Bungei Shunjū Ltd. was established in 1923 by the best selling writer Kan Kikuchi. Along with books, the Japanese company publishes ten cultural magazines including the leading monthly magazine Bungei Shunjū.
Bungei Shunju grants the annual Akutagawa Prize, established in 1935, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Japan, as well as the annual Naoki Prize for popular novelists and the annual Bungei Shunjū Manga Award for achievement in Manga literature.
The publisher is well known for its tradition of discovering new literary talent, and it keeps a high profile in freedom of speech and anti-piracy issues.
Key Company Developments 2013
Financial
Revenues at Bungei increased slightly in fiscal year 2013. Growth has been relatively flat since 2011, after the company recovered from a five-year decline from 31 billion JPY in 2007 to 25.47 billion JPY.
International
Bungeishunju operates an office in New York.
Bestselling Authors & Titles
Bungei Shunjū is the Japanese publisher of Haruki Murakami. In spring 2013, it released the author’s latest novel, which translates as The Colorless Tasaki Tsukuru and the Year of His Pilgrimage. The book instantly outsold the internationally acclaimed previous novel 1Q84.
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