Waterstone’s Rises In Europe it’s the season of brief trading updates. From the UK, Waterstone’s parent HMV reported that sales for the past 16 weeks (through to late April) rose an encouraging 6.6 percent on a same-store sales basis. Overall sales rose 3.3 percent. (Breakout figures were not provided.) Waterstone’s managing director Gerry Johnson tells the Bookseller, “We have definitely stopped the decline and we are now growing,” citing a “very strong performance” from books in particular. He added, “I think the whole base of our strategic programme is coming through and we are seeing very good results. We are […]

Bertelsmann Updates on Quarter, as Executive Sends New Signals In a short first quarter trading update, Bertelsmann disclosed that sales fell almost 4 percent to 4.2 billion euros, as net income turned positive again at 35 million euros. Operating EBIT, the company’s preferred measure of profits, rose 9.6 percent from the same period a year ago, to 217 million euros. Aside from losses due to currency exchange, the only other negative factor cited in the short report — which does not provide any breakouts by division — is that “revenues were also impacted by declines in sales of physical recordings […]

Lagardere Just Above Flat for the Quarter In a first quarter trading update, Lagardere announced that sales in their publishing division were “virtually unchanged, rising by just 0.5 percent” to 413 million euros. Hachette Book Group USA is credited with a “strong pace of growth” and the UK had “robust growth in adult and children’s fiction,” with gains in those areas eroded by drops in both the dollar and the pound against the euro. Meanwhile, in France sales fell, in part due to a “weak market in Literature,” though “illustrated books performed well,” as did book sales in Spain. Looking […]

If They Do It As you surely know by now, the NYT’s man in Frankfurt Mark Landler has echoed — without attribution — the story last month from Germany’s Manager Magazine (which is partially owned by Bertelsmann’s Gruner + Jahr) that we cited here previously suggesting that Peter Olson will step down as ceo of Random House shortly. The Times puts the timetable at “in the next few weeks,” with one unnamed executive saying “It’s just a question of working out his deal.” A source for the WSJ “cautioned that no final decision had been made but said Mr. Olson […]

Today’s Announcements: Stage Set for Prince; Harper Confirms Video Program Atria has announced publication this fall of pop star Prince’s 21 NIGHTS, a multi-media volume promising a glimpse into his life, lyrics, and mystique, constructed as a photographic essay with never-before-published images by Randee St. Nicholas that flows from his 21 concerts in 21 nights in London last year — also featuring “Indigo Nights,” a CD of Prince’s “speak-easy, after-hours, raw, live after-show sessions of pure unadulterated jams.” HarperCollins officially announced today their new in-house internet broadcast studio, which has been creating author videos from their offices for sales, marketing […]