Sourcebooks had the best year in its history in 2011, founder Dominique Raccah reported on her blog post with total revenue up 19%. Growth was driven by sales of e-books plus sales to gift stores and mass merchants. While print book sales rose slightly, e-book growth skyrocketed 795% and now accounts for 28% of Sourcebooks’ total revenue. Raccah stressed however, that she believes print is far from dead, observing that “with the right strategic focus, we believe that print books can remain strong.”
Even after Christmas, Raccah said, the decline in print books “looks modest” with e-book sales continuing to be strong, up 138% in the week ending January 1, 2012. Raccah noted that while Amazon has been its largest channel for e-book sales, the Nook gained market share throughout the fourth quarter, topped by a 437% increase during December and the week of Christmas.
