The Book People

Last updated
The Book People
Industry Retail
Book sales
Founded26 August 1988;35 years ago (1988-08-26)
FoundersTed and Nicola Smart
DefunctMarch 2, 2022 (2022-03-02)
Products Books

The Book People Ltd was a UK online bookseller founded in 1988. It went into administration in 2019 and was formally dissolved in 2022.

Contents

History

The Book People started business in 1988, initially in the Guildford, Surrey area. It expanded rapidly, and by 1990 the company had 140 distributors around the country. [1] A mail-order catalogue was followed by an online store in 1998. In 2002 the company opened offices in Haydock, Merseyside and, with part funding by the Welsh Government, a customer service centre and warehouse in Bangor. [2]

In 2007, The Book People won the Direct to Consumer Bookselling Company of the Year Award at the Bookseller Retail Awards. The company's founder Ted Smart received the Random House Group Award for Outstanding Contribution to Bookselling. [3]

A management buy-out of the company took place in 2014, with support from Endless LLP, a UK-based equity investor. By February 2016 the company was employing over 600 staff. [4]

On 17 December 2019, the BBC reported that The Book People had gone into administration. [5] PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) were appointed administrators, with the company continuing to trade while Endless LLP looked for a buyer. In August 2020 the company name was changed to TBP Realisations Limited. No buyer was ultimately found, and the company was formally dissolved in March 2022. [6]

Business activities

The Book People ordered titles in bulk directly from publishers and suppliers, forgoing the right of return. [7]

In conjunction with Scholastic the company hosted online bookshops for Channel 4's TV Book Club, CITV's Bookaboo , and the Big Book Babble programme. [8] Between 2008 and 2014 it hosted a biennial Queen of Teen award for authors of teen fiction. Winners were Louise Rennison (2008), Cathy Cassidy (2010), Maureen Johnson (2012) and Juno Dawson (2014). [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnes & Noble</span> American bookseller and retailer

Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. The company operates approximately 600 retail stores across all 50 U.S. states.

Waterstones Booksellers Limited, trading as Waterstones, is a British book retailer that operates 311 shops, mainly in the United Kingdom and also other nearby countries. As of February 2014, it employs around 3,500 staff in the UK and Europe. An average-sized Waterstones shop sells a range of approximately 30,000 individual books, as well as stationery and other related products.

The American Booksellers Association (ABA) is a non-profit trade association founded in 1900 that promotes independent bookstores in the United States. ABA's core members are key participants in their communities' local economy and culture, and to assist them ABA creates relevant programs; provides education, information, business products, and services; and engages in public policy and industry advocacy. The Association actively supports and defends free speech and the First Amendment rights of all Americans, without contradiction of equity and inclusion, through the American Booksellers for Free Expression. A volunteer board of 13 booksellers governs the Association. Previously headquartered in White Plains, New York, ABA became a fully remote organization in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ottakar's</span>

Ottakar's was a chain of bookshops in the United Kingdom founded in 1987 by James Heneage. Following a takeover by the HMV Group in 2006, the chain was merged into the Waterstone's brand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hatchards</span> Bookshop in London, England

Hatchards is an English bookshop claiming to be the oldest in the United Kingdom, founded on Piccadilly in 1797 by John Hatchard. After one move, it has been at the same location on Piccadilly next to Fortnum & Mason since 1801, and the two stores are also neighbours in St. Pancras railway station as of 2014. It has a reputation for attracting high-profile authors and holds three royal warrants granted by King Charles III, Queen Elizabeth II, and Prince Philip respectively.

AbeBooks is an e-commerce global online marketplace with seven websites that offer books, fine art, and collectables from sellers in over 50 countries. Launched in 1996, it specialises in used, rare and out-of-print books. AbeBooks has been a subsidiary of Amazon since 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bookselling</span> Business of selling and dealing with books

Bookselling is the commercial trading of books which is the retail and distribution end of the publishing process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Stohn</span> American-born Canadian lawyer and television producer

John Stephen Stohn, is an American-born Canadian entertainment lawyer and television producer. He is best known for his involvement with the Degrassi teen drama franchise, particularly as an executive producer on Degrassi: The Next Generation. Until 2018 he was the president of Epitome Pictures Inc., which he and his wife Linda Schuyler founded in 1992 and was sold to DHX Media in 2014. On June 7, 2019, he was installed as Chancellor of Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Elgar Publishing</span> Academic publishing company

Edward Elgar Publishing is a global publisher of academic books, journals and online resources in the social sciences and law. The company also publishes a social science and law blog with regular contributions from leading scholars.

The Eleanor Farjeon Award is made for distinguished service to the world of British children's books and is given to someone whose commitment and contribution is deemed to be outstanding. Founded in 1966, it is presented annually in memory of the celebrated author Eleanor Farjeon (1881–1965). The spirit of the award is to recognise the unsung heroes who contribute so much to every aspect of children's books. The award is administered by the Children's Book Circle and sponsored by the Eleanor Farjeon Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Book Depository</span> UK-based online book seller (founded in 2004)

Book Depository was a Gloucester, United Kingdom based online book seller. Founded by a former Amazon employee, it operated from 2004 to 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bathstore</span> Specialist bathroom retailer in the United Kingdom

Bathstore.com Ltd., is the largest specialist bathroom retailer in the United Kingdom.

Sir Tim Waterstone is a British bookseller, businessman and author. He is the founder of Waterstones, the United Kingdom-based bookseller retail chain, the largest in Europe.

Borders (UK) Ltd., also known as Borders & Books etc., was established as a Borders Group subsidiary in 1998, and in 2007 became independent of the US parent company. At its peak after separation from the US parent, it traded from its 41 Borders and 28 BOOKS etc. shops with over one million square feet of retail space, taking around 8% of the retail bookselling market. In 2008 and 2009 the store numbers were reduced before the collapse of the chain. They also operated one single branch in Ireland, but closed this early in 2009. On 26 November 2009 it was announced that Borders (UK) had gone into administration. All stores closed on 24 December 2009.

The Bookseller is a British magazine reporting news on the publishing industry. Philip Jones is editor-in-chief of the weekly print edition of the magazine and the website. The magazine is home to the Bookseller/Diagram Prize for Oddest Title of the Year, a humorous award given annually to the book with the oddest title. The award is organised by The Bookseller's diarist, Horace Bent, and had been administered in recent years by the former deputy editor, Joel Rickett, and former charts editor, Philip Stone. We Love This Book is its quarterly sister consumer website and email newsletter.

The Independent Online Booksellers Association (IOBA) is an international trade association of independent used and rare booksellers who sell online. IOBA is dedicated to ethical business practices that promote customer confidence. The organization offers members scholarships for continuing education, a mentorship program, resources for booksellers, and a virtual community for discussions on all aspects of the bookselling profession. With a diverse international membership of over 350 booksellers, IOBA members created and follow standards for ethical and safe bookselling online. Members must provide clear and accurate descriptions and prompt shipping with fair return policies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Works (retailer)</span> British discount store chain

TheWorks.co.uk PLC, trading as The Works, is a discount retailer based in the United Kingdom selling books, art and craft materials, gifts, toys, games and stationery. It has more than 500 stores across the UK and Ireland as of July 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zoe Sugg</span> English vlogger, businesswoman and author (born 1990)

Zoë Elizabeth Sugg, also known by her online name Zoella, is an English media personality, entrepreneur and author. She began her career as a YouTuber in 2009 and has since amassed over 10 million subscribers.

The Bisexual Book Awards are an annual literary award program, presented by the Bi Writers Association to honour the year's best works of literature addressing themes of bisexuality. The awards were presented for the first time in 2013.

Juno Dawson is an English author of young adult fiction and non-fiction. Dawson's notable works include This Book Is Gay, Mind Your Head, Margot & Me, The Gender Games, Clean, Meat Market, and the series, "Her Majesty's Royal Coven".

References

  1. About Us by Book People, 2016.
  2. "> Business > Book People to create 180 jobs in North Wales". News Wales. Retrieved 2013-08-02.
  3. Blackwell takes awards crown by Graeme Neill, thebookseller.com, 21 September 2007. Archived at Internet Archive.
  4. "Failure Page". Wck2.companieshouse.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 2012-03-24. Retrieved 2013-08-02.
  5. "The Book People goes into administration". 2019-12-17. Retrieved 2019-12-18.
  6. "TBP Realisations Limited". Companies House. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  7. Book People Promise by Book People, 2016.
  8. "Big Book Babble". Big Book Babble. 2013-01-22. Retrieved 2013-08-02.
  9. "Queen of teen 2014". Queen of Teen. Book People. Archived from the original on 2016-03-18.