As long expected and feared, UK wholesaler Bertram’s has gone into bankruptcy administration and is well down the road of liquidating. The “majority” of its 459 employees have been fired effectively immediately “with a small number retained to manage the winding down of operations.” Some sales of the parts are in already in process, including dumping of any of the remaining inventory that they can, further hurting publishers who are owed money: “Sales have been agreed in principle with two unconnected parties for the tangible assets and unencumbered stock of Bertram Trading Limited and for the intangible assets of Education […]
International News
Briefs
Legal Agents Beth Phelan and Kelly Van Sant and author Isabel Sterling received cease & desist letters from an attorney representing agent Dawn Frederick at Red Sofa Literary after speaking out about Frederick’s response to protestors in St. Paul. On May 28, Frederick posted on Twitter that she had called the police about an incident near her home (the tweet has since been deleted). Subsequently, three agents, including Van Sant resigned from Red Sofa. Phelan, Van Sant, and Sterling wrote in an open letter that Frederick “demanded that we delete our respective posts regarding Dawn’s actions and further, publish retractions […]
Billionaire Arnault Buys Stake In Arnaud Lagardere’s Holding Company
Lagardere has enlisted another billionaire to keep the company and its controlling owner solvent during the pandemic. Longtime family friend Bernard Arnault’s investment firm Groupe Arnault has agreed to buy 25 percent of Lagardère Capital & Management, the holding company of Arnaud Lagardere. Arnault is reportedly paying less than €100 million for the stake. LCM owns a 7.3 percent take in Lagardere, but has control of the company through its corporate structure. “The move shores up its finances after LCM’s debts exceeded the value” of those shares, Reuters report. LCM owes as much as €200 million to Crédit Agricole. Activist […]
Kobo Extends Work From Home Through End of Year
CEO of Kobo Michael Tamblyn shared via Twitter on Thursday the company’s plan to let employees in its Toronto headquarters, as well as in its Dublin, Darmstadt, and Taipei offices, work from home for the rest of 2020. The move is in line with other major technology companies, and perhaps provides a glimpse toward what might be publishing’s new normal. “Back in March, making the call to go remote for *2 weeks* seemed momentous,” tweeted Tamblyn. “Now, extending 7 months seems bizarrely normal.” How large publishers in big cities will repurpose offices that were not designed for social distancing is […]
Bertrams Confirmed Up For Sale, Ahead of Bankruptcy Filing
In line with previous reports, the Bookseller reports — based on an ad submitted to the publication — that UK wholesaler Bertrams (and its subsidiaries Dawson Books and Education Umbrella) has been put up for sale. It’s being offered by Middleton Barton Valuation (MBV), a restructuring firm. Earlier in the month, the Sunday Times had reported that parent company Aurelius was preparing to appoint bankruptcy administrators for the wholesaler.
Walker/Candlewick Sold to Trustbridge Partners
Walker Books Group, whose divisions include Candlewick Press in the US, has been sold to China-based Trustbridge Global Media (a unit of private equity firm Trustbridge Partners). Walker had been the largest employee- and creator-owned publishing company. (The ownership had included more than 75 employees, and over 150 authors and illustrators.) In recent years, Trustbridge acquired Peachtree Publishers in Atlanta (2018) and Holiday House (2016), and they partnered with Chronicle Books for the Chronicle Bridge imprint in China (and France’s Bayard for a Bayard Bridge imprint). The deal closed on or about May 7 according to a UK Companies House […]