Penguin Random House will distribute all titles published by Boom! Studios starting July 1, taking over distribution to the bookstore trade from Simon & Schuster and to the direct market from Diamond Comic Distributors. The distribution agreement follows the August acquisition of Boom! by the Random House Publishing Group, where it is now an imprint of Random House Worlds.
“Everyone at BOOM! Studios is incredibly grateful for the many years of dedicated support and service we have received from both Diamond Comic Distributors and Simon & Schuster,” said Jen Harned, Boom! president and executive director of business management and publishing operations, in a statement. “We cannot overstate how critical both partnerships have been in building our business in the direct comic book, book trade, library, international, and mass markets. As we integrate Boom! Studios’ operations with Penguin Random House, taking full advantage of our new parent’s scale and global reach, we remain appreciative of all they continue to do for the comic and graphic book industry.”
The move at Boom! is part of PRH’s continued investment in the comics and graphic novel space. In addition to Boom!, new comics imprints at the publisher include the manga and webtoon–focused Inklore, which launched last year, the company has inked distribution agreements with such major players in the comics market as Dark Horse, IDW, Marvel Comics, TokyoPop, and Wattpad Webtoon over the past several years.
The acquisition was also the latest in a string of deals made by PRH after its purchase of Simon & Schuster was blocked by the Department of Justice. Last year, PRH upped its stake in Sourcebooks to a majority interest, bought the bankrupt Callisto Media and folded it into Sourcebooks, and acquired self-help and wellness publisher Hay House. This year, it purchased the assets of Amber-Allen Publishing and acquired illustrated book publisher Compendium.
