Financial News
The US Census Bureau report for April 2024 shows bookstore sales of $596 million, up 2.4% from April 2023. For the first four months of 2024, bookstore sales were down 4.0% at $2.553 billion. All retail was up 3.6% for the month, and up 2.9% year-to-date.
The Association of American Publishers’ StatShort report for April shows sales up 18.3% compared to April 2023, with most major categories showing sales increases. Adult books sales jumped 25.1%; digital audiobooks stood out, with sales up 57.3%, while ebook sales rose 19.8%. In adult print formats, trade paperback sales shone, up 29.2%, while hardcover sales grew 17.6%. Adult fiction sales grew 26.5% in April, and 8.7% YTD. The children’s/young adult segment saw April sales up 5.5% over April 2023; by format, digital audiobooks sales had the biggest growth, up 41.5%, but still have a much smaller share of the children’s/young-adult segment than they have for the adult segment. Children’s/YA paperback sales rose 4.3%; hardcover sales gained 3.1%. Children’s/YA fiction sales increased 9.5%, while non-fiction sales fell 10.6%.
Bloomsbury Publishing had record sales and profits in their fiscal year ending 2/29/2024. Revenue rose 30% to £343 million (around $436 million) and profits grew 57% to £49 million (around $62 million). Consumer group sales jumped 49% to £249.2 million ($316 million), an increase credited primarily to a surge in demand for fantasy, most notably romantasy, and in particular, the works of Sarah J. Maas, whom chief executive Nigel Newton called “a publishing phenomenon.” Her sales were up 161% in the year; she’s had 16 titles out from Bloomsbury so far. Most of her books are YA, part of the children’s division, where sales were up 75% over the previous fiscal year at £191.3 million ($243 million). Children’s sales were also helped by continuing strong sales of Harry Potter books. Adult sales were flat, coming in at almost £58 million ($74 million). Other titles credited with strong sales were Samantha Shannon’s The Bone Season, boosted by a revised and expanded tenth anniversary edition, and Trang Thanh Tran’s She Is a Haunting. The US remains Bloomsbury’s largest market, making up almost 56% of sales (about $253 million) in the fiscal year.
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