PAST WINNERS: 2025
Competition for the 2025 award was so strong that for the first time in its history there were two winners: the fiction and children’s powerhouses Boldwood Books and Magic Cat Publishing. Both publishers turned five in 2024, both are run by exceptional female entrepreneurs and both have previously also triumphed in the Nibbies' Small Press of the Year category.
PUSHKIN PRESS
THE SHORTLIST
And Other Stories
Boldwood Books
Boydell & Brewer Canongate Graffeg Joffe Books SPCK Swift Press Titan Books
TRADE AWARDS
Independent Publisher of the Year
Pushkin Press turns 30 in 2027, but it retains all the energy and entrepreneurial spirit of a start-up – and it had by far its best year yet in 2025. Under MD Adam Freudenheim (pictured), Pushkin punched way above its weight. While
most trade publishers struggled for growth, it nearly doubled its sales through the TCM. Much of this came from Uketsu’s Strange Pictures and Strange Houses and Seishi Yokomizo’s Murder at the Black Cat Café – three books that typify Pushkin’s ability to anticipate hot trends such as Japanese crime. Like many indies, Pushkin has always been a very proactive publisher, and in 2025 it looked beyond the frontlist to repackage old classics including Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla and the Choose Your Own Adventure concept for new generations. All the output was tightly controlled and brilliantly marketed by Pushkin’s small team,
especially via bookshop promotions. The formula is also working in the US, where sales more than doubled. Judges also admired Pushkin’s covers – especially those for Uketsu by Designer of the Year Luke Bird – and saw good progress on issues including diversity and sustainability.
This shortlist includes the winner of Small Press of the Year, and the winner of this category, Pushkin Press, joins the shortlist for Publisher of the Year.
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