Barnes & Noble chairman Len Riggio spoke with the NYT as well as the WSJ (which we covered on Friday). We know what you think about how these reports sound, worried that the bookseller is “mired in a leadership crisis” and that the turnaround now rests on Riggio’s “‘5,000’ ideas for how to lure customers back to Barnes & Noble.” But as bad as these interviews might sound to you, financial markets are unfazed: The stock inched up Friday and again this morning. (That might also be telling us something is underway that we don’t know about yet.) The NYT […]
Archives for August 2018
People, Etc.
At Hachette Book Group, Todd McGarity has been promoted to the new, expanded role of vp, business development. He will now “lead HBG’s growth through acquisition efforts,” while continuing to run the client services (distribution) business. Nobel laureate V.S. Naipaul, 85, died on August 11 at his home in London. Born in Trinidad to emigrants from India, he authored numerous works of fiction and nonfiction, including A House for Mr. Biswas and In A Free State, which won the Booker in 1971. When he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2001, the Swedish Academy described him as “a […]
Riggio and Mantel Try to Mollify Publishers; CEO Search Could Go to Year-End
Barnes & Noble’s executive chairman and largest shareholder Len Riggio had some private meetings with top publishing executives in the wake of the abrupt dismissal of ceo Demos Parneros, the WSJ reports. Chief merchandising officer Timothy Mantel joined Riggio at the meetings, and he is seen as “on the rise at the company, the people said.” (Remember that the last ceo search was not a real search at all; in fact all but one of the recent ceos has been an internal promotion: Parneros was hired in as chief operating officer while the search was underway, and then promoted to ceo. […]
People, Etc.
MacGregor Literary, run by Chip MacGregor, now operates as MacGregor & Luedeke. Amanda Luedeke, who has worked with MacGregor for ten years, becomes a partner in the agency. Barnes & Noble filed a general release and waiver with the SEC outlining the termination terms for retiring chief digital officer Fred Argir. (who receives cash severance of $500,000 over the next year, along with other benefits). Bookselling Hudson Group has won the contract for the expanded and “reimagined” Terminal B at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, which will open in stages beginning this fall. That contract includes partnering with New York bookstore McNally Jackson, […]
Harper Has Big Gains In Sales, Profits
News Corp reported fourth quarter results on Thursday, with HarperCollins turning in a strong quarter, recording sales of $490 — up $83 million from the same period a year ago. Along with the higher sales, book publishing EBITDA was much higher too, at $71 million, compared to $39 million a year ago. One big, profitable boost was $28 million of revenue from the sublicensing agreement for J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, in which Amazon Studios acquired global television rights. That’s the “advance” for the rights, and the primary expected cash benefit from the agreement for the foreseeable […]
Treasury Department Proposals Could Give High-Earning Authors, Agents Benefit of New Tax Cut for Businesses
The Treasury Department released proposed regulations to clarify and codify how the big tax cut (aka the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) applies to owners of sole proprietorships, partnerships, trusts, and S corporations. By early interpretations, high-earning authors would qualify for the new 20 percent deduction of qualified business income, and it appears as if literary agents would be eligible as well. (Two important caveats: These rules are still proposals, they are not final yet; and everyone will need to examine their own situation with their own tax professional.) As the NYT notes, it “probably means a windfall for authors […]