In another step toward merging operations of Penguin Canada and Random House of Canada, Penguin Canada president and publisher Nicole Winstanley has announced that the Cooke Agency International (TCAI) will begin selling foreign rights for Penguin Canada’s list.
TCAI has been selling foreign rights for Random House of Canada since 2009 when the company closed its in-house rights department and formed a partnership with TCAI.
“Foreign rights have always been an important part of the publishing process for me so I am very pleased about the partnership with The Cooke Agency International and together we will ensure that our authors find readerships around the world,” said Winstanley in the announcement.
“As owners of The Cooke Agency International, Sally Harding and I are thrilled to be working with Penguin Canada,” said Dean Cooke. “Nicole’s expertise in international markets will be an asset to us all.” Winstanley was international rights director for the Westwood Creative Artists agency early in her career.
The Cooke Agency International was launched in 2009 and is the only agency in Canada focusing exclusively on foreign markets. Its clients include Random House of Canada, Rick Broadhead & Associates, speculative fiction publishers ChiZine and Small Beer Press, and The Cooke Agency International’s sister company, The Cooke Agency.
Penguin Random House Canada previously announced the merging of the Penguin Canada and Random House of Canada sales forces in 2013, which resulted in some job losses, but Penguin Canada's director of publicity Ashley Audrain told PW that the partnership with TCAI did not require any changes to the Penguin Canada team or staff roles.
