After six straight quarters of “core” declines, HarperCollins finished their fiscal year with a better fourth quarter, boosted on the topline by an extra week of results. Sales of $433 million were up 11 percent overall (or $43 million), and EBITDA improved to $50 million (compared to $33 million a year ago). But this was a 14-week reporting period, and a 53-week fiscal year; the extra week accounted for $19 million of the gain, with acquisitions (e.g. buying out international Harlequin joint venture partners) comprising another $12 million of the sales increase on an adjusted basis — leaving about $12 million in sales improvement, about 3 […]
Archives for August 2016
PRH Will Consolidate Penguin Employees In Broadway Building in Early 2019
Penguin Random House ceo Markus Dohle announced to staff in a letter that Penguin employees currently working at 375 Hudson Street and 345 Hudson Street will move uptown in early 2019 as the company takes over “essentially” the entire office space at 1745 Broadway. (The building has a residential component comprising the upper floors, in addition to the 25-story office condo.) Aside from the operational efficiencies and collegiality, Dohle says the company will save “approximately $20 million annually” in expenses after consolidating. Acknowledging having told employees previously “that there were no plans in the works” to consolidate the two groups, Dohle writes […]
People: Hugh Van Dusen Retires, and More
Longtime Harper vp, executive editor Hugh Van Dusen will retire from the company on August 30 “after an astonishing 60 years with HarperCollins.” He first joined what was then Harper & Brothers on June 21, 1956 and helped launch Torch Books, later becoming closely involved with the Perennial paperback imprint and rising to his current position in 1990. Among van Dusen’s authors were Jacques Barzun, Fernand Braudel, Robert Bly, James Hillman, Robert Remini, Trevor Corson, and Harper Lee (including her estate). “It may sound too eccentric or romantic to be believed, but there have been very few mornings in the […]
Quarto Acquires becker&meyer
In advance of its half-year results releasing tomorrow, Quarto announced that it has acquired Bellevue, WA-based publisher becker&meyer! from the McEvoy Group for an initial $9.8 million. The acquisition price may also increase due to a working capital adjustment payment capped at $1m and further deferred contingent consideration of up to $1.25 million, dependent on the performance of becker& meyer’s SmartLabs toy division business in 2018 and 2019. Quarto stated that the acquisition will increase its children’s publishing revenues by more than 30 percent and will bump up Quarto’s US revenue to 45 percent of the company’s overall sales. becker&mayer reported […]
Another Oprah Pick for September
Following quickly on Oprah Winfrey’s book club pick of Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad — which was moved up from a planned September release at Winfrey’s request — is another Oprah selection, scheduled for September 6 publication. The WSJ wrote about it online this morning before metadata was officially posted on bookselling sites, and “a spokesman for the Oprah Winfrey Network said she couldn’t confirm that another selection was coming in September.” But major sites now display info for the pick. The book is published by Macmillan (most distribution metadata lists St. Martin’s), runs 272 pages, and has a US […]
People: Kuyper Exits BISG, and More
Mark Kuyper has resigned as executive director of the Book Industry Study Group, effective immediately, to “explore other areas of interest.” Kuyper joined the BISG just over a year in June 2015, relocating to New York after serving as president and ceo of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. A search is being conducted to find a replacement. “We wish Mark the very best in all his future endeavors,” said BISG board chair Tara Catogge in the announcement. “As a longtime board member and friend of BISG, Mark will be greatly missed.” Kuyper added: “I am proud of what we accomplished during […]