Michael Carley will retire from Simon & Schuster on April 22 after more than 34 years with the company. He started at S&S in 1980 as a field sales manager covering the Pacific Northwest, and added Amazon to his coverage in 1997, the first at S&S to do so. Carley was also the first S&S rep to sell directly to Costco. In a statement, evp, sales & marketing Michael Selleck said that Carley “has always been a passionate reader and his enthusiasm and dedication have been integral to the success of countless books. Michael has been a joy to work […]
Quarto Rebrands Publishing Divisions and Forecasts Better 2014
Quarto Group announced a series of changes alongside their full-year 2013 results, including a rebrand of its publishing divisions; a joint venture agreement in Brazil with Grupo Nobel; and the consolidation of their challenged display marketing businesses in Australia and New Zealand, into the single Books & Gifts Direct unit. As part of the company’s ongoing “strategic review” and simplification of their organization, both of their publishing divisions will carry the Quarto name. So the Aurum Publishing Group will now be known as Quarto Publishing Group UK, and the Quayside Publishing Group will go forward as Quarto Publishing Group US. Sydney-based creative studio […]
Briefs: Holland’s Polare Bookstores in Bankruptcy; EC Review Delays Anti-Free Book Shipping Bill in France
Dutch bookstore chain Polare declared bankruptcy Monday afternoon. Less than a month ago, Polare temporarily closed its stores and suspended online sales as part of what they said was a “strategic organization” to stem ongoing financial woes. NLTimes reports the bankruptcy was “necessary to pay overdue wages” and that employees are guaranteed to receive their wages for a maximum of 6 weeks, paid by the Employment Insurance Agency (UWV.) Seven of Polare’s stores are also understood to have attracted interest from outside buyers, while five employees of the company’s store in Rotterdam have started a crowdfunding campaign to buy it from […]
People, Etc.
Editor-in-chief of Ace and Roc Books Ginjer Buchanan announced that she will retire in March 2014, exactly 30 years after she was hired by the Berkley Publishing Group, now a division of Penguin Random House. Berkley president and publisher Leslie Gelbman notes: “During her thirty years with Ace and Roc, Ginjer was essential in growing our science fiction and fantasy list and launching the careers of several bestselling authors. Her love for the genre and books in general and dedication to her authors is unparalleled, and she’s a key reason Ace/Roc is one of the preeminent science fiction-fantasy publishers.” Cara Bedick has joined […]
People, Etc.
Nathan Rostron has joined Restless Books as director of marketing. Previously he was an editor at Bookish. Former Bertelsmann ceo Thomas Middelhoff is leaving the board of the New York Times Company, where he has served as a director since 2003. The late Ali Gunn’s company Gunn Media said in a statement, “We intend to keep her business well cared for, as she would have expected. Any current contracts with Gunn Media will be treated as business as usual, whilst outstanding negotiations will be put on hold, for the time being.” The Bookseller says that queries should be directed to Douglas […]
People
Catherine Luttinger has rejoined Darhansoff & Verrill as an agent focusing primarily on science fiction and fantasy (all sub-genres). She is also interested in representing historical fiction, thrillers, horror, scientific non-fiction, and YA. At Counterpoint, Megan Fishmann has been promoted to publicity director. Christian Waters has been named director of marketing and new business development at Osprey Publishing. Caitlin Kirkpatrick has been promoted to assistant editor at Chronicle. Patsy Jones will join Hachette Nashville on February 24 as vp, marketing. Previously she served as vp, sales & marketing at Anderson Merchandisers. Amy L. Hayden has joined Seven Stories Press as […]