‘Readers are turning to books as affordable,’ says Bloomsbury CEO
Bloomsbury boss Nigel Newton says ‘readers are turning to books’ as entertainment costs soar after publisher toasts to record annual sales
- Turnover at the publishing business increased by 15 percent to a record £264.1 million
- Bloomsbury’s pre-tax profit also beat expectations, reaching £31.1 million
- Sarah J. Maas is the author of the Crescent City anthology of fantasy novels
Bloomsbury Publishing posted its best annual performance ever, with its founder claiming struggling consumers are turning to books amid the cost-of-living crisis.
Sales at the publishing house rose 15 per cent to a record £264.1 million for the 12 months ended February, reflecting continued high demand for Harry Potter books and titles from fantasy author Sarah J. Maas.
Purchases of Maas’s works increased by more than half thanks to the release of the New York Times bestseller House of Sky and Breath, the latest in her Crescent City series, as well as backlist sales of books such as A Court of Silver Flames.
Treat: “In tough economic times, readers turn to books that are as affordable as they cut back on more expensive forms of diversion,” said Bloomsbury founder Nigel Newton (pictured)
Other Bloomsbury bestsellers during the year included Stolen Focus by Johann Hari, Bake by television star Paul Hollywood, We’re Going on an Egg Hunt and Five Little Easter Bunnies by Martha Mumford.
Meanwhile, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was the UK’s third most popular children’s book as fans of the iconic anthology celebrated its 25th anniversary.
“In tough economic times, readers turn to books that are as affordable as they cut back on more expensive forms of distraction,” said Nigel Newton, founder and CEO of Bloomsbury.
Book sales were already growing significantly before the current economic crisis, as pandemic restrictions encouraged people to spend more time at home.
But even as people begin to spend more time outside again, Newton has predicted that the Covid-induced boom in reading would not abate as lockdowns forced people to “re-evaluate how we spend our time and our hobbies.”
Pre-tax profit also beat forecasts last year, reaching a record £31.1m, driven by robust growth from the higher margin Bloomsbury Digital Resources (BDR) business.
The division’s revenue rose 41 percent, driven by massive sales of digital products and the acquisition of California-based publishing company ABC-CLIO, which supplies digital materials to educational institutions in the US.
Bloomsbury now gets nearly half of its sales from the US, compared to 27 percent in the UK, a market on which it has tried to reduce its dependence in recent years.
Following the impressive performance, the company now aims to increase BDR’s organic sales by 40 per cent to around £37 million over the next five years.
Newton said the results “demonstrate the strength of our strategy to publish for both the consumer and academic markets, unusual in our industry, and grow digital revenue as we expand globally.”
The company recently signed a four-book contract with Sarah J. Maas and expects the upcoming Harry Potter television series, produced by HBO Max, to “stimulate further interest” in the fantasy books.
Bloomsbury Publishing Shares were 0.5 percent higher Wednesday afternoon at 412.5 pence, meaning their value is up about 93 percent over the past three years.