Jen Long has been promoted to vice president, deputy publisher of the Gallery Books Group, reporting to Jen Bergstrom. Sareena Kamath will join Zando as associate editor on March 29, reporting to Emily Bell. She was most recently assistant editor at Mulholland Books. Caolinn Douglas will join as executive coordinator and assistant editor on March 29, reporting to Molly Stern and Emily Bell. She was most recently at Bookouture in the UK. Sarah Lyn Rogers has been promoted to associate editor at Soft Skull Press. At Simon & Schuster, Kaiya Muniz has been promoted to national account manager for Barnes […]
Archives for March 2021
Penguin Random House’s Deal to Buy S&S Faces Increased Scrutiny In Both US and UK
Penguin Random House’s pending $2.175 billion deal to acquire Simon & Schuster drew headlines Monday following an announcement from the UK’s Competition & Markets Authority that it launched a merger inquiry last Friday. Of potentially greater significance, however, and reported here exclusively, is that the acquisition is now facing a more detailed level of scrutiny from regulators in the US. Within the last week or so, employees report, the Department of Justice extended its review with a “second request” for more detailed information. Second requests require a far more extensive, and expensive, production of documents and information from the deal […]
Quarto Holds onto Modest Profit Despite 7% Sales Decline in 2020
Quarto reported earnings for the year ended December 31, 2020, with sales of $127 million, down from $136 million, a decline of 7 percent. US sales of $76 million were down by $4 million, as were non-UK sales in Europe of $17.4 million. Operating profit was $9.3 million, up modestly from $8.8 million, due to lower administrative expenses. Pre-tax profit of $6.6 million was up from $3.8 million a year ago, primarily due to lower finance costs after they paid down a portion of their debt. At noon in London, the stock was up more than 20 percent from previous close on the […]
People, Etc.
Following the reorganization of Knopf Random House Canada into Knopf Canada and Random House Canada last December, the company made a number of personnel announcements. At Random House Canada, Craig Pyette and Pamela Murray will remain on the team, both in the role of senior editor. Deirdre Molina stays on as senior managing editor. Sarah Jackson has been promoted to associate editor. Evan Klein will work with the Random House Canada team as imprint sales director, reporting to group sales director Val Gow. At Knopf Canada, Lynn Henry will stay in the role of publishing director. Amanda Betts has been promoted to the […]
Briefs: Barnes & Noble Announces New Tablet, Endeavor Eyes IPO Again
Barnes & Noble will replace their out-of-stock Nook branded tablet with a new model from Lenovo. Like their previous tablet, the new model will be 10.1 inches and priced at $129.99, available as of April 5. After pulling their planned IPO at the last minute in September 2019 and broad layoffs during the pandemic, Endeavor is reported to have filed confidential paperwork for another public offering of shares with the SEC.
Scholastic Trade Up Slightly, While Book Fairs Weigh Heavily on Overall Results
Scholastic reported earnings for the fiscal third quarter ended February 28, with sales of $278 million, a decrease of $96 million, down 26 percent. The decline was mainly due to lost sales in its big book fair business (where sales of $27 million were down 73 percent, a $73 million shortfall) as many schools remained closed. The operating loss excluding one-time items was $(11.9) million, compared to a loss of $(16.8) million a year ago, thanks to “the company’s restructuring and cost saving initiatives, as well as the receipt of certain COVID-related wage and rent subsidies.” One-time expenses included asset […]