Publishing revenue at Hachette Book Group parent company Lagardère Publishing came in at €767 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023, down 1.6% compared to the same period in 2022. Overall, revenue remains up 0.9% through the first nine months of 2023, at €2.014 billion.
In the U.S., CEO Michael Pietsch said Hachette Book Group's third quarter revenues dipped 5.2% due to "a lighter publication schedule" compared to the same period last year and "a downward trend" in the overall publishing market. "HBG’s third quarter revenues included strong performances in backlist, audiobooks, science fiction and fantasy, Mini Kits, children’s books, and travel books," he said, noting "a generally soft market for new titles and print formats" and "challenging comparisons" with two of last year’s biggest breakouts, Dolly Parton and James Patterson’s Run, Rose, Run and Colleen Hoover’s Verity.
Pietsch said HBG is expecting a strong fourth quarter this year,with new books from David Baldacci, Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush, Michael Connelly, Patricia Cornwell, Philip Glass, Kerri Maniscalco, Ben Mezrich, James Patterson, and Kerry Washington.
Revenue was also down 5% at Hachette Livre in France, in a soft market, “primarily reflecting the fact that Guillaume Musso did not release a new large-format or Livre de Poche paperback during the period.”
Results were more positive in other markets. In the U.K., revenue was up 5.6% in what officials called "a slightly more buoyant market," with sales driven by such "frontlist successes" as Stephen King’s Holly and Rebecca Yarros’s Fourth Wing, as well as "a strong backlist performance.” And in Spain and Latin America, revenue was up by a 9.3%, mainly owing to "the peak of the school curriculum reform campaign in Spain and a strong performance by the trade segment in Mexico.”
Full results are available in Lagardère’s press release. Full fiscal year 2023 results will be announced on February 27, 2024.
