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Quercus publisher of the year at The Bookseller Industry Awards
17.05.11 | Lisa Campbell
Quercus has been crowned 2011's best publisher at The Bookseller Industry Awards, as Sainsbury's scooped the Bookseller of the Year award.
Quercus was presented with the Bonnier Publishing Publisher of the Year Award at the black-tie event attended by around 600 people in London's Park Lane Hilton yesterday evening (16th May) after experiencing 100% growth in the past 12 months to become the 11th largest publishing house in the UK. One judge said: "They've got the numbers, the people and the energy. I admire them, and their achievements."
Sainsbury's was honoured with the Martina Cole General or Chain Bookselling Company of the Year Award after reinvigorating book zones, increasing book sales by more than 33% and attracting new book buyers to the market. One judge said: "We should celebrate the fact that they are embracing books and offering people an alternative place to buy—somewhere they can spend time browsing as well as buying."
Faber & Faber was a double winner, clinching the Ingram Independent Publisher of the Year Award and the FutureBook Digital Innovation Prize with Touch Press for their Solar System for iPad app. The judges complimented Faber's successful schemes such as the Faber Factory, a digital service launched last September. One panel member said the publisher boasted a back-end that was doing "amazingly well" alongside "tonnes of poetry successes". Faber c.e.o. Stephen Page was also praised for the range of innovations under his leadership, with one judge claiming "he has done a huge amount for the industry".
With a list including Rose Tremain's Trespass and Edmund de Waal's The Hare with Amber Eyes, Clara Farmer was awarded Imprint and Editor for the Year for her stewardship of Chatto & Windus. Her first year in charge saw the second highest turnover in its 156-year history. Scholastic's Alison Green was highly commended for the Alison Green Books imprint. Children's Publisher of the Year went to Penguin Children's Books for "an amazing all-round performance". Simon & Schuster was highly commended for "good taste, vibrant publishing and numerous award wins".
Initiatives such as the launch of a UK-specific e-book store and e-reader led Amazon.co.uk to win Direct Bookselling Company of the Year. Waterstone's won the Usborne Children's Bookseller of the Year.
London independent Tales on Moon Lane was another double winner on the night. The indie bagged the Walker Books Children's Independent Bookseller of the Year, while employee Georgina Hanratty won the HarperCollins Sue Butterworth Young Bookseller award—the latter gong was jointly given to Micha Solana from Blackwell's Royal Bank of Scotland shop in Edinburgh. It was Blackwell's second award of the evening, with Zool Verjee voted Lynda La Plante Manager of the Year for his work at its Broad Street Oxford branch.
The Gardners Books Independent Bookseller of the Year was Bath's Mr B's Emporium of Reading Delights, complimented for striking a balance "between old-style bookselling and new things outstandingly well". The Main Street Trading Company in St Boswell's, Scottish Borders, and The Gutter Bookshop in Dublin were all highly commended in this category.
Corvus' Rina Gill won PPC Publicity Campaign of the Year for her work on Karl Marlantes' Matterhorn, with Ruth Waldram at William Heinemann highly commended for her work on Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird's 50th anniversary campaign.
The Orion Literary Agent Award was given to Robert Kirby of United Agents, and Frankfurt Book Fair Rights Professional of the Year was bestowed on Jake Smith-Bosanquet of Conville & Walsh.
Harlequin UK won Nielsen Marketing Campaign of the Year for Mills & Boon New Voices. The London Borough of Hillingdon Libraries was crowned Library Innovation of the Year for its library refurbishment programme, which was described by one judge as helping to make libraries "a better place to visit".
The Bookseller editor-in-chief and chair of the judging panel Neill Denny said: "Despite operating in a fast-changing market, the winners of these awards have shown themselves to be innovative and successful during a challenging time for the industry."
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Well done all. Interesting that in the write-up, Waterstone's get a mere line for what is surely a major award...
Oh how I don't miss the hangover.....well done to Ros and her team at Main Street Trading co for getting a mention.
Children's Bookseller of the year is surely important?
Hey ho.
Anyway, what's with Sainsbury's getting that big award? What do they do that warrants it? Sell chart titles cheap? Wow. big innovation.
Sainsburys' win sits a little uncomfortably with me, as it does do with many Tweeters from the looks of it. Although their sales are undoubtedly impressive, not sure sales alone should qualify it as the best 'general or chain' bookselling company of the year. Were aspects such as staff knowledge, shopping experience, range, bookseller enthusiasm, local marketing, not taken into consideration?
Congratulations to Sainsburys. I must pop in there sometime, as I fancy reading the John Updike Rabbit novels.
What? They don't stock them? - On well, I suppose I'll have to place a customer order.
What? They don't do customer orders either?!
Hmmm...
I will test this theory later... I will go to Sainsburys and ask the first member of staff I see near their books section a book-related question. I will report the no-doubt baffled response. Any ideas on a suitable question?
Something simple like "Do you know the name of the last Dan Brown book?" will probably flumox them.
Huge congratulations to Clara Farmer and her Chatto team, richly deserved win. (Yes, I am biased.)
Maybe the bookseller should provide details behind there award giving process.
I some how don't understand what Sainsburys have done to win this award. To me they have just looked at other supermarkets i.e. Tesco and Asda and copied there ideas. This doesn't warrent bookseller of the year award.
ooh what book snobs you all are - bearing in mind the overall state of the so-called 'bricks & mortar' market, I would have thought we should be all embracing anything that is encouraging any kind of book purchasing. Many people are quite intimidated going in to a 'proper' bookshop, so actually Sainsbury's have done a marvellous thing, bringing reading and the opportunity to browse more in touch with their customers - the result good sales growth - seriously, if we continue to be snobs about it, and not reward new routes to market (and awards like these are rewards aren't they) then how do we expect book sales to flourish - let's not be snobs about our product, it is rather unattractive to read. Oh and Sainsbury's staff are not to be attacked, they are working in a supermarket for goodness sake, let's be realistic!
The question is what have Sainsburys done that Asda, Tesco, etc have not?
They all sell chart titles at cheap prices. I'm not bitching, I just want to know why they won the award?
As for the comment above, re. staff knowledge, I think he was being snippy but he has a point...
Hopefully Quercus can resist the advances of Random House...nudge nudge
Huge congratulations to Tales on Moon Lane - a great children's bookshop. Proud to support them.
They moved around the bookshelves in our local Sainsburys. With that kind of investment i fail to see how anyone can complain at their award.
Well done to Nic/Ros and everyone at the Mr B's and Main Street.
It's not simple snobbery. The point is that bookselling involves a number of different facets - stocking a large range of titles, taking risks on unknown authors, ordering books that aren't in stock, giving customers information about books in print, holding author events and recommending new writers.
That's bookselling.
Stocking a limited range of mass and middle market titles, mostly written by authors with a proven track record, supplied by publishers on terms that would make an independent bookseller weep, is not bookselling. It is selling books.
Sainsbury's are ruthless profiteers solely motivated by sales and marketshare. They have zero interest or loyalty to books or readers. Those who commend or approve of their fleeting dalliance with books are short-sighted, money grubbing desperates.
They clearly didn't include my local branch of Sainsbury's in their final decision. The books 'section' is essentially one shelf in the farthest corner of the store and it took one member of staff I asked 10 minutes to locate it.
Right. I'm back.
Me: "Hi, do you have the latest book from Charlaine Harris?"
Staff: "Er... who, sorry?"
The conversation went downhill from there, I assure you.
Now, I'm sure Sainsburys do good work but please can someone explain to me why they deserved to win the award? Unless it is purely based on sales, which then makes it a very mercenary affair.
Sainbury's win suggests that the following aspects are considered of no relevance in identifying a good bookseller:
- Knowledgeable staff on hand to offer advice and recommendations
- Commitment to range, backlist and unproven authors
- Catering for diverse local communities
- A well-programmed events schedule
Perhaps the others on the shortlist fell short in their provision of discounted washing powder and flavourless tomatoes? Or should we all be pumping the smell of fresh bread thorugh the stacks?
In my opinion Quercus are easily the best new publisher around. They had the good sense and foresight to sign up Stieg Larsson (after he was dead but before he became famous) and have gone from strength to strength ever since. I wish them every possible success in the future.
Yggdrasil... I love you for your comment, and offer you the use of my wife.
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