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International Literary Properties invests in, acquires, manages and enhances literary estates. With decades of experience, we work with authors and their representatives to help realise the value of literary properties, protect their legacy and create new opportunities.


PUBLISHER OF THE YEAR SIMON & SCHUSTER


THE SHORTLIST Bloomsbury Canongate Ebury Faber


John Murray Press Orion Penguin General Usborne


I


n an exceptionally strong year for trade publishing, it took an extra- special sales performance to stand out—and after years in the shadow of


the UK’s Big Four, Simon & Schuster delivered it. With the caveat of gaps in data, S&S’ perfor-


PICTURED


BOB MORTIMERS MEMOIR WAS A HIT FOR SIMON & SCHUSTER


mance through the TCM was comfortably its best ever, rising 39% by its full-year estimates. The biggest numbers came from the unpredict- able celebrity memoir market, which it nailed in spectacular fashion with Dave Grohl and Bob Mortimer. Other non-fiction hits included topical conversation-starters from Peter Oborne, Jess Phillips and Michael Holding, while its fiction was powered by Kathy Reichs, Louise Candlish, Santa Montefiore and many more. The children’s arm excelled, with TCM gains of nearly 50%; Ben Miller, Katie and Kevin Tsang, and Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet’s Supertato were standouts. In the backlist, S&S benefited more than


anyone from the TikTok phenomenon, which brought the sales of authors including Colleen Hoover, Adam Silvera and Taylor Jenkins Reid roaring back. Growth in e-books, audio and exports was on a par with its TCM rise, and there were concerted efforts to improve on diversity and inclusion and sustainability. Two years on from the first reports of a


sale by parent ViacomCBS, the future of S&S remains uncertain, with Bertelsmann’s proposed acquisition still crawling through the US courts. The disruption makes the 2021 performance in the UK even more impressive—and if it proves to be the publisher’s last standalone appearance at the awards, it goes out on a high. “It was a transformative year for Simon & Schuster,” said the judges. “Its books seemed to be every- where… it had the lot: big-hitting frontlist, strength in depth and publishing teams at the top of their game.”


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