sales fell 11 percent in the recent holiday period at BN.com
Release
In other personnel news, Angus Killick joins Kingfisher as associate publisher, reporting to publishing director Martina Challis. He takes control of all US publishing, marketing and sales, based in New York, though Kingfisher as a whole will be run globally from the UK office. He was director of school & library marketing at Disney Book Group.
Vivian Chum has joined Prospect Agency as an agent. She is seeking romance, young adult fiction, literature, thrillers, and science fiction, as well as nonfiction projects.
The Observer reports that Pantheon publishing director Janice Goldklang has been let go after more than 25 years with the company.
At Harper’s magazine, starting with the May 2009 issue Benjamin Moser will take over the monthly New Books column that was written by the late John Leonard.
In the UK, after another difficult year Blackwell’s is consolidating their book retail operation with their library supply business into a single management structure, the Bookseller reports. Blackwell’s commercial director Sue Townsend will leave in April as result of the restructuring. The company says it will “operate a single business with bookshops at its heart and it will be the primary means by which we develop and build relationships with academia and other customers for retail, library and corporate services.”